New Mexico jury finds Facebook liable for deceiving users about privacy protections

A Santa Fe, New Mexico jury has found Facebook liable for deceiving users about privacy protections, finding over 43 million violations of state consumer protection law. The case stems from the Cambridge Analytica scandal, where a third-party app harvested data from 87 million profiles. New Mexico is seeking the maximum penalty of $5,000 per violation, potentially exposing Meta to over $200 billion in fines. Meta strongly disagrees with the verdict, citing First Amendment rights to manage its platforms.

The jury's liability findings

• ▪The New Mexico jury found Facebook liable for over 43 million violations of state consumer protection law, representing the impact on New Mexico's population of over two million people.
• ▪Jurors found 26 of 29 Facebook statements identified by the state of New Mexico regarding user data, hate speech, and misinformation were misleading
• ▪The New Mexico jury found Facebook liable for misleading the public about Facebook's investigations into third-party app developers and data brokers following the Cambridge Analytica scandal
• ▪A Santa Fe, New Mexico jury found Facebook liable on September 25, 2026 for deceiving users about privacy protections on the social media platform.

Potential financial penalties

• ▪New Mexico District Judge Francis Mathew will determine the final financial penalties against Meta Platforms during a scheduled hearing on October 1, 2026.
• ▪New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez announced that all money awarded from the Facebook privacy lawsuit over the Cambridge Analytica scandal will go into a fund for the state's education system
• ▪Attorneys representing New Mexico are asking for the maximum civil penalty of $5,000 per violation, which could total over $200 billion in penalties.

Meta's legal defense

• ▪Meta Platforms spokespersons disagreed with the New Mexico jury's verdict in the Cambridge Analytica privacy case, stating the company will defend itself against efforts to distort its record and asserting its First Amendment right to manage its platforms
• ▪During the New Mexico trial in September 2026, Meta Platforms denied that Facebook sells the personal information of its users

Meta's defense arguments at trial

• ▪Attorneys for Meta Platforms argued at trial that the allegedly misleading statements were cherry-picked snippets that ignored critical context where the company acknowledged its handling of issues was imperfect.
• ▪During closing arguments, lawyers for Facebook argued that New Mexico's evidence was outdated and that the state found only one other instance of a data breach despite a five-year investigation.

Content moderation claims

• ▪Facebook denied New Mexico's content moderation claims, arguing that it removes 99% of content violating its standards and that CEO Mark Zuckerberg testified the company has robust systems to determine content removal.
• ▪The New Mexico jury rejected claims that Facebook made false or misleading statements about its efforts to remove harmful content, including misinformation about the COVID-19 pandemic, and its fact-checking practices.

The Cambridge Analytica data breach

• ▪The two-week trial in Santa Fe, New Mexico centered on accusations that Facebook deceived users about a data breach involving a third-party personality quiz app that harvested data from roughly 87 million profiles.
• ▪The Facebook user data harvested from 87 million profiles was sold to the political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica, whose clients included the 2016 presidential campaign of Donald Trump

Debatable claims

• ▪Massive financial penalties are ineffective at changing the behavior of major tech companies
• ▪Judge Mathew should impose the maximum $5,000 per-violation penalty on Meta
• ▪New Mexico's decision to reject the national settlement and sue Meta independently was justified
• ▪Meta's platform management decisions are protected by the First Amendment