A trial began Tuesday in Oakland, California, to determine whether Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, intentionally designed its platforms to be addictive for children and teenagers. The lawsuit, filed by 29 U.S. states including California and New York, alleges the company violated federal and state privacy laws while misleading the public about the safety of its products for young users.
The legal action follows a 2023 complaint in which state attorneys general claimed Meta knowingly allowed underage users on its platforms and used features that harmed their mental health. Meta has denied these allegations, maintaining that its platforms are safe and that it has implemented tools to help users manage their time online.
During opening arguments, Megan O'Neill, a lead attorney for California, cited internal Meta documents showing that "1 in 5 teens says Instagram makes them feel worse" and argued that features designed to increase time spent on the apps conflicted with user well-being. In response, Meta’s attorney Paul Schmidt argued that the same research showed 41% of teens felt better using the app and another 41% reported no effect. Schmidt further contended that "social media addiction does not exist" as a scientific consensus and that privacy laws actually limit the company's ability to verify the exact ages of all users.
For the average household, a ruling in favor of the states would likely result in a visible change to the user interface of these apps for children and teenagers. Parents and students would notice the removal of engagement metrics and could see new age-verification requirements. The states argue these changes are necessary to protect the mental health of minors, while Meta argues it already provides sufficient tools for users to regulate their own behavior and that the proposed changes could interfere with positive social experiences for millions of teens.
The outcome could set a precedent for how all social media companies are regulated regarding minor safety and product design. A decision against Meta might encourage similar litigation against other tech firms or lead to new state-level mandates on app features. The jury trial is scheduled to last six weeks in the U.S. District Court in Oakland, during which the court will review millions of internal Meta documents, including emails and chat logs from executives like CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Instagram head Adam Mosseri.