Attorney General Tong Issues Statement at Start of Trial Against Meta Over Addictive Features that Harm Kids

08/17/2026

(Hartford, CT) —Attorney General William Tong issued the following statement as Connecticut and a bipartisan coalition of attorneys general begin presenting their case against Meta in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

In the lawsuit filed October 2023, 29 states including Connecticut allege Meta deliberately designed its platforms to exploit young users’ vulnerabilities, foster compulsive use, and maximize the time young people spend on Facebook and Instagram. The attorneys general also allege Meta knew about harms to young users but deceived users, parents, and the public about the risks. The lawsuit further alleges Meta illegally collected personal information from children under 13 without their parents’ consent, in violation of the federal Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act.

“Meta hooked our kids on dangerously addictive platforms and looked the other way as they unleashed a mental health crisis. They funneled harmful messages and designed features to maximize profits and override self-control that one developer likened to ‘behavioral cocaine.’ We’re done waiting for Washington to step up and protect our kids online. We’re taking the fight directly to Meta with the full weight of our law enforcement authority, and we’re going to hold them accountable and force this broken industry to do what it takes to protect our kids,” said Attorney General Tong.

Meta has repeatedly tried to prevent the states’ case from reaching trial. In 2025, the court rejected Meta’s attempt to dismiss key parts of the states’ case, allowing claims related to allegedly addictive platform design and Meta’s failure to warn young users and parents about known risks to move forward. After the court rejected Meta’s motion to rule in their favor without a trial in June 2026, the company asked the district court and the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to stay the trial. Both courts rejected that request, clearing the way for the attorneys general to present their case at trial.

The trial opened before U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California and is expected to last six to eight weeks.

The states are asking the court to hold Meta accountable, stop unlawful practices, and require the company to follow laws designed to protect children and consumers. They are also seeking monetary penalties and other relief available under federal and state law.

The trial will be litigated by counsel from the attorney general offices of California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey, with support from Connecticut and the other coalition states, including Arizona, Delaware, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Nebraska, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.

This trial is the latest in a series of measures led by Attorney General Tong to protect Connecticut kids online. Connecticut’s investigations into Roblox and TikTok over similar allegations are active and ongoing. Attorney General Tong successfully sought state legislation this year with Governor Ned Lamont to combat youth social media addiction and prohibit social media companies from exposing minors to harmful and addictive algorithms and notifications without parental consent. The law also establishes a series of default settings regarding account privacy, time of use, and notifications, including barring notifications between the hours of 9:00 p.m. and 8:00 a.m. Parental consent would be required to alter the default settings.

In addition to new strong default protections, the legislation requires social media companies to annually report to the state the number of minors on their platform, the number of minors with parental consent to use addictive algorithms, and the average amount of time per day a minor spends on the platform, broken down by both age and time of day. The law also requires a warning label pop-up when a minor opens a social media app informing them of the mental health dangers social media proposes.

Twitter: @AGWilliamTong

Facebook: CT Attorney General

Media Contact:

Elizabeth Benton
elizabeth.benton@ct.gov

Consumer Inquiries:

860-808-5318
attorney.general@ct.gov

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