New Mexico Judge Orders Meta to Pay $567 Million and Implement Youth Safety Measures

A New Mexico judge ordered Meta Platforms Inc. to pay $567 million into a teen mental-health fund and to modify its services for minors after finding the company created a public nuisance that harms children’s well-being. Judge Bryan Biedscheid said the platforms’ design and lack of safeguards contributed to addiction and exposure to sexual exploitation, and mandated limits on teen usage, tighter notification controls, stricter adult-minor interaction rules, safeguards for AI chatbots, and enhanced review of child sexual-abuse reports for five years.

The ruling follows a prior jury verdict that required Meta to pay $375 million for violating consumer-protection laws by misrepresenting the safety of Facebook and Instagram for young users. State and local governments have increasingly used public-nuisance claims against tech firms, a legal strategy previously applied to tobacco, opioids, climate change and vaping.

"We remain confident in our record of protecting teens online and will continue to defend ourselves against claims that misrepresent the facts," Meta said in a statement, adding it will appeal the decision.

Attorney General Raúl Torrez, who brought the case, said the judgment forces a major social-media company to change its practices and provides a model for other jurisdictions.

Judge Biedscheid rejected Meta’s arguments that Section 230 shielded it from liability and that the requested changes were technologically impossible, though she declined to order alterations to certain algorithmic features, citing First Amendment and competitive-rights concerns. The decision arrives as Meta prepares for additional federal lawsuits alleging that its platforms are designed to addict children.