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New Mexico judge orders Meta to pay $567m over children mental health concerns
Published : Friday, 7 August, 2026 at 3:25 PM
Observer Online Report
A New Mexico judge has ordered Meta to pay $567 million into a fund to address its role in a youth mental health crisis and tighten controls on children's accounts.
The ruling, issued Thursday, adds to the social media giant's legal troubles over alleged harm to children on its platforms.
A jury in March found Meta liable on all counts in a child safety trial, including engaging in “unfair and deceptive” and “unconscionable” trade practices. It ordered the company to pay $375 million in damages.
New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez sued Meta in 2023, alleging that Facebook and Instagram had become a “breeding ground” for child predators. Meta denied the allegations.
Meta said Thursday that it disagrees with the latest ruling and will appeal.
Under the latest order, Meta must delete accounts and personal information collected from users under 13 in New Mexico. The company must also disable push notifications for users under 18 from 8am to 3pm on weekdays during the school year and from 10pm to 7am on other days.
Teen accounts in New Mexico must automatically be set to private, while users will also be barred from engaging in romantic or sexualised interactions with Meta's artificial intelligence chatbots.
However, the judge rejected a request to alter Meta's algorithm design, saying such an order would likely violate the First Amendment and Section 230.
The case's second phase focused on whether Meta's platforms constituted a “public nuisance”. Judge Bryan Biedscheid compared the company to a factory whose harmful effects extend beyond its own platforms and create a broader societal burden.
Meta has also faced lawsuits from school districts and state attorneys general over youth mental health, child safety and privacy.
In May, Meta, YouTube, Snap and TikTok agreed to settle a lawsuit filed by a Kentucky school district over addiction claims. Financial terms were not disclosed.
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Editor : Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury
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Published by the Editor on behalf of the Observer Ltd. from Globe Printers, 24/A, New Eskaton Road, Ramna, Dhaka.
Editorial, News and Commercial Offices : Aziz Bhaban (2nd floor), 93, Motijheel C/A, Dhaka-1000.
Phone: PABX- 41053001-06; Advertisement: 41053012; 01793317829, 01550707291, E-mail: [email protected], [email protected] Online: email: [email protected] 41053014; 01550707297 Advertisement: 01550707296
