New Mexico Judge Orders Meta to Pay $25 Billion in Cambridge Analytica Privacy Case

A New Mexico state court on Wednesday ordered META to pay $25 billion in penalties in a data-privacy case that grew out of the Cambridge Analytica scandal. A Santa Fe jury found in September that the company misled state residents about how it safeguards and collects user data and how it prevents harmful information from spreading on its services. Business Insider reported that the ruling also covers Facebook's failure to prevent misinformation, and said it could be the largest penalty in Meta's history.

The jury found over 43 million violations of New Mexico's Unfair Practices Act, each carrying a civil penalty of up to $5,000. The court filing showed the state was awarded $219.5 billion at that maximum before the penalty was reduced to $25 billion, and interest accrues at 15% a year until it is paid. Local reports put the exact count at 43,899,720 violations, while Business Insider described it as nearly 50 million. According to PPC Land, the state had asked for $35 billion to $40 billion and Meta had proposed about $3.4 billion. Judge Francis Mathew wrote that Facebook "did not conduct the comprehensive investigation that it promised" after the Cambridge Analytica revelations.

The case is separate from the multistate child-safety settlement Meta reached in August, which CNBC puts at nearly $17 billion and Business Insider at $18 billion; New Mexico was not part of that deal. New Mexico also won an earlier child-safety trial against Meta, with a $375 million jury penalty in March followed by a $567 million abatement order, which Meta said it would appeal. In 2022, Meta paid $725 million to settle a Cambridge Analytica class action.

Meta did not immediately comment. Its trial attorney, Matthew Nicholson, called the judgment "shocking to the conscience" and unconstitutional, according to the Santa Fe New Mexican, but the company has not said whether it will appeal. Meta shares ended the day at $697.52, up about 0.5%, according to SentiSense data. Points to watch include an appeal, whether Meta records a charge, and how the 15% interest is treated while any appeal runs.