The attorneys general have alleged that despite research showing Facebook and Instagram use is associated with depression and other mental health issues, Meta won’t remove the platforms’ harmful features
Meta Platforms Inc must face a lawsuit by dozens of state attorneys general alleging it knowingly contributed to a youth mental health crisis by getting kids hooked on social media.
A federal judge in California on Tuesday sided with 34 attorneys general in allowing some of the claims over Meta’s Facebook and Instagram platforms to proceed in sprawling litigation over the harmful effects of social media.
US District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, who issued the ruling, is overseeing hundreds of lawsuits alleging that a handful of social media companies — including Google’s YouTube, ByteDance’s TikTok and Snap, as well as Meta — have profited from the addiction of young people to their products. Tuesday’s ruling involves only the allegations brought by the state attorneys general against Meta.
The attorneys general have alleged that despite research showing Facebook and Instagram use is associated with depression and other mental health issues, Meta won’t remove the platforms’ harmful features.
They also claimed that Meta unlawfully collected data of children under 13 years old. In October, TikTok was sued over similar claims in 13 state courts and in Washington, DC. The states accused the company of deceiving users about its child safety tools and using harmful features to keep children on the platform longer to maximize profits. A TikTok spokesperson called the claims “inaccurate and misleading.”
A Meta spokesperson said the company disagrees with the overall ruling even while it welcomes the dismissal of some claims under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, a longstanding federal law shielding internet companies from lawsuits.
“We’ve developed numerous tools to support parents and teens, and we recently announced that we’re significantly changing the Instagram experience for tens of millions of teens with new Teen Accounts, a protected experience for teens that automatically limits who can contact them and the content they see,” the spokesperson said in an email.
“We believe the evidence will demonstrate our commitment to supporting young people.”