Home / Technology / Judge Rejects Meta's Bid to Ditch Child Addiction Lawsuit
Judge Rejects Meta's Bid to Ditch Child Addiction Lawsuit
30 Jun
Summary
- Meta's attempt to dismiss a child addiction lawsuit was rejected by a judge.
- States allege Meta intentionally designed addictive platforms for children.
- A trial concerning these allegations is scheduled for August 18.
A federal judge has refused Meta Platforms' request to dismiss a major lawsuit brought by 29 U.S. state attorneys general. The legal action accuses the tech giant of deliberately engineering Facebook and Instagram for child addiction and concealing the associated harms.
U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers denied Meta's motion to dismiss claims concerning deceptive practices and violations of the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). The judge also found that Meta failed to adhere to COPPA's notice and parental consent mandates.
The states contend that research links children's use of Meta's platforms to severe issues like depression, anxiety, and self-harm. Meta argued that "social media addiction" is not a recognized psychiatric condition and that its platforms were aimed at a general audience, not specifically children under 13.
However, Judge Gonzalez Rogers identified significant factual disputes, questioning whether Meta platforms are indeed addictive and if the company falsely denied designing them to be so. The case is set for trial on August 18.
