Key facts
- Meta is on trial in Oakland, California, facing a lawsuit from 29 US states.
- The lawsuit alleges Meta designed addictive products that harm children and violated child privacy laws.
- States claim Meta collected data on children under 13 without parental permission.
- Meta denies the allegations and argues the states are pursuing an "outlandish payout."
- Potential damages could reach $200 billion if Meta is found liable.
- A former Meta safety engineer testified about negative experiences on Instagram and ineffective reporting tools.
Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, is facing a landmark trial in Oakland, California, where 29 US states allege the tech giant designed its platforms to be addictive, causing harm to children and violating privacy laws. California lawyer Megan O’Neill opened the case by describing Meta’s business model as a four-step process: hook, hold, harvest, and hide, arguing it was particularly effective at engaging young users.
The lawsuit contends that Meta violated federal child privacy laws and state consumer protection statutes by collecting data from children under 13 without parental consent. The states are seeking substantial damages, potentially as high as $200 billion, and are also asking for changes to Meta’s product design to enhance child safety, which could fundamentally alter its business model.
Meta has vehemently denied the accusations. Company spokesperson Liza Crenshaw stated that the states are pursuing an "outlandish payout" rather than focusing on facts and law. Meta’s lead attorney, Paul Schmidt, acknowledged that users can struggle with social media but asserted that the company has implemented tools to address these issues, noting that Meta prohibits accounts for users under 13 and has disabled over a million such accounts.
During the trial's first week, former Meta safety engineer Arturo Béjar testified as a key witness. Béjar, who worked for Meta in two stints between 2009 and 2021, described his motivation stemming from his own daughter’s negative experiences on Instagram, including unwanted advances and misogynistic content, and found the platform’s reporting mechanisms ineffective. He testified that he had briefed CEO Mark Zuckerberg over 100 times and shared survey data in 2021 indicating that 51% of teens reported harmful experiences on Instagram within the previous seven days, with content removal occurring in only 0.02% of cases. Béjar stated Zuckerberg did not respond to this data.
Meta attempted to prevent Béjar from testifying, but these efforts were rejected. The company has also publicly criticized Béjar’s credibility. The jury will also hear from other former Meta employees and a psychology professor, with Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri expected to testify later in the proceedings. The trial, led by attorneys from California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey, is expected to last six to eight weeks, with the jury’s role being advisory to Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers. Meta has previously lost two similar cases, resulting in nearly $1 billion in damages for one state and over $4 million for an individual.