A New Mexico state court has ordered Meta, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook, to pay $567 million USD (approximately $806 million AUD) to address harms caused to young people by its social media platforms. The ruling was delivered on Thursday, August 7th, 2026, by Judge Bryan Biedscheid in Santa Fe.

Judge Biedscheid found that Meta created a public nuisance in New Mexico by harming children's mental health. The court sided with New Mexico Attorney-General Raúl Torrez, who accused Meta of designing its products to addict young users and failing to protect children from sexual exploitation.

The judge mandated that Meta implement a range of youth-safety measures over the next five years. These include monthly limits on teens' use of Facebook and Instagram, restrictions on notifications, tighter controls on adult contact with minors, safeguards for AI chatbots, and enhanced review of child sexual abuse reports. The bulk of the $567 million will be allocated to treatment services for young people.

Meta has announced it will appeal the ruling, stating it has been working to identify and remove harmful content from its platforms. In a statement, Meta said, "We remain confident in our record of protecting teens online and will continue to defend ourselves against claims that misrepresent the facts."

The ruling follows three weeks of testimony during the second phase of the landmark trial, which proceeded without a jury.

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