Meta Faces $25 Billion Penalty in New Mexico Data Case

WHO:

CNN - Meta Chief Legal Officer C.J. Mahoney said Meta would appeal the penalty and argued New Mexico’s approach “makes it all but impossible to do business in the state of New Mexico.”

CNN - Meta CFO Susan Li said the company was monitoring active legal and regulatory matters that could significantly affect its business and financial results.

CBS News - Meta, the social media company operating Facebook, was ordered to pay New Mexico; Judge Francis Mathew set the amount.

CBS News - New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez called the award “one of the largest, if not the single largest state verdict against a company in American history.”

ABC News - Meta attorney Matt Nicholson argued for the company; New Mexico attorney Randi McGinn urged the state to stand up to “tech titans who think they are bulletproof and can do whatever they want.”

ABC News - Cambridge Analytica was a political consulting firm whose clients included President Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign.

NY Post - Cambridge Analytica was a British political consulting firm.

WHAT:

CNN - Judge Francis Mathew wrote that Facebook’s misrepresentations about users’ control of their data were “not isolated incidents” but “a systematic pattern of deception at the core of Facebook’s business model.”

CNN - Meta disclosed in 2018 that Cambridge Analytica had improperly obtained the private information of as many as 87 million Facebook users and used it to build profiles of American voters.

CNN - Meta was ordered to pay nearly $1 billion in a separate New Mexico case over claims that its platforms addicted and harmed young people.

CNN - In March, Meta and YouTube lost a Los Angeles case brought by a young woman over social media addiction and harm; both companies planned to appeal.

CNN - Meta said the New Mexico penalty ruling seeks to impose a “tax on speech” and said it was confident it would prevail on appeal.

CNN - Meta reported nearly $13 billion in operating income for the September quarter, compared with nearly $23 billion it said it would have earned without the $18 billion multistate settlement charge.

CNN - Meta reported quarterly sales growth of 26% year over year, to more than $64 billion; its average price per ad rose 14% year over year.

CNN - Meta’s quarterly capital expenditures reached nearly $35 billion, up 80% from the year-earlier quarter. It narrowed its full-year capital expenditure guidance to $135 billion–$145 billion and declined to provide spending guidance for the following year.

CNN - Meta said its Muse AI personal-assistant app had gained more than 10 million users; its stock rose more than 3% in after-hours trading following its earnings report.

CBS News - Judge Francis Mathew wrote, “These communications were part of a coherent strategy designed to mislead the public.”

ABC News - Torrez said the verdict should warn technology companies and that New Mexico would continue holding them accountable. “This judgement should be a signal, an unambiguous message, to Silicon Valley,” he said.

ABC News - Meta was scheduled to report quarterly earnings Wednesday afternoon.

ABC News - Meta’s lawyers said it removes 99% of content that violates its standards.

BBC News - The $25 billion penalty is larger than an $18 billion deal with California.

CBS News - A New Mexico judge ordered Meta to pay the state $25 billion after a jury found the company had deceived consumers for years about its data privacy policies.

ABC News - The jury found Meta liable for more than 43 million violations of New Mexico consumer protection laws involving Facebook privacy and content moderation policies.

ABC News - New Mexico sought $35 billion to $40 billion; Meta argued it should pay no more than $3.4 billion and said a much larger award would violate due process and the constitution.

ABC News - Torrez said the money would go to state education spending and estimated, “We may have paid for the construction of schools for the next 100 years.” He said funds could be tied up if Meta appeals.

ABC News - Meta planned to appeal the jury verdict; its representatives did not immediately comment on the penalty. The state also sought an injunction against similar practices.

ABC News - Forty-eight other states settled with Facebook in a nationwide case for $18 billion; New Mexico pursued its own trial. Florida also did not sign the settlement.

ABC News - Jurors considered 34 instances of alleged deception and found Facebook liable for 2.1 million violations on certain counts, bringing the total above 43 million.

ABC News - Jurors found the state had not proved Facebook made false claims about removing harmful content, including COVID-19 misinformation.

WHERE:

CBS News - The case and penalty were in New Mexico.

ABC News - Meta is based in Menlo Park, California; the company’s shares were trading 2% higher after the penalty announcement.

WHEN:

ABC News - Judge Francis Mathew ordered Meta to pay the penalty on Wednesday.

WHY:

CNN - Meta attributed lower-than-expected quarterly profits to a charge from its $18 billion multistate settlement resolving claims that its platforms addicted and harmed young people.

CBS News - The case concerned claims that Facebook deceived users about a data breach involving a third-party personality quiz and Cambridge Analytica.

NY Post - New Mexico’s attorney general sued Meta after revelations that Cambridge Analytica harvested Facebook users’ personal data.

HOW:

ABC News - Jurors found that Meta’s statements deceived New Mexico’s entire population, not only Facebook users.

ABC News - Meta’s lawyers argued that New Mexico’s consumer protection laws do not apply to people in the state who were not using Facebook at the time.

CBS News - The quiz harvested data from roughly 87 million profiles and sold it to Cambridge Analytica, which used it to generate targeted ads.

ABC News - New Mexico argued Facebook’s public privacy statements deceived the state’s entire population, while Meta argued the state had not shown that people were harmed.

ABC News - Under the New Mexico Constitution, consumer-protection fines go to state education spending; interest on the penalty would accrue during an appeal.

(UPDATED October 22, 2026 01:20 UTC)

A New Mexico judge has ordered Meta to pay the state $25 billion after a jury found the company violated consumer protection laws more than 43 million times. The case centered on claims that Facebook misled the public about privacy and users’ control of their data, including information improperly obtained from as many as 87 million accounts and used by political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica. Judge Francis Mathew described the alleged conduct as a systematic pattern of deception. New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez said the verdict should send a clear warning to technology companies, and said the money would support education, including school construction. Meta says the penalty amounts to a tax on speech and plans to appeal, arguing the state’s approach makes it nearly impossible to do business there.

(UPDATED October 21, 2026 23:12 UTC)

A New Mexico judge has ordered Meta to pay $25 billion after a jury found the company deceived consumers about Facebook’s privacy policies. Jurors found more than 43 million violations of state consumer protection laws, concluding that Meta’s statements misled the entire state’s population, not just Facebook users. The case included claims about a personality quiz that harvested data from roughly 87 million profiles and passed it to Cambridge Analytica, which used it for targeted advertising. Judge Francis Mathew wrote that Meta’s communications were part of a strategy to mislead the public. Attorney General Raúl Torrez said the money could support state education, including school construction, though an appeal could tie up the funds. Meta says it will appeal, calling the penalty a “tax on speech” and arguing New Mexico’s approach makes business there nearly impossible. The company also reported quarterly sales above $64 billion, up 26% year over year.

(UPDATED October 21, 2026 22:17 UTC)

A New Mexico judge has ordered Meta to pay the state $25 billion after a jury found the company violated consumer protection laws more than 43 million times. The case centered on claims that Facebook misled people about privacy and a third-party quiz that collected data from roughly 87 million profiles. That information was sold to Cambridge Analytica, a British political consulting firm whose clients included President Trump’s 2016 campaign. Judge Francis Mathew said Meta’s communications were part of a strategy to mislead the public. New Mexico had sought as much as $40 billion, while Meta argued for a penalty capped at $3.4 billion. Attorney General Raúl Torrez said the money would support state education, including school construction, though an appeal could delay access. Meta plans to appeal, arguing the award is unconstitutional. Its lawyers also said the company removes 99 percent of content that violates its standards.

(UPDATED October 21, 2026 20:14 UTC)

A New Mexico judge has ordered Meta to pay the state $25 billion after a jury found the company deceived consumers about Facebook’s data privacy practices. The jury found more than 43 million violations of state consumer protection laws, in a case tied to a personality quiz that harvested data from roughly 87 million profiles and shared it with Cambridge Analytica. The British political consulting firm used the information to target ads, and its clients included President Trump’s 2016 campaign. Judge Francis Mathew said Meta’s communications were part of a strategy designed to mislead the public. The state had sought as much as $40 billion, while Meta argued the penalty should be far smaller and plans to appeal. Attorney General Raúl Torrez said the money would support education, including school construction, though an appeal could delay access to the funds.

(UPDATED October 21, 2026 19:17 UTC)

A New Mexico judge has ordered Meta to pay the state $25 billion after a jury found the company violated consumer protection laws more than 43 million times. The case centered on claims that Facebook misled users about privacy and a quiz that harvested information from roughly 87 million profiles, later sold to political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica. The firm’s clients included President Trump’s 2016 campaign. New Mexico had sought up to $40 billion, while Meta argued the penalty should be no more than $3.4 billion. Attorney General Raúl Torrez called the award one of the largest state verdicts against a company in American history. Under state law, the money would go to education, though an appeal could delay access to the funds. Meta plans to appeal. Jurors did not find the state had proved Facebook made false claims about removing harmful content, including COVID-19 misinformation.