27 October 2023
FARGO North Dakota, Minnesota and South Dakota have joined a federal lawsuit that alleges features on Facebook and Instagram made children addicted to social media.
The three states’ attorneys general announced they were part of a group of 33 states that is suing Meta in Northern California U.S. District Court. The lawsuit alleges the company, formerly known as Facebook Inc., “knowingly designed and deployed harmful features” on its social media platforms that got children addicted to the apps, North Dakota Attorney General Drew Wrigley said Friday, Oct. 27, in a news release.
“I am pleased to join my fellow attorneys general in this important effort to address Meta’s troubling role in fostering mental health and emotional problems associated with social media overuse, because protecting the well-being of children and teens will always remain a top priority,” Wrigley said in a statement.
The attorneys general claimed Meta violated consumer protection laws, as well as the federal Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act. Also called COPPA, the act requires websites to obtain a parent’s permission before collecting data from children under the age of 13.
Meta’s business model was based on maximizing the amount of time children spend on Facebook and Instagram, the 233-page lawsuit said. The company earned more revenue from ads the longer children used its apps, the lawsuit said.
The lawsuit that was filed Tuesday also claims Meta misled the public by saying its apps were “safe and suitable for young users.”
“Meta is very intentionally trying to manipulate our children and teens into spending as much time on their platforms as possible, despite knowing this is causing serious harm,” Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said in a statement. “Meta’s efforts to addict our young people and sacrifice their well-being for engagement is disgraceful, predatory and illegal.”
Social media has “played a major role” in impacting children’s mental health issues, South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley said in a statement.
“Such platforms have led or contributed to physical and emotional harm to children and devastating families,” Jackley said about Facebook and Instagram. “Meta needs to be held accountable for its actions.”
Meta said in a statement to The Forum that it is committed to “providing teens with safe, positive experiences online.”
“We’re disappointed that instead of working productively with companies across the industry to create clear, age-appropriate standards for the many apps teens use, the attorneys general have chosen this path,” Meta said.
Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia and Wisconsin also joined the lawsuit.
The District of Columbia, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Utah and Vermont have filed similar civil suits in their own states, and Florida is expected to bring its own lawsuit in federal court.
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