Meta vuelve a los tribunales en EEUU acusado de provocar adicción en los menores

Meta returns to the US courts accused of causing addiction in minors. The social media giant faces potential damages of up to $1.4 billion in a legal battle brought by a group of 29 state attorneys general. The charges allege that Meta designed and implemented features on Instagram and Facebook that create addiction in children and teenagers.

The case, currently being heard in Oakland, California, hinges on whether Meta violated the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) by unlawfully collecting data from minors under the age of 13. Additionally, the lawsuit alleges that Meta violated consumer protection laws in California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey.

This trial is part of a broader multidistrict litigation involving over 3,000 plaintiffs against Meta and other tech giants like Google, TikTok, and Snap. The allegations claim that these companies designed their platforms to maximize screen time, potentially leading to addictive behaviors and emotional or physical harm, including in severe cases, death.

This is the first of the COPPA violation lawsuits to go to a jury. The tech giant faces this trial in a federal court in northern California after several losses in lower courts. Earlier this month, a Santa Fe district court in New Mexico ordered Meta to pay $567 million to a fund for youth mental health care, citing the company's actions as detrimental to the mental and physical health of teenagers.

In March 2026, a Los Angeles court ordered Meta and Google to pay a combined total of $6 million to a 20-year-old woman who sued the companies for negligence and addiction to social media during her adolescence. Meta is required to cover 70% of the total amount, while Google will shoulder the remaining 30%.