A legal battle of existential proportions began this week in Oakland, California, as prosecutors unveiled a scathing critique of Meta’s core business philosophy. Representing the state of California and 28 other US states, lawyer Megan O’Neill distilled the trillion dollar company’s strategy into four devastating words: hook, hold, harvest, and hide. She argued that Meta intentionally designs its platforms to lure in users—particularly children—keep them engaged for as long as possible to maximize data collection, and then obscure the resulting harms from the public eye.
The stakes for the parent company of Facebook and Instagram are staggering. If found liable for violating child privacy laws and creating addictive products, Meta could face damages reaching 200 billion dollars, an amount roughly equal to its projected annual revenue for 2025. Beyond the financial blow, the states are seeking court mandated changes to how Meta designs its software to ensure greater safety for minors. While Meta has dismissed these claims as an attempt to chase an outlandish payout and maintains that it provides tools to combat social media struggles, the courtroom atmosphere remains tense following several recent losses in similar litigation.
One of the most damaging moments of the first week came during the testimony of Arturo Béjar, a former safety engineer at Meta. Driven by his own daughter’s negative experiences with harassment on Instagram, Béjar described a culture of willful ignorance within the executive suite. He presented evidence showing that over half of teenagers surveyed reported harmful experiences on Instagram within a single week, yet almost none of that content was removed. Most pointedly, Béjar revealed that despite sending this critical data directly to CEO Mark Zuckerberg after more than 100 briefings throughout his career, he never received a response.
As the trial moves forward over the coming weeks, the jury will hear further from psychologists and former user experience researchers. High profile executives including Mark Zuckerberg and Adam Mosseri are also expected to testify. For now, Meta continues to attack the credibility of its critics while insisting it prohibits users under thirteen from joining its platforms. However, with testimonies suggesting a systemic failure to protect youth regardless of official policy, the case threatens to force a fundamental redesign of how social media operates globally.