Lawsuit alleges Meta’s ‘addictive’ features are harmful to young users

Dozens of states have sued Meta, claiming the company used addictive features to keep kids and teens on its social media platforms for longer periods of time and have them return again and again. The lawsuit filed by 33 attorneys general on Tuesday, Oct. 24, alleges Meta’s use of features including the like button and photo filters promote social comparisons and negatively impact teenagers’ mental health. It goes on to say that “Meta has repeatedly misled the public about the substantial dangers of its Social Media Platforms.”

“It has concealed the ways in which these Platforms exploit and manipulate its most vulnerable consumers: teenagers and children,” the lawsuit said. “And it has ignored the sweeping damage these Platforms have caused to the mental and physical health of our nation’s youth.”

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, took to Elon Musk’s “X” saying that the Meta lawsuit is necessary.

“Meta just didn’t care about what the damage was of their platform, their algorithms to our kids, and they lied about it,” Yost said.

The lawsuit claims that Meta, instead of working to mitigate the damage inflicted by its social-media platforms, publicly concealed the severity of the psychological harm they cause, including addiction to the platforms, which could, & in some cases did, result in physical harm. pic.twitter.com/PIrwsIE2XK

— Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost (@OhioAG) October 24, 2023

Meta is also accused of violating the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act by collecting data of users under 13 years of age without a parent’s permission.  

The bipartisan group of attorneys general, from states including California, Louisiana, Nebraska and New York, is seeking financial damages, and for Meta to end these practices.

In addition to the 33 states, nine other attorneys general are also filing lawsuits in their states and Washington, D.C.

It is the latest in a long list of lawsuits brought against social media platforms. Meta, YouTube, and TikTok already face hundred of suits filed about the platforms addictiveness.

In 2021, Zuckerberg defended the platforms mission as calls to protect children’s well-being grew louder.

“At the heart of these accusations is this idea that we prioritize profit over safety and well-being,” Zuckerberg wrote. “That’s just not true.”

The social media company issued a statement saying it was disappointed the attorneys general took this path instead of working together to quote “create clear, age-appropriate standards for the many apps teens use.”