The largest child safety ruling against a social media company just landed, and Meta got exactly what it deserved. A judge classified these platforms as a public nuisance — like digital pollution poisoning kids — and ordered $942 million in penalties. Removing like counts, banning late-night push notifications and capping underage usage at 90 hours a month are long-overdue protections that set a powerful precedent.
This ruling misrepresents the facts and ignores the genuine work Meta has done to protect teens online. Meta has been transparent about the real challenges of identifying harmful content and bad actors — challenges no platform has perfectly solved. Appealing this decision is the right move, because a $942 million penalty built on a flawed legal framework helps no one.
© 2026 Improve the News Foundation.
All rights reserved.
Version 7.4.1