미 29개주 참여 메타 소송 시작…메타 “어린이 중독 없었다” 주장

29 U.S. states have filed a lawsuit against Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, alleging that the platforms were designed to exploit and addict children. This marks the most sensitive legal dispute Meta has faced to date, as the outcome could potentially alter the operating methods of these platforms. On March 18, a jury of eight in Oakland, California, entered the courtroom for a week-long pre-trial hearing in this multi-state lawsuit.

This case involves federal claims brought by the 29 states regarding unlawful collection and use of children's personal information, as well as deceptive design practices and platform safety concerns. While the court prioritized the claims from California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey, the California state government accused Meta of intentionally designing its business model to "hook users, keep them as long as possible, collect data, and suppress the truth."

This method was deemed effective for young users, as Meta researched how the brain of young users functions and responded to online stimuli, tracking their interactions within the app. The state government noted that a company report titled "The Best Target is Young" highlighted that Meta was aware of the fact that children were particularly susceptible to rewards and socially sensitive but lacked the ability to regulate impulses like adults.

Additionally, an internal email to Instagram's responsibility conveyed a goal of "teenagers' app usage time," with some employees describing Instagram as "a drug" and themselves as "drug dealers." The states are demanding changes to the social media app's design, citing features such as infinite scroll, auto-play, and "like" as evidence of "addictive design."

However, Meta argued that there was no clear connection between teenagers' social media usage and mental health deterioration. Meta also maintained that CEO Mark Zuckerberg expressed the company's intention to improve services and has no intention of making them dangerous. The states are seeking statutory damages, a potential fine for Meta of up to $1.4 trillion (1973 billion USD).

Meanwhile, the states are anticipating damages of around $2 trillion (2820 billion USD). Currently, Meta faces thousands of lawsuits from states, local governments, school districts, and individuals. Last month, a Los Angeles jury found Meta and Google liable for $6 million (84 billion USD) in damages for contributing to the mental health issues of a 20-year-old woman who claimed she was addicted to Instagram and YouTube since her teenage years.

In early February, the New Mexico state court ordered Meta to pay $567 million (7931 billion USD) to the public for mental health initiatives after finding that Meta's platform caused harm. New Mexico's Attorney General has also filed a similar lawsuit against Meta over Instagram, currently under trial in Huntsville.