Meta faces scrutiny over delayed teen safety features

A federal lawsuit has revealed that Meta reportedly understood the risks of explicit content in direct messages nearly six years before launching a nudity filter in April 2024. The details emerged from a newly unsealed deposition—a formal, out-of-court testimony—of Instagram head Adam Mosseri. Prosecutors in the lawsuit, which focuses on whether social media apps are addictive and harmful, questioned why Meta delayed the rollout of basic safety tools, such as a nudity filter for private messages, despite understanding the issue years prior. The questioning referenced an August 2018 email chain between Mosseri and Guy Rosen, Meta’s Vice President and Chief Information Security Officer, where Mosseri noted that horrible things could happen via Instagram private messages.

The legal filings also introduced survey data regarding harmful activity on the platform. According to the testimony, 19.2% of survey respondents ages 13 to 15 reported seeing unwanted nudity or sexual images on Instagram. Additionally, 8.4% of 13- to 15-year-olds reported seeing someone harm themselves or threaten to do so on Instagram within a seven-day period. Plaintiffs in the U.S. District Court in the Northern District of California argue that social media platforms are defective because they are designed to maximize screen time, encouraging addictive behavior in teens. The defendants in this case include Meta, Snap, TikTok, and YouTube’s parent company Google.

During his testimony, Mosseri defended the company’s timeline, stating that Meta attempted to balance user privacy with safety. He noted that the platform removed CSAM (Child Sexual Abuse Material) but pushed back against suggestions that Meta should have informed parents that its messaging system was unmonitored. Mosseri, the head of Instagram, stated: “I think that it’s pretty clear that you can message problematic content in any messaging app, whether it’s Instagram or otherwise.” The litigation also addresses whether Meta was aware of risks to minors from adults engaging in grooming—defined as a process in which an adult builds trust with a minor over time to manipulate or sexually exploit them. The questioning also touched on a 2017 email from a Facebook intern who wanted to find addicted Facebook users to see if there were ways to help them.

In response to the allegations, Meta spokesperson Liza Crenshaw stated that the company has spent over a decade listening to parents, working with experts, and conducting research. She highlighted recent safety updates, such as the introduction of Teen Accounts with built-in protections. Similar lawsuits targeting big tech companies are currently underway in Los Angeles County and New Mexico, where lawyers aim to prove that companies prioritized user growth over safety.

Why it matters

The lawsuit challenges the fundamental design of social media platforms, with internal documents suggesting companies were aware of safety risks to minors long before implementing protective measures.