Meta Ordered to Pay $942M Over Harms to Kids on Social Media
Meta Ordered to Pay $942M to Address Harm to Kids from Social Media
A federal judge ruled that Meta must pay $942 million to address the harm its platforms cause to children, marking one of the largest penalties in a social media case. The decision follows years of lawsuits and investigations into how Instagram and Facebook contribute to teen mental health issues. Meta says it plans to appeal, arguing the company has already invested heavily in child safety features.
This is a landmark ruling that sends a clear message: tech giants cannot profit from the well-being of our children.
- tmp10423288442
A lot of people on this story are making the usual snarky remarks that, oh, this is just a slap on the wrist—some trivial proportion of Meta’s global revenue. And that is true, but unlike the EU, for example, New Mexico is a tiny jurisdiction. It only has a little bit more than 2 million people.
So actually, a fine—or a judgment—of $942 million that applies just to New Mexico is enormous. If you look at Meta’s revenue from the U.S. and Canada and assign it proportionally by population, you find that Meta only earned about $1.5 billion to $2 billion total from New Mexico over the past five years. The exact figure depends on whether you allocate purely by population or account for purchasing power, which makes the estimate a little lower because New Mexico is a poorer state than the U.S. average.
Given that, the judgment is a half to two-thirds of what Meta could have obtained from New Mexico. So it is actually a serious deterrent, assuming Meta thinks New Mexico would continue to impose fines of that size.
I also think that there’s a good chance this judgment gets overturned or significantly reduced on appeal, but even if the fine drops to half its current level, it would be proportionately larger than almost any fine against any company, let alone tech, that I’ve heard of.
- tristanj
Per the court ruling [0], the specific law that Meta violated was New Mexico’s public-nuisance law, NMSA 1978 § 30-8-1. The relevant section that was violated is [1]:
A public nuisance consists of knowingly creating, performing or maintaining anything affecting any number of citizens without lawful authority which is either:
- A. injurious to public health, safety, morals or welfare; or
- B. interferes with the exercise and enjoyment of public rights, including the right to use public property.
Whoever commits a public nuisance for which the act or penalty is not otherwise prescribed by law is guilty of a petty misdemeanor.
The judge found that Meta’s operation of Facebook and Instagram created a public nuisance which injured public health, safety, and welfare; and burdened public schools, hospitals, and law enforcement. The judge ordered Meta to pay $567 million into a fund to abate the harm done.
[0] https://www.kob.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/D-101-CV-2023...
[1] https://law.justia.com/codes/new-mexico/chapter-30/article-8...
- sajithdilshan
Instagram (reels) and tiktok are truly online version of Heroine equivalent. I remember during pandemic time downloading tiktok just to see what's all the hype was about and next thing, I was wasting hours mindlessly scrolling through it. Later on same happened with reels as well. I would open the app thinking maybe just check for 15mins and time just goes by so fast and I would end-up wasting hours on it.
Also, the comment sections are the worst. Total brainrot repetitive comments by people just seeking for more likes. Last year I finally deleted tiktok and few weeks ago I've deactivated my instagram account. Since then, I have actually been sleeping much better and also less negativity and stress in my life.
- wuliwong
I know very little about this case. My guess is Tiktok, twitter/X, and some other platforms could also be subject to this type of court ruling. Is there any thought of this opening up the floodgates for this type of thing or is more likely going to be a one off event?
- majorchord
I wonder how many billions it would take every year for this to not just be considered "cost of doing business"?
- FLeXMurphy
I wonder if this is just various countries at this point trying to extort Meta. Making money is hard and these countries survive based off of taxes and corruption. I include EU in this as a very brazen example of coordinated corruption dovetailing into hypocrisy.
- ChrisMarshallNY
It's a bit ironic, as New Mexico is absolutely terrible at treating mental health; especially in poor folks. I'll lay odds that it's down near the bottom of the list.
I have known a few folks with relatives in New Mexico that have had mental heath issues, and it was a nightmare for them. They were brought to New York, where they finally got decent treatment.
I am told (by New Mexicans), that this is because New Mexico voters don't want any healthcare going to immigrants.
- morning_poster
This ruling is absurd. The "harm" alleged could be produced not only by any social media, but by any mass media. But this ruling is really not about that-- it is a shot across the bow of Facebook and the rest of Big Tech warning them to get in line with the official propaganda or the US government will make their lives very difficult. Notice how this wasn't happening to Facebook when they were banning anyone that posted the wrong opinion about the Ukraine War or Covid shots.
- 1vuio0pswjnm7
49204301 | NM court orders Meta to pay $567M, make changes for underage users | https://www.kob.com/new-mexico/nm-court-orders-meta-to-pay-5... | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49204301
49204500 | New Mexico court orders Meta to pay $567M over harms to children's mental health | https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/aug/06/new-mexic... | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49204500
49204501 | Meta fined $567M in largest child safety ruling against social media giant | https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cd7lz3wr2rlo | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49204501
49205817 | Meta ordered to pay $567M in New Mexico for teen mental health fund | https://www.reuters.com/world/new-mexico-court-orders-meta-p... | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49205817
- drivebyhooting
What benefit do kids draw from instagram and facebook?