Meta has been ordered to pay another $567 million in a landmark New Mexico case centred on the impact of Facebook and Instagram on young people, bringing the company's total liability in the lawsuit to $942 million.
The ruling, issued Thursday by Judge Bryan Biedscheid, follows a jury decision in March that ordered Meta to pay $375 million in civil penalties after finding the company knowingly harmed children's mental health and concealed what it knew about child sexual exploitation on its platforms.
The latest award allocates $420 million toward treatment services for young people. The remaining funds will support awareness and prevention efforts, screening services and other related costs over the next five years.
The decision marks another legal setback for Meta as the company confronts a growing number of lawsuits across the United States alleging its social media platforms have harmed children and teenagers.
New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez said the ruling demonstrates that technology companies can be held accountable when products are designed in ways that put children at risk.
Meta has vowed to appeal.
The total judgment represents only a small share of Meta's financial resources. The company's annual profit was about $60 billion in 2025. Investors appeared largely unfazed by the ruling, with Meta shares falling less than half a per cent in after-hours trading Thursday to $589.44.
Court orders changes to Facebook and Instagram safeguards
During the second phase of the case, prosecutors sought sweeping changes to Meta's platforms, including restrictions on features they argued encourage excessive use, stronger age-verification measures and additional protections against child sexual exploitation.
The judge ordered Facebook and Instagram to create banner notifications and information screens that clearly explain available safety features, best practices and tools for addressing issues such as inappropriate comments. Those changes, along with an educational campaign in New Mexico, will be subject to state review.
The court said federal children's privacy laws limit how far age-verification requirements can go. Under the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), the court cannot require Meta to collect personal information from children under 13 or passively track them online for age-verification purposes.
The ruling also found it would be unfair to impose age-verification requirements solely on Meta while other social media companies are not subject to the same obligations.
New age-detection measures required
Instead, the court directed Meta to continue improving its age-assurance tools in New Mexico.
The company currently uses artificial intelligence systems that estimate users' ages based on signals including their friends, the content they view and the material they post. The ruling requires Meta to attempt to develop a dedicated prediction model for users under 13 within the next two years.
Meta must also seek proof of age from New Mexico users it estimates are younger than 13. If the company determines someone is under 13, or under 18 but cannot establish a more precise age, it must treat that user as belonging to the younger age category until age verification is completed.
The company has also been ordered to partner with schools or a child safety organization to establish a reporting portal that would allow school staff to flag users who may be under 13.
As part of the ruling, Meta must delete personal information collected from users under 13 and provide progress reports twice a year detailing its compliance with the court's orders.
More lawsuits are on the horizon
The New Mexico case is only one of several legal challenges facing the social media giant.
Later this month, Meta is scheduled to face the first four of 29 states involved in a federal multidistrict lawsuit in Oakland, Calif. The states claim Meta contributed to the youth mental health crisis by knowingly designing Instagram and Facebook features that are addictive to children.
Eight states, including Tennessee, have also launched separate legal actions in their own courts. A trial is currently underway in Tennessee.
Last month, Meta, TikTok, Snap and YouTube were sued by the families of four teenagers who died by suicide. The families allege "years of escalating harms" from the platforms contributed to the teens' deaths.
Laura Edelson, an assistant professor at Northeastern University who studies social media and cybersecurity, said the New Mexico ruling could signal broader efforts by states to regulate platform design through the courts.
- with files from The Associated Press
