Ivy Caldwell
A judge in New Mexico has mandated that Meta pay a staggering $25 billion fine after a jury determined that the company was guilty of violating privacy laws and deliberately exposing users in the state to harmful material, as reported by Reuters.
The legal action originates from the 2018 Cambridge Analytica scandal, during which the personal data of millions of Facebook users was made accessible to a political consulting firm without any user consent.
Meta has consistently minimized the repercussions of that incident, with executive Andrew Bosworth claiming in 2020 that the Cambridge Analytica episode was a “non-event” and characterized the firm as essentially a collection of “snake oil salesmen” lacking real influence.
Regardless, the case exposed significant deficiencies in Meta’s data security protocols, which led the FTC to impose a $5 billion fine for related violations in 2019
A coalition of 52 state attorneys general across the U.S. subsequently sought further penalties on behalf of Facebook users in their jurisdictions. Those claims were ultimately incorporated into a larger legal initiative to hold Meta responsible for its failure to safeguard young users. The company reached a settlement in that case for $18 billion in August
However, New Mexico chose to pursue its own legal action, resulting in this substantial penalty.
According to Reuters: “The state accused Meta of misleading Facebook users in New Mexico regarding who had access to their data and how it managed hate speech and misinformation on the platform. It claimed that the company was aware that third parties had extensive access to user data and allowed hate speech and other harmful content when it served the company’s financial interests.”
After a jury found Meta liable, the judge determined that the fine should be set at $25 billion, while also recognizing that a larger penalty of $219 billion was justified under New Mexico state law.
This ruling represents another significant setback for Meta, which continues to face enormous fines both domestically and internationally.
The outcome also undermines Meta’s safety initiatives. This is crucial as the company attempts to persuade users to share more of their personal information with its Muse artificial intelligence agents.
Reuters reported that Meta’s Chief Legal Officer C.J. Mahoney criticized the ruling. In a statement, Mahoney asserted that the decision imposes considerable limitations on businesses operating in the state.
Mahoney further informed Reuters that Meta plans to appeal the fine.
Maya Kensington
Troy Sanders
