Mark Zuckerberg’s social media company Meta is facing thousands of lawsuits alleging harm to children. In a major development, a former Meta engineer has resumed testimony in a landmark trial that can lead to major changes to Facebook and Instagram.
According to Reuters report, Arturo Bejar, a former Facebook engineering director and vocal critic of Meta, has accused the social media giant of ignoring internal research about the harm its platforms could cause children and teenagers.
Bejar worked at Meta from 2009 to 2015 and later returned as an independent contractor between 2019 and 2021. As per the report, he is the first witness in the six-week trial being held at a federal court in Oakland, California.
The case involves allegations from several US states that Meta designed Facebook and Instagram to keep young users hooked, misled the public about the safety of its platforms and illegally collected personal data from children under 13.
The Zuckerberg-owned platform has denied the allegations and said it continues to work on protecting teenagers.
Bejar reportedly told the court that he had raised concerns about the impact of Instagram on young users with Meta’s leadership. He had worked on surveys studying teenagers’ experiences and wellbeing on Instagram between 2019 and 2021.
According to Reuters, Bejar also questioned how the company measured harm on its platforms. He said the company’s internal monitoring mainly looked at how often content broke its rules, instead of looking at how much harm that content was actually causing to young users.
“Young people were experiencing harm at extraordinarily high rates. A parent would have wanted to have known that reality,” he was quoted as saying.
The trial is being closely watched as Meta is facing thousands of similar lawsuits related to alleged harm to children. California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey are accusing Meta of designing its platforms in a way that could fuel anxiety, depression and even suicide among young users.
Another part of the case involves claims from 29 states over the collection and use of children’s personal data.
(With inputs from Reuters)