New Mexico Jury Finds Meta Liable for 43 Million Privacy Violations

A jury in Santa Fe found Meta Platforms liable for approximately 43 million violations of the New Mexico Unfair Practices Act on September 25, 2026. The verdict concludes a two-week trial stemming from a 2021 lawsuit regarding the Cambridge Analytica scandal, in which a third-party personality quiz harvested data from 87 million profiles without consent to profile voters for Donald Trump's 2016 campaign.

Jurors determined that Meta made deceptive statements regarding data protection and the prohibition of hate speech, including a 2010 claim by CEO Mark Zuckerberg that users had control over their shared information. While the jury found the company liable for privacy deception, it ruled that the state failed to prove Meta made false claims about removing COVID-19 misinformation.

Meta disagreed with the verdict, arguing the evidence was outdated and asserting its First Amendment right to manage its platforms. Attorney General Raúl Torrez stated the state will seek the maximum penalty of $5,000 per violation, which could theoretically reach $219 billion. Torrez announced that any awarded funds will support the state's education system.

Judge Francis Mathew will determine the final monetary penalties at a hearing scheduled for October 1. This case follows a previous legal victory for New Mexico in March, where Meta was ordered to pay $942 million for misleading users about youth safety.