Meta Platforms says four U.S. states are seeking an unprecedented $1.4 trillion penalty, alleging the company intentionally designed Facebook and Instagram to encourage addictive use among children and teens while misleading the public about the platforms’ safety.

According to court filings, the proposed penalty is based on the number of alleged violations under state consumer protection laws and is nearly equal to Meta’s entire market value. The lawsuit was filed by the states of California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey, with a trial scheduled to begin in August in federal court in Oakland, California.

Meta has dismissed the demand as unprecedented and unsupported by the evidence, arguing that no comparable consumer protection penalty has ever been imposed. The company also maintains there is no evidence it misled users about its platforms and argues that “social media addiction” is not a recognized psychiatric diagnosis.

The case is separate from a broader federal lawsuit brought by 29 states alleging Meta violated children’s online privacy laws by collecting data from minors without parental consent. Last month, Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers allowed the consumer protection case to proceed, finding there are factual disputes over whether Meta’s platforms promote addictive behavior, whether the company misrepresented those risks, and whether its services were intentionally directed at children.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)