Facebook and Instagram, to Pay $567 Million and Change How Its Platforms Function for Young Users in the State, After Finding the Company

Thursday's ruling came in the second phase of a landmark trial, with jurors in March finding that Meta violated the state's consumer protection law by misrepresenting the safety of its platforms for young users. The jury had ordered the company to pay $375 million in damages earlier this year. Judge Bryan Biedscheid said $420 million of the total will fund treatment services for young people, with the remainder going toward awareness, prevention, screening services, and other costs over the next five years.

Prosecutors had sought fundamental changes at Meta to curb addictive features, improve age verification, and prevent child sexual exploitation through default privacy settings and closer oversight. The judge ordered Facebook and Instagram to build banner and informational screens explaining protection features, best practices, and tools to address inappropriate comments, displayed regularly. Those changes and an educational campaign in New Mexico would be subject to state review.

Meta said it will appeal the ruling, stating, "We remain confident in our record of protecting teens online and will continue to defend ourselves against claims that misrepresent the facts. The judge heard three weeks of testimony in the second trial, which focused solely on whether Meta's platforms created a "public nuisance under New Mexico law. The case is being closely watched across the US as states, municipalities, and school districts pursue similar claims.