More than 40 states in the US sue Meta for harming the health of minors

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Document presented to a court in California says that Facebook and Instagram ‘exploited powerful and unprecedented technologies to attract (…) and ultimately arrest young people and teenagers for the purpose of making profits’. Mark Zuckerberg REUTERS/Erin Scott More than forty American states have filed a lawsuit against the technology giant Meta, accusing Facebook and Instagram of harming “the physical and mental health of young people”, according to the document presented this Tuesday (24) before a court in California. “Meta exploited powerful and unprecedented technologies to attract (…) and ultimately arrest young people and teenagers for the purpose of profit,” say the attorneys general of the states that filed the lawsuit – which AFP obtained access. The states, governed by both Democrats and Republicans, add that the California company “concealed the way these platforms exploit and manipulate their most vulnerable consumers” and “overlooked the considerable harm these platforms have caused to the mental and physical health of young people in our country”. The legal action is the result of investigations launched in 2021 into the two platforms’ methods, considered “addictive” by US authorities. Attorneys general decided to do something about it after a former Facebook employee reported the practices of the company she worked for. Computer engineer Frances Haugen leaked more than 20,000 pages of internal documents and reported to parliaments in several countries that the social network prioritized its profits above user safety. The lawsuit, filed on Tuesday, also accuses Meta of violating the Children’s Privacy Act. States ask courts to shut down their practices and demand payment of fines. Meta did not respond to contact made by AFP. U.S. attorneys general frequently confront technology giants, especially on issues of monopoly or protecting personal information. Read also: Remember: Meta has already been fined US$ 1.3 billion for sharing European user data with the US Meta made a mistake for keeping a scam video up before attacks in Brasília, says company committee Find out more about Meta at VIDEOS See the news revealed by Mark Zuckerberg Layoffs in big tech: what’s happening with Google, Microsoft, Meta and Amazon

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