Meta intentionally made social media addictive for children: Court documents
Meta Platforms, the company behind Facebook, is facing allegations of intentionally designing its social media platforms to be addictive for children, according to a legal complaint unsealed recently and reported by The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times. The complaint, filed by attorney generals from 33 states in late October, asserts that Meta was aware of millions of complaints about underage users on Instagram but only took action on a small portion of those accounts.
Exploiting youthful psychology for engagement
Internal company documents mentioned in the complaint show that some Meta officials admitted to creating products that exploit vulnerabilities in young people's psychology, such as impulsiveness, susceptibility to peer pressure, and underestimating risks. Additionally, the documents reveal that Facebook and Instagram are popular among kids under 13, who are not allowed to use the services according to company policy.
Meta's response and stance on age verification
In response, Meta claims that the complaint misrepresents its efforts over the past 10 years to make the online experience safe for teenagers. The company points to "over 30 tools" it developed to help teens and their parents. Meta argues that age verification is a "complex industry challenge" and suggests that app stores and parents should share the responsibility of monitoring underage usage. They advocate for a federal law that mandates parental consent for individuals under 16 when downloading apps.
Massive backlog of accounts belonging to children awaits action
A 2019 email from a Facebook safety executive reportedly hinted that cracking down on younger users could negatively impact the company's business. However, in 2020, the same executive expressed frustration that while Facebook was quick to study underage users' behavior for business purposes, it didn't show equal enthusiasm for identifying and removing younger children from its platforms. The complaint also notes that Meta sometimes has a backlog of up to 25 lakh accounts belonging to younger children awaiting action.
