Meta Hit with Record $25 Billion Fine in New Mexico Over Facebook Privacy Deception

Meta has been ordered to pay New Mexico a staggering $25 billion in one of the largest judgments ever secured by a single U.S. state against a company. A United States judge mandated the payment after a jury found Meta misled Facebook users regarding privacy violations, marking the most substantial fine levied against the tech giant to date. New Mexico state District Judge Francis Mathew issued the ruling on Wednesday, stating, “Facebook promised users that they (the users) controlled their data. This was false.”

The decision follows a jury's finding last month that Meta was responsible for over 43 million violations of New Mexico’s consumer protection laws. New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez emphasized the significance of the verdict, calling it one of the largest state judgments against a company in U.S. history. “This judgement should be a signal, an unambiguous message, to Silicon Valley,” Torrez remarked during a news conference. The Attorney General's office had accused Meta of deceiving users about the accessibility of their personal information and the handling of harmful content on its platforms.

During a hearing earlier this month, Meta lawyer Matt Nicholson argued that a sum as high as $40 billion would be “shocking to the conscience.” Conversely, New Mexico's lawyer, Randi McGinn, advocated for standing up to “tech titans who think they are bulletproof and can do whatever they want.” Nicholson also contended that the jury had not established that any New Mexican had seen or heard these misleading statements or suffered harm as a result.

Torrez informed reporters after the verdict that all awarded funds would be allocated to the state's education system. This judgment significantly surpasses the $5 billion fine imposed by the Federal Trade Commission on Facebook in 2019. Jurors determined that 26 out of 29 statements made by Meta and its leadership concerning privacy and content moderation were misleading.

Meta intends to appeal the verdict, which could potentially reduce the final payment. In a statement, CJ Mahoney, Meta’s chief legal officer, expressed confidence in a successful appeal. “This ruling, and the Attorney General’s approach to this enforcement, makes it all but impossible to do business in the state of New Mexico,” Mahoney stated. “At its core, this lawsuit seeks to impose a tax on speech to enforce new rules for what people can say online.”

The lawsuit, initiated in 2021, was partly fueled by revelations concerning Cambridge Analytica, a now-defunct British political consulting firm. Cambridge Analytica had acquired personal data from up to 87 million Facebook users without their consent, utilizing it to develop targeted political advertisements, including for President Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign. This case represents a significant legal setback for Meta, marking its second defeat in New Mexico within six months. In March, a jury found the company had misled users about the safety of young people on Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, ordering Meta to pay $375 million in civil penalties. Subsequently, Meta was directed to make an additional $567 million payment to a state fund for teen mental health and was mandated to implement measures to safeguard young users.