Meta ordered to pay an additional $567 million in public nuisance ruling

Meta has been ordered to pay $567 million into an abatement fund in New Mexico as part of a public nuisance case. This brings the total charges to nearly $1 billion, including $375 million in civil penalties. According to Engadget, the ruling was made by Judge Bryan Biedscheid, who likened Meta's platforms to factories, with the advertising and content as products and the psychological harm and sexual exploitation of children as pollution.

The Santa Fe district court found that Meta's platforms are a significant contributing cause of a teen mental health crisis affecting public health and safety throughout New Mexico. CNBC Technology reports that most of the money in the fund - $420 million - is dedicated to treatment for people harmed by the platform, with the rest going towards awareness and prevention, screening and assessment, and referrals and coordination.

The case is one of several that experts have characterized as social media's "Big Tobacco" moment, with Meta facing multiple suits related to alleged harms caused by its apps. According to The Verge, New Mexico Attorney General said the case is about protecting children, standing up for families, and making sure that Meta cannot profit from practices that endanger young people without consequence.

Brief written by urgent.news from The Verge, Engadget, CNBC Technology, Techmeme — 4 reports on this story. Machine-written — it may contain errors, so check the original before relying on it.