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U.S. editionThe New York Times and ABC News reported on Wednesday, October 21, that Meta was ordered to pay $25 billion for deceiving users on privacy. The Times described the penalty as one of the largest ever levied against the company. According to the Times, it stemmed from a lawsuit brought by New Mexico. CNBC reported the penalty is tied to the Cambridge Analytica scandal in New Mexico. Axios and the Los Angeles Times reported it was for misleading Facebook users about data privacy and that the scandal dated back more than eight years.
State consumer protection cases can reach a company's finances even years after a scandal, and a figure this large sets a reference point for other state attorneys general. The case shows that privacy claims about Facebook are still producing penalties long after the original disclosures.
If you use Facebook or Instagram, the ruling concerns how the company described its data practices to users. It does not by itself change any setting on your account.
State officials and privacy advocates see a penalty of this size as accountability for misleading users about their data. The case was brought by New Mexico on behalf of its residents.
The company's side, in the reports reviewed, was not described in detail. Defenders of large tech companies often argue that penalties tied to events from many years ago should reflect changes made since then.
Confirmed: a $25 billion penalty was ordered in the New Mexico case, per five outlets. Not confirmed: payment timing and any appeal. Watch for Meta's response and any filing in the case today.
New York Times (Meta ordered to pay $25 billion, Oct. 21) · ABC News (Top Stories, Oct. 21) · CNBC (Meta penalty, Oct. 21) · Axios (Meta hit with $25-billion penalty, Oct. 21) · Los Angeles Times (Meta penalty, Oct. 21)
Meta Ordered to Pay $25 Billion Penalty in New Mexico Privacy CaseMeta Ordered to Pay $25 Billion Penalty in New Mexico Privacy Case
The penalty, one of the largest ever levied against the company, stems from a lawsuit over a data privacy scandal at Facebook.
The New York Times reported on Wednesday that Meta was ordered to pay $25 billion for deceiving users on privacy, and described the penalty as one of the largest ever levied against the technology giant. ABC News carried the same account. According to the Times, the penalty stemmed from a lawsuit brought by New Mexico, which claimed that the company misled the people who use its platforms about how their personal information was handled. The amount, $25 billion, was the figure given by every outlet that covered the ruling on Wednesday.
CNBC reported that Meta is to pay $25 billion in penalties tied to the Cambridge Analytica scandal in New Mexico. Axios and the Los Angeles Times reported that the penalty was for misleading Facebook users about data privacy, and said the lawsuit concerned a privacy scandal that Facebook faced more than eight years ago. The Times and ABC News dated their reports to Wednesday, October 21, and CNBC's report was published the same day. Separately, Bloomberg Television's Asia Trade program listed in its headline for Thursday that Meta raised its AI spending outlook and announced a new class of stock; that program did not tie those announcements to the New Mexico ruling. None of the reports reviewed said whether Meta plans to appeal, or when the money would be due.