Michigan is among the 33 states suing social media company Meta in federal court, alleging the company’s business model seeks to exploit young users for profit on Facebook and Instagram.

Attorney General Dana Nessel signed onto a lawsuit filed Tuesday in the Northern District of California seeking a court to order the social media behemoth to change its practices, as well as provide any potential restitution if a court deems the damages necessary. In total, 33 attorneys general signed onto the lawsuit, and nine others will file lawsuits against Meta in their own states, according to New York Attorney General Letitia James’ office.

The complaint alleges Meta specifically targets and monetizes young users, as well as engages in practices harmful to their mental health. The complaint references algorithms specifically designed to keep young users scrolling through the apps, and says the “like” feature on Facebook and Instagram leads to harmful mental health outcomes for young users as they chase the validation that more likes bring.

“Meta has harnessed powerful and unprecedented technologies to entice, engage, and ultimately ensnare youth and teens,” the complaint states. “Its motive is profit, and in seeking to maximize its financial gains, Meta has repeatedly misled the public about the substantial dangers of its Social Media Platforms.

“It has concealed the ways in which these Platforms exploit and manipulate its most vulnerable consumers: teenagers and children. And it has ignored the sweeping damage these Platforms have caused to the mental and physical health of our nation’s youth. In doing so, Meta engaged in, and continues to engage in, deceptive and unlawful conduct in violation of state and federal law.”

Additionally, the lawsuit states Meta is violating the federal law that requires parental consent for online services and tech companies to collect data from young users — the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) requires parental consent to collect data from users 13 years old and younger.

“Meta has, for some time, been aware of the dangers that ongoing and constant exposure to social media has on young people,” Nessel said in a statement. 

“Documents recently made public show that Meta put its desire to profit from teens’ engagement on its platforms above the physical and mental health of that very impressionable demographic. I stand firmly with my colleagues in asserting that Meta has misrepresented the addictive nature of social media and has violated the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, for which it should be held accountable.” 

While both Facebook and Instagram policies bar users under 13 from joining, the complaint states Meta doesn’t take steps to obtain verifiable parental consent. Even further, the complaint alleges Meta knows children younger than 13 are on Instagram and collects their personal data anyway.

“Despite knowing that its lack of age gates and later implementation of minimal age gate designs have allowed users under age 13 onto Instagram, Meta does not obtain verifiable parental consent before collecting the personal information of those users who routinely register for, and provide their personal information to, Instagram,” the complaint states.

Social media use has become nearly ubiquitous among teens — up to 95% of children between 13-17 say they use social media, and about a third of that group says they use social media “almost constantly,” according to a Pew Research Center study. That study found 62% of teens reported using Instagram, and 32% reported using Facebook.

The lawsuit also points out that Meta officials, including Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, have stated they don’t believe the company’s platforms are harmful to youth mental health. Studies have found otherwise — a report published by the U.S. Surgeon General associates social media use to a rise in youth anxiety and depression, although that report does acknowledge there are gaps in understanding the mental health risks tied to social media use by children.

In a statement provided to the Associated Press, Meta said it shares “the attorneys general’s commitment to providing teens with safe, positive experiences online, and have already introduced over 30 tools to support teens and their families.”

“We’re disappointed that instead of working productively with companies across the industry to create clear, age-appropriate standards for the many apps teens use, the attorneys general have chosen this path,” the company added.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. Contact Arpan Lobo: [email protected]. Follow him on X (Twitter) @arpanlobo.

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