FOLLOW US

A jury in Los Angeles has delivered a significant verdict in favor of a 20-year-old woman who accused Meta and YouTube of fostering an addiction to social media during her childhood.

The panel concluded that Meta — parent company of Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp — and Google, which owns YouTube, deliberately engineered platforms that contributed to harm to the plaintiff’s mental health.

The plaintiff, identified as Kaley, was awarded $6 million (£4.5 million) in damages, a decision that could influence hundreds of comparable lawsuits currently moving through courts across the United States.

Both companies pushed back against the ruling and indicated plans to appeal. Meta said: "Teen mental health is profoundly complex and cannot be linked to a single app.

"We will continue to defend ourselves vigorously as every case is different, and we remain confident in our record of protecting teens online."

A spokesperson for Google said: "This case misunderstands YouTube, which is a responsibly built streaming platform, not a social media site."

Jurors allocated $3 million in compensatory damages and an additional $3 million in punitive damages after determining the companies "acted with malice, oppression, or fraud" in managing their platforms.

Under the verdict, Meta is responsible for 70% of the damages, while Google will cover the remaining 30%.

Outside the courthouse Wednesday, parents who say their children were similarly harmed — though not part of the lawsuit — gathered throughout the five-week trial to show support.

Following the decision, some parents, including Amy Neville, were seen celebrating and embracing others awaiting the outcome.

The California verdict follows closely on the heels of a separate ruling in New Mexico, where a jury found Meta liable for exposing children to sexual content and predators through its platforms.

Mike Proulx, a research director at advisory firm Forrester, said the consecutive rulings signal a "breaking point" in public attitudes toward social media companies.

In recent months, governments including Australia have enacted measures restricting children’s access to social media. In the United Kingdom, officials are testing a pilot program examining a potential ban for users under 16.

"Negative sentiment toward social media has been building for years, and now it's finally boiled over," Proulx said.

During testimony in February, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg pointed to company policies barring users under 13 from its platforms.

When confronted with internal documents indicating younger children were still using the services, Zuckerberg said he "always wished" for faster progress to identify users under 13. He insisted the company had reached the "right place over time".