The complaint filed by 33 State Attorneys General can be found here. 8 other states and the District of Columbia filed similar, but individual lawsuits in state courts.
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, the Tech Oversight Project and Tech Justice Law Project issued a joint statement applauding legal action from 41 state Attorneys General and the District of Columbia against Meta for deliberately designing addictive products that harm children online in order to boost profits.
“In a historic show of strength, Attorneys General from 41 states and the District of Columbia took an important step forward in holding Meta accountable for intentionally designing products to addict children and contribute to the major youth mental health crisis across the country. The Attorneys’ General independent investigations paint a grim picture of a company without a moral compass willing to do whatever it takes to increase engagement and profits – no matter the harm to kids. Make no mistake, Mark Zuckerberg and Meta have contributed to a national mental crisis that has taken a toll on our youth, their parents, and society, and it’s time to hold them accountable in the courts, in Congress, and in state legislatures across the country,” said Meetali Jain, Director of the Tech Justice Law Project, and Sacha Haworth, Executive Director of the Tech Oversight Project.
“Companies like Meta and Google continue to engage in corporate doublespeak – virtue signaling about wanting to protect kids online using age-appropriate standards while funding the trade organizations engaged in a literal war to undermine kids’ safety. Meta’s record speaks for itself: They have fought tooth and nail against every effort to safeguard kids, protect their privacy, and improve design features to make their products less addictive. That’s why we applaud this broad coalition of Attorneys General – Democrats and Republicans alike – for taking bold action and prioritizing a safer internet where young people feel empowered and safe online. Now more than ever, we need to redouble our efforts and build upon the success of Age-Appropriate Design Code-modeled bills because social media platforms will always fail to self-regulate,” they both added.