New Mexico Sues Meta Over Child Safety

0:00It's March 24th. Welcome to Canada News Today, powered by AI. I'm Cory with the story. New Mexico's Attorney General sued Metta back in 2023, accusing Facebook and Instagram of fostering environments where child predators thrive. The company denies the claims. After a six-week trial with testimony from executives and whistleblowers, closing arguments wrapped up on Monday. Now jurors in state court are deliberating, and a win for the state could mean billions in damages plus court-ordered fixes to the platforms. The lawsuit stemmed from the Attorney General's undercover probe using fake profiles posing as kids. Those accounts drew sexually explicit messages and requests, leading to three adult men getting arrested in May of 2024. Prosecutors argued Metta's tools connect people to effectively, even those with harmful intentions toward children. This case rides a larger wave of lawsuits, hitting social media companies over youth safety. Jurors in Los Angeles are weighing a similar suit against Metta and YouTube for addictive features that hurt a teen's mental health.

1:04Hundreds more claims from families, schools, and other states are lining up for trials this year. Metta pushes back hard, noting 40,000 employees focus on safety, and the firm pours resources into protections like teen accounts and parental controls. Company lawyers say bad content sometimes slips through despite best efforts. Recently, Metta announced it will drop into end encryption for Instagram direct messages later this year to a law enforcement monitoring. As the New Mexico jury weighs whether Metta willfully misled users and endanger kids, the verdict could reshape how platforms handle child safety. Nationwide.