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Meta Trial Opens as 30-State Lawsuit Targets Child Privacy

8/17/2026

Summary

Story summary

U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzales Rogers began a federal trial Tuesday in Oakland over a 30-state lawsuit accusing Meta Platforms of child-privacy violations.
The complaint alleges Meta gathered data on under-13 users without consent, employed infinite scroll and like counts to addict them, and faces up to $1.4 trillion in penalties and demands for parental-verification and algorithm changes.
Judge Rogers denied Meta’s bid to block former engineer Arturo Béjar from testifying.

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Story summary

U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzales Rogers began a federal trial Tuesday in Oakland over a 30-state lawsuit accusing Meta Platforms of child-privacy violations.
The complaint alleges Meta gathered data on under-13 users without consent, employed infinite scroll and like counts to addict them, and faces up to $1.4 trillion in penalties and demands for parental-verification and algorithm changes.
Judge Rogers denied Meta’s bid to block former engineer Arturo Béjar from testifying.