Key facts
- New Mexico's Attorney General Raúl Torrez is drafting new legislation to enhance child safety and consumer protections on technology platforms.
- A jury found Meta liable for misleading users and enabling harm, leading to a nearly $1 billion fine.
- The state is pursuing additional lawsuits against Meta and an AI company over chatbot use by children.
- The proposed laws aim to create a broader consumer protection framework for emerging technologies.
- Meta plans to appeal the ruling, arguing the claims are unsubstantiated and penalties disproportionate.
New Mexico's Attorney General Raúl Torrez is leveraging a significant court victory against Meta to push for new social media safety laws. Following a jury's finding that Meta misled users and enabled harm, including child sexual exploitation, the company was fined nearly $1 billion. This landmark case, the first to hold Meta liable for harms on its platforms, has emboldened Torrez to work with state lawmakers on two new bills aimed at strengthening consumer protections and child safety online.
The proposed legislation is expected to extend beyond traditional social media to encompass emerging technologies like artificial intelligence and chatbots, building on the state's successful case against Meta. Torrez is also pursuing other lawsuits, including a second case against Meta and one against an AI company whose chatbot has reportedly formed emotional attachments with children.
Meta has stated it has strict rules against child exploitation and has invested billions in combating it, citing its efforts in removing millions of pieces of harmful content and introducing features like 'teen accounts'. However, the company is appealing the recent ruling, which also imposed a five-year period of court-ordered reforms, including age verification and usage limits for minors.
The New Mexico lawsuit has drawn considerable interest from other states, municipalities, and private plaintiffs, with potential damages in related litigation against Meta estimated to exceed $1.4 trillion. Torrez believes that while federal legislation is ultimately needed, states cannot afford to wait for Congress to act, citing a lack of forceful action from House Speaker Mike Johnson on online child protection.