Judge orders Meta to pay $25 bn in Cambridge Analytica case

New Mexico State District Judge Francis Mathew on Wednesday ordered Meta to pay a 25 billion dollars penalty for violating state consumer protection laws in a landmark Cambridge Analytica privacy case.

The lawsuit alleged that Meta deceived Facebook users about their personal data during the Cambridge Analytica scandal, as well as its handling of hate speech and misinformation. On the other hand, Meta chief legal officer C.J. Mahoney criticized the ruling as "a tax on speech" and "all but impossible to do business in the state", and the company stated it plans to appeal.