Meta Defends Youth-Safety Record as Federal Trial Begins

Opening arguments were heard in a California federal court on February 18, 2026. California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey are leading a lawsuit that joins nearly thirty states in alleging that Meta’s Facebook and Instagram platforms are deliberately engineered to maximize engagement among children and teenagers, thereby contributing to a mental-health crisis. The states seek billions of dollars in damages and structural changes to the apps.

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The current case follows earlier rulings that ordered Meta to pay large sums for alleged harms to minors. A New Mexico court ordered $567 million into a youth-harm fund, and an earlier jury award brought the total to $942 million in mandated payments and protective reforms.

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Meta argues that it has long invested in child-safety tools. The company points to age-verification checks that block private chats between adults and teens who are not already connected, and to “Teen Accounts” launched in 2024 that apply PG-13-style content limits unless parents grant permission. Additional measures cited include suicide-related warnings in Instagram search results, parental-supervision controls, and in-app “nudges” that encourage users to pause after prolonged scrolling.

Meta defends its child safety efforts but critics say the social media giant falls short

Critics contend that Meta’s protections are insufficient. Marc Berkman, executive director of the Organization for Social Media Safety, says the company’s safeguards appear driven by public pressure rather than genuine concern. Former Meta engineer Arturo Béjar testified that features such as the “Take a Break” tool are “designed to fail” because users must activate them themselves. Academic researcher Ashley Shea highlighted that attention-capture designs—like infinite scrolling and algorithmic recommendations—exploit cognitive vulnerabilities of developing brains, and she sees limited effort to counteract these addictive mechanisms.

Meta defends its child safety efforts but critics say the social media giant falls short

• “Meta takes seriously and tries to act on,” — Paul Schmidt, a lawyer for the tech giant

Meta defends its child safety efforts but critics say the social media giant falls short

• “We really found that overall what Meta was marketing under Teen Accounts was very lacking in actual protections,” — Haley Hinkle, policy counsel at Fairplay

Meta defends its child safety efforts but critics say the social media giant falls short

• “There’s no question that some teens struggle to manage their time with social media,” — Paul Schmidt, a lawyer for the tech giant

Meta defends its child safety efforts but critics say the social media giant falls short