Facebook and Instagram fail to
protect underage users from exposure to child sexual abuse material and let
adults solicit pornographic imagery from them, alleges New Mexico's attorney
general in a lawsuit following an undercover online investigation.
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| Meta |
"Our investigation into Meta's social media platforms demonstrates that
they are not safe spaces for children but rather prime locations for predators
to trade child pornography and solicit minors for sex," stated
Attorney General Raul Torrez in a
Wednesday statement.
The civil lawsuit, filed late
Tuesday against Meta Platforms Inc. in state court, also includes its CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, as a defendant.
Moreover, the suit asserts that Meta "harms children and teenagers through the addictive design of its platform, degrading users' mental health, their sense of self-worth, and their physical safety," as per Torrez's office statement.
These allegations align with those
in a lawsuit filed in late October by the attorneys general of 33 states,
including California and New York, against Meta. The suit claims that Instagram
and Facebook feature designs intentionally crafted to engage children,
contributing to a youth mental health crisis and leading to conditions such as
depression, anxiety, and eating disorders. Notably, New Mexico was not a party
to that particular lawsuit.
Investigators in New Mexico set up
decoy accounts for children aged 14 and younger, and according to Torrez's
office, these accounts were exposed to sexually explicit images even when the
child showed no interest. State prosecutors allege that Meta allowed dozens of
adults to locate, contact, and encourage children to provide sexually explicit
and pornographic images.
The decoy accounts also received
suggestions to join unmoderated Facebook groups dedicated to facilitating
commercial sex, and investigators claim that Meta permitted its users to
discover, share, and sell "an
enormous volume of child pornography."
"Mr. Zuckerberg and other Meta executives are aware of the serious harm their products can pose to young users, and yet they have failed to make sufficient changes to their platforms that would prevent the sexual exploitation of children," stated Torrez, accusing Meta's executives of prioritizing "engagement and ad revenue over the safety of the most vulnerable members of our society."
While Meta, headquartered in Menlo Park, California, did not directly
respond to the specific allegations in the New Mexico lawsuit, the company
mentioned that it works diligently to protect young users, emphasizing a
serious commitment of resources toward this goal.
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| Meta Headquarter - Menlo Park |
"We use sophisticated technology, hire child safety experts, report
content to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, and share
information and tools with other companies and law enforcement, including state
attorneys general, to help root out predators," stated the company.
"In one month alone, we disabled
more than half a million accounts for violating our child safety policies."
Company spokesperson Andy Stone referred to a company report
outlining the millions of tips Facebook and Instagram provided to the National
Center in the third quarter of 2023, which included 48,000 cases involving
inappropriate interactions. These interactions could encompass instances of an
adult soliciting child sexual abuse material directly from a minor or
attempting to meet with one in person.
Critics, including former
employees, have consistently raised concerns about Meta's predominantly
automated content moderation systems, asserting that they are inadequately
equipped to identify and effectively eliminate abusive behavior on its
platforms.
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