A US district court judge has ordered Meta to pay a record-breaking $25 billion fine following a lawsuit brought by New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez. The penalty stems from nearly 44 million violations of the state's consumer protection laws, involving systematic deception regarding data privacy, misinformation, and hate speech since 2010.
The court found that Meta's leadership, including Mark Zuckerberg, knowingly misled the public to gain competitive advantages and monetize user data. Evidence presented at trial included internal communications where executives discussed strategies to discourage users from adjusting privacy settings and deliberately narrowed the definition of data misuse to avoid reporting requirements.
Meta had previously reached an $18 billion settlement with other states earlier this year, but New Mexico declined to join, seeking higher penalties. The company, which had expected a fine closer to $3.4 billion, argued that the current ruling is unconstitutional and stated that it makes conducting business in the state impossible.
The company has confirmed its intention to appeal the decision. Meta maintains that the lawsuit functions as a tax on speech and has signaled potential reliance on its AI development initiatives as part of its defense strategy. Meanwhile, the company reported that it already paid nearly $10 billion for the separate multistate settlement in its third-quarter earnings.
