Source Link: https://www.atg.wa.gov/news/news-releases/ag-ferguson-bipartisan-group-ags-file-federal-lawsuit-accusing-meta-harming
Coalition seeks to reform Facebook, Instagram features that were designed to addict adolescents
SEATTLE — Attorney General Bob Ferguson announced today that he is suing Meta, the parent company of the social media platforms Facebook and Instagram, as part of a bipartisan coalition of 42 attorneys general. The federal lawsuit accuses Meta of intentionally putting profits before the well-being of millions of its most vulnerable users.
Specifically, the lawsuit accuses Meta’s top leaders of knowingly targeting youth — calling them a “valuable, but untapped” market — with harmful features designed to get them hooked for life to maximize profits. Meta simultaneously and publicly downplayed the associated risks for those users, including disregarding its own research. These tactics contradicted the company’s public-facing claims that it puts user safety first.
The federal lawsuit also alleges that Meta knew young users, including those under 13, were active on the platforms and knowingly collected data from those users without parental consent.
The lawsuit, to be filed today in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, claims these unfair and deceptive practices violate state consumer protection laws, including here in Washington, and the federal Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA).
The coalition aims to make Facebook and Instagram safer for millions of adolescent users, including hundreds of thousands of young Washingtonians.
“Meta is ignoring the risks that Facebook and Instagram posed to kids — and exploiting them for financial gain,” Ferguson said. “My office is committed to protecting the mental health of Washington youth.”
While much of the complaint relies on confidential material that has not yet been disclosed, publicly available information previously released — including by former Meta employees — shows the company profited by intentionally and successfully designing its products to be more addictive for young users.
Meta designed features to provide prolonged and repeated dopamine, or “feel-good,” responses that discourage users from leaving the apps once they open them, tapping into their “fear of missing out.” Some examples:
The “like” or reaction button;
Push notifications that ping the user repeatedly with sounds, vibrations (haptic) or other audiovisual alerts;
A scroll function that feeds a user endless content, known as “infinite scroll.”
These features are designed to incessantly monopolize young users’ time and attention. Developing brains are particularly susceptible to this manipulation. The original developer of the “infinite scroll” concept, Aza Raskin, noted to the BBC: “It’s as if they’re taking behavioral cocaine and just sprinkling it all over your interface” to keep users coming back and scrolling.
The lawsuit claims that Meta knew about the wide variety of harms these features could cause young users. Not only did Meta disregard and fail to mitigate the risks, the company exploited them. The coalition seeks to stop Meta from engaging in unlawful practices that deceive and harm youth, including fundamentally changing the user experience for all adolescent users.
Examples of potential changes to the social media platforms include, but are not limited to:
Altering or eliminating the “like” button, autoplay or other features that encourage addictive use;
Restricting the frequency of notifications and the manner with which they are delivered;
Eliminating “infinite scroll,” or placing limits on how much content youth see when they access their accounts;
Improved “age gating,” or strengthening controls for age requirements;
Stricter enforcement of multiple and fake accounts;
More generally, creating a separate type of account or feature set for any user under a specified age, restricting features most harmful to youth.
Rather than implement such safeguards, Meta has placed the burden on kids and their parents to self-regulate.
Background on investigation and public scrutiny of Meta
This lawsuit and others around the country are the result of a bipartisan, nationwide investigation by state attorneys general that began in 2021.
Other states joining the federal lawsuit include Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin.
Additionally, the following states are filing lawsuits in their own state courts: the District of Columbia, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Utah and Vermont. Florida is filing its own federal lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida.
Meta has been the subject of widespread and growing public scrutiny. Around the time the coalition started its investigation, a whistleblower at Meta revealed that the company was circulating extensive research internally regarding the risk of harm to its users, including youth. The company has also been the target of bipartisan Congressional hearings on the safety of kids online and a documentary film featuring warnings from former Meta insiders who helped design the features at the center of the coalition’s federal lawsuit.
Meta is also one of several social media companies named in a class action lawsuit that includes 13 public school districts in Washington, including Seattle and Kent. That complaint accuses Meta of contributing to increased rates of youth mental health issues, which have reached crisis levels in the wake of the pandemic.
Social media impacts on youth mental health
Experts, including the U.S. Surgeon General, agree that excessive social media use by children and adolescents correlates with physical and psychological harms such as higher rates of depression, anxiety and attention deficit disorders. It can also lead to eating disorders, suicidal thoughts and body dysmorphia.
Social media use can disrupt activities that are essential for health, like sleep and physical activity, depending on the amount of time children spend online.
According to the Surgeon General, recent research shows that adolescents who spend more than three hours per day on social media face double the risk of experiencing poor mental health outcomes, such as symptoms of depression and anxiety.
Social media may perpetuate body dissatisfaction, disordered eating behaviors, social comparison and low self-esteem, especially among adolescent girls. One-third or more of girls aged 11-15 say they feel “addicted” to certain social media platforms and over half of teenagers report that it would be hard to give up social media.
IN OTHER STATE NEWS HEADLINES:
All backlogged sexual assault kits cleared from shelves and sent for testing.
SEATTLE — Attorney General Bob Ferguson announced today that the last of more than 10,000 sexual assault kits have been cleared from shelves and sent to labs for testing. This marks a major milestone for the Attorney General’s Sexual Assault Kit Initiative. Washington’s backlog of rape kits has effectively been eliminated./WAAG
AG Ferguson: Yakima jury convicts man in child rape prosecution by Attorney General’s Office.
Second jury conviction from 2019 “Net Nanny” operation targeting individuals seeking to rape children
YAKIMA — A Yakima County jury convicted Hayden A. Erlandson of felony attempted second-degree rape of a child and communicating with a minor for immoral purposes, following a criminal prosecution by Attorney General Bob Ferguson./WAAG
Seattle Municipal Court’s Probation Office and Members of Appellate Language Access Committee Make Up This Year’s Innovating Justice Recipients
October 23, 2023
Four Innovating Justice Awards were given out on Friday, October 20 to a group that includes Seattle Municipal Court’s (SMC) Probation Office, two Supreme Court clerks and an Appellate Court Judge./WAC
Washington receives $2.2 million federal Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant.
Funding will lower energy use, reduce emissions, promote energy efficiency in communities
OLYMPIA, WA — The Washington State Department of Commerce was awarded a $2.2 million grant from the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) Program, a funding opportunity from the Office of State and Community Energy Programs at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). The state plans to use this funding to lower energy use, reduce emissions, and promote energy efficiency in communities./WA COMMERCE DEPT.
American Aerospace Materials Manufacturing Center in Spokane designated one of nation’s 31 inaugural Tech Hubs/WA COMMERCE DEPT.
2) NEWS FROM OUR CONGRESSIONAL DELEGATION:
KILMER SUPPORTS BIPARTISAN RESOLUTION TO REAFFIRM SUPPORT FOR ISRAEL
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Yesterday, U.S. Representative Derek Kilmer (WA-06), joined by 411 congressional colleagues, supported a bipartisan resolution standing with Israel as it defends itself against the war launched by Hamas and other terrorist organizations and condemning Hamas’ brutal war against Israel./PRESS RELEASE
New Trade Investments to Help WA Farmers Sell More Products Worldwide
Cantwell announces $1.3 billion USDA investment in promoting U.S. agricultural products internationally
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is investing $1.3 billion to help farmers in the State of Washington and around the country sell more of their products worldwide./ PRESS RELEASE
At Senator Murray’s Urging, President Biden Includes Funding for Hurricane Ridge Repair in Supplemental Funding Request.
Washington, D.C. –U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, issued the following statement after funding was included in President Biden’s supplemental funding request submitted to Congress this week to rebuild the Hurricane Ridge Day Lodge in Olympic National Park, which burned down in May. As Chair of the Appropriations Committee, Senator Murray has repeatedly emphasized the urgent need for a new facility and will be working to fund it by getting President Biden’s supplemental funding request passed through Congress./ PRESS RELEASE
3) WORLD, NATION, & BUSINESS:
WORLD:
International Court of Justice Docket Reflects Legal Questions Concerning All Humanity in Every Region, President Says, as General Assembly Takes Up Report
As the world faces an onslaught of conflicts and challenges to international law, the growing docket of the International Court of Justice continues to reflect a wide variety of legal disputes involving countries from every region of the world and tackling questions that concern all of humanity, its President told the General Assembly today./UN PRESS RELEASE
Stressing Artificial Intelligence Could Power Extraordinary Progress for Humanity, Secretary-General Says New High-Level Advisory Body ‘Is the Starting Point’
Following are UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ remarks at the press conference launching the High-Level Advisory Body on Artificial Intelligence, in New York Thursday/ UN PRESS RELEASE
Explanation of Vote on a Russia Drafted UN Security Council Resolution on the Situation in the Middle East/USUN
Remarks at a UN General Assembly Debate on the International Court of Justice/USUN
Secretary Antony J. Blinken and Chinese Director of the CCP Foreign Affairs Commission and Foreign Minister Wang Yi Before Their Meeting/US STATE DEPT.
NATION:
FACT SHEET: White House Calls on Congress to Support Critical Domestic Needs/WH
U.S. Military Continues Focus on Supporting Israel, Ukraine.
U.S. efforts in the Middle East remain focused on supporting Israel's defense needs as the nation battles Hamas terrorists in Gaza, deterring other actors who seek to use the Hamas war on Israel as a pretext to expand the conflict and to ensure force protection for U.S. forces serving in the region, Pentagon Press Secretary Air Force Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said today./DOD
Former Executive at Medicare Advantage Organization Charged for Multimillion-Dollar Medicare Fraud Scheme.
The Justice Department today announced charges against a former executive at HealthSun Health Plans Inc. (HealthSun), a Medicare Advantage organization that operates Medicare Advantage plans in South Florida, for her role in a multimillion-dollar Medicare fraud scheme. /DOJ
Biden-Harris Administration Releases Final Rules that Strengthen Accountability for Colleges and Consumer Protection for Students/ DEPT. of EDUCATION
Annual Report to the Nation Part 2: New cancer diagnoses fell abruptly early in the COVID-19 pandemic/CDC
BUSINESS:
Hawaii Woman Charged with Filing False Tax Returns.
A federal grand jury in Honolulu returned an indictment yesterday charging a Hawaii woman with filing false tax returns, wire fraud, money laundering and structuring related to her fraudulent application for unemployment assistance due to the COVID-19 pandemic./DOJ
USDA Publishes New Standards for Organic Livestock and Poultry Production, Promotes More Competitive Organic Market/USDA
IRS encourages employers to electronically file payroll tax returns/IRS
US DEPARTMENT OF LABOR, OFFICE OF THE TRADE REPRESENTATIVE SEEK REVIEW BY MEXICAN GOVERNMENT INTO ALLEGED LABOR RIGHTS DENIAL AT NUEVO LAREDO PLANT/DEPT. of LABOR
FTC Amends Safeguards Rule to Require Non-Banking Financial Institutions to Report Data Security Breaches
Amendment will require non-bank financial institutions to report when they discover that information affecting 500 or more people has been acquired without authorization/FTC
IN FOCUS & LOCAL MEETINGS FOR 10/28/23
No comments:
Post a Comment