A jury of Los Angeles declared guilty this Wednesday Goal and YouTube of having harmed a young woman through the addictive design of his social media platforms and ordered companies to pay three million dollars in damages.
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This landmark verdict could redefine how the tech sector faces legal liability for the mental health of its young users.
| URGENT: A jury finds Meta and YouTube responsible in the historic trial that accused their social networks of causing addiction in minors. pic.twitter.com/9C6XkVejuo
— Alerta News 24 (@AlertNews24) March 25, 2026
According to the information, the jurors also determined that both companies knew or should knowing that their services represented a danger to minors. Fact that they did not adequately warn users of this danger and that a reasonable operator of a platform would have done so.
“The time for reckoning has come,” the plaintiff’s attorneys said in a statement.
A Meta spokesperson said the company “respectfully disagrees” with the verdict.
The panel attributed 70% of the responsibility for the damage suffered by the plaintiff to Mark Zuckerberg’s company. YouTube the remaining 30%, that is, $900,000.
The jury also found that both companies acted with malice, abusive conduct or fraud, a conclusion that sets the stage for a separate phase of punitive damages.
During the case, the complainant maintained that features such as scrolling, auto-playing videos, notifications and like counters are designed to encourage compulsive use among young people.
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So far it is unknown if YouTube or Meta They will appeal the verdict or they will look for another kind of arrangement.
(With information from AFP)
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