What the court decided
A New Mexico judge has ordered Meta to pay $25 billion to the state, following a jury finding that the company deceived consumers for years about its data privacy practices, according to CBS News. Judge Francis Mathew set the figure. Attorney General Raúl Torrez called it "one of the largest, if not the single largest state verdict against a company in American history."
The jury reached its conclusions in September. It found that Facebook made false or misleading statements when it told users they controlled how their information was shared. Jurors also determined that the company misled consumers by saying it did not sell or share personal information with advertisers.
In his ruling, the judge said the jury found that the company's "most senior leadership," including CEO Mark Zuckerberg and former chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg, made misrepresentations about the service's privacy policies. Mathew wrote, "These communications were part of a coherent strategy designed to mislead the public."
The Cambridge Analytica backdrop
The lawsuit grew out of allegations that Facebook was not honest with users about a data breach tied to a third-party personality quiz. According to the report, the quiz collected data from roughly 87 million profiles. That information was then sold to the political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica, which used it to generate targeted ads.
Dozens of other states settled with Facebook in a nationwide case over the matter. New Mexico chose instead to pursue the company in court on its own.
What officials are saying
Torrez told reporters the judgment should send a clear warning to the technology industry. "This judgment should be a signal, an unambiguous message, to Silicon Valley," he said at a news conference.
In a separate statement Wednesday, he said the case "has always been about more than one company or one scandal." He framed the central question as whether corporations can mislead consumers about what happens to their personal information without facing meaningful consequences.
Meta did not immediately respond to a request for comment, CBS News reported.
Where the money would go and what comes next
The New Mexico Constitution directs fines for consumer protection violations to state education spending. Torrez said, "We may have paid for the construction of schools for the next 100 years." He cautioned, however, that the funds would remain frozen if Meta appeals, which he said is expected.
State attorneys had asked for a larger penalty, between $35 billion and $40 billion. They argued that only a sum big enough to affect the company's stock price would persuade it to change its behavior.
Markets did not appear to react negatively. Meta shares rose $13.56, or 2%, to $707.81 in Wednesday afternoon trading, according to the report. The Associated Press contributed to the coverage.
