Meta versed in addiction

Social media risks to teens are greater than they are for adults. Lawsuits against Meta, Facebook and Instagram’s parent company, allege the company created unreasonably dangerous products that hook children and teens. Meta‘s internal documents show company leaders were aware its addictive design resulted in suicide and self-harm injuries to Facebook and Instagram users.

Meta faces hundreds of legal claims from parents and families of children and teens who suffered mental health problems after using Facebook and Instagram. School districts are also suing parent companies of Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube and other social media platforms, claiming the platforms ‘exploited the vulnerable brains of youth’….

Meta’s social media harm statistics show one in three teenage girls who used Instagram felt bad about their bodies, according to reports that were leaked from the company in 2021 by whistleblower Frances Haugen. The girls also suffered higher rates of anxiety and depression…. Meta also knew that under-13 children used its products, which are significantly more addictive and harmful to teens, children, women and people of colour….

From ‘Facebook, Instagram and Other Social Media Lawsuits’, consumernotice.org