A court in New Mexico on Wednesday directed Meta Platforms to pay $25 billion after a jury concluded that the company had misled consumers. The case stemmed from allegations that Cambridge Analytica, a political consultancy linked to Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign, improperly obtained personal information belonging to millions of Facebook users.
New Mexico's attorney general initiated legal proceedings against Meta in 2021 after reports emerged that Cambridge Analytica had collected data from up to 87 million Facebook accounts through a third-party application without users' permission.
The state alleged that Meta had misrepresented its data-sharing practices, its handling of hate speech and misinformation, and other internal policies to Facebook users in New Mexico. According to the state's case, Meta was aware that external parties had extensive access to users' personal information and allowed hateful or harmful material to remain on its platforms when doing so served its commercial interests.
On September 25, jurors determined that 26 of the 29 statements made by Meta and its executives on these matters were misleading. They also concluded that the company had violated New Mexico's consumer protection laws more than 43 million times. The number of violations was calculated based on the Facebook users or New Mexico residents exposed to each misleading statement.
New Mexico law permits penalties of up to $5,000 for every violation, with the proceeds allocated to the state's education system, Attorney General Raul Torrez told reporters following the verdict. During an October 1 hearing, Randi McGinn, representing New Mexico, urged the court to impose a penalty ranging from $35 billion to $40 billion. She argued that such an award would be consistent with constitutional due process protections and the jury's findings.
"This court should speak to Meta in the only language it understands, which is money, and the value of its stock price," McGinn said.
Meta asked the court to limit the financial penalties to $3.45 billion, arguing in its filings that a substantially larger amount could discourage businesses from operating in New Mexico. The company maintained that the evidence established it did not sell users' personal data and that the state had failed to demonstrate that any individual consumer was actually misled.
The ruling marks the second time in six months that a Santa Fe jury has found against Meta in a lawsuit filed by New Mexico.
In the earlier trial, which concluded in March, jurors found that Meta had misled users about the safety of young people on Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp. The company was ordered to pay $375 million in civil penalties. Following a subsequent phase of the proceedings, a judge separately directed Meta to contribute $567 million to a state fund dedicated to teenage mental health. The court also required the company to introduce safeguards for teenage users of Facebook and Instagram in New Mexico.
