In brief
A U.S. judge in New Mexico ordered Meta to pay $567 million more for failing to warn the public about child‑safety risks, pushing the total to $942 million. The decision casts Meta as a public nuisance and requires a fund for child‑harm mitigation, training for educators and a host of tighter age‑verification rules. Meta will appeal, but the ruling adds to a wave of lawsuits and regulatory pressure seen worldwide.
Meta fined $567m in largest child safety ruling against social media giant
In a historic decision, a federal judge in New Mexico ordered Meta to pay $567 million—bringing the company’s total fine over child‑safety claims to $942 million.
The judge described Meta as a public nuisance, equating its algorithmic recommendation system to air pollution that harms children and the wider community.
Meta is required to set up a fund that will fund clinical and behavioural‑health programmes for affected children, plus training for teachers, healthcare professionals and parents.
Additional conditions include banning adult messages to users under 18, eliminating likes for under‑18 users, curbing push notifications overnight, limiting use to 90 hours per month, and instituting a single‑strike policy for child sexual exploitation.
Meta has said it will appeal while still acknowledging the scale of the financial hit.
The ruling follows earlier $375 million penalties and comes amid thousands of lawsuits across the U.S., a California trial, and international moves toward stricter child‑protection laws.
Pollution comparisons
Judge Biedscheid warned that Meta’s “harmful effects” spread beyond the platform, affecting hospitals, schools and law‑enforcement.
Further measures
In addition to the fund, the judge ordered Meta to enact robust age‑verification protocols, block nudity exchanges for minors and clamp down on adult‑to‑minor contact.
Regulators in the UK and EU are also pushing for similar safeguards, including blocking under‑16 users from social‑media access and implementing night‑time curfews.
