Attorneys General in 41 US states and the District of Columbia filed a class action lawsuit against Meta. The move comes after the conclusion of a multi-state investigation that began in 2021, where a bipartisan coalition began looking into how Facebook and Instagram features are designed to addict and harm children.
In 2021, the Massachusetts attorney general's office led a multi-state investigation into the "impact of Instagram on youth" when the Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen revealed that they knew Instagram was "toxic" for teenage girls, but downplayed the risks to the public. In today's press release, the attorney general of Massachusetts, Andrea Joy Campbell , accused Meta of "deliberately" exploiting "the passion of young users for profit".
Eight states and Washington DC filed lawsuits against Meta in state and local courts, while 33 states filed a joint lawsuit in federal court in California. Reported the Washington Post.
According to the Post, all of these lawsuits together mark the "most significant effort" yet to force social media platforms to carefully weigh the potential harms to children when designing their products.
Prior to the announcement of the states, a spokesperson for Meta he reported to Reuters that Meta is "disappointed that instead of working productively with companies across the industry to create clear, age-appropriate standards for the many apps used by teens, the attorneys general chose this path."
Campbell's office, on the other hand, said Meta left the state no choice but to sue, "because Meta has shown she will not act responsibly unless required by the courts."
In addition to accusing Meta of harming children, Campbell's office claims that Meta's defective products have placed an "undue" burden on state school systems, which have reportedly had to increase mental health spending to "address the harms to mental and physical health of young people".
"Meta preys on our youth and has chosen to benefit by targeting and knowingly exploiting their passions," Campbell said. "In doing so, Meta has made a significant contribution to the ongoing mental health crisis of our children and adolescents."
