Full Breakdown
New Mexico Jury Finds Meta Platforms Liable for Misleading Users About Data Privacy
By Drooid · · How we work
Core Event: Verdict on Consumer-Protection Claims
On September 25, 2026, a Santa Fe jury concluded that Meta Platforms Inc. (owner of Facebook) violated New Mexico’s Unfair Practices Act by making false statements to users about privacy protections and content moderation. Jurors found the company liable for thousands of violations, with the state seeking the statutory maximum of $5,000 per violation. The case now moves to Judge Francis Mathew, who will set the monetary penalty.
Background & Context
The lawsuit stems from the 2018 revelation that a third-party personality-quiz app harvested data from roughly 87 million Facebook profiles and sold it to Cambridge Analytica, which created targeted ads for the 2016 Donald Trump campaign. New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez filed the state suit in 2021, joining a wave of privacy actions after the scandal. Earlier in 2026, New Mexico secured separate judgments totaling $942 million against Meta for minor-safety violations and a $375 million civil penalty for misleading statements about youth safety.
Data & Statistics
- 87 million profiles harvested (multiple sources).
- Jurors found Meta’s statements violated the Act in 26 of 29 examined statements, affecting more than 40 million individual violations.
- The state’s request: $5,000 per violation, potentially yielding a multi-billion-dollar judgment.
- Violations affected over 1.4 million New Mexicans, the estimated number of Facebook users in the state in 2020.
Official Statements & Responses
- Meta denied selling users’ personal information and argued the state’s evidence relied on “out-of-date” material and isolated incidents from 2014.
- Judge Mathew will schedule a penalty-determination hearing; the date has not yet been set.
Criticism & Opposition
The defense, led by attorney Dane Butswinkas, contended that the Unfair Practices Act applies only to transactions involving a sale, lease, or rental, and that Facebook is a free service.
Conflicting Reports & Gaps
Sources differ on the exact count of violations: some report “over 40 million,” others cite 43,899,720, while another mentions “over 2 million.” The range reflects differing methodologies—some count each affected user per statement, others aggregate across statements. No definitive penalty amount has been announced, leaving the ultimate financial exposure uncertain.
Verbatim Quotes
- “We disagree with the verdict and will continue to defend ourselves against efforts to distort our record,” — Alex Burgos, Meta spokesperson
- “You have more power at this moment than you have ever had in your entire lives, the power to do what's right, and that's what the jury system is all about, 12 ordinary citizens,” — Randi McGinn, attorney
- “Facebook does not go around saying they're perfect, and most of the time, in the very statements that they cite, they say that they post month end, quarter end, half year end that they're not perfect,” — Dane Butswinkas, attorney
What’s Next
Judge Mathew will hold a hearing to determine civil penalties, after which the state may seek an injunction to prevent future data-misuse practices. Meta has indicated it will appeal the verdict, suggesting any monetary award could be delayed for several years. New Mexico remains the only state pursuing this specific Cambridge Analytica-related claim, having declined to join the multistate settlement that provides up to $16.7 billion for youth-safety allegations and a separate $459 million payment for privacy claims. Future litigation may focus on whether the Unfair Practices Act can be applied to non-sale-based services like Facebook.