A New Mexico court has fined Meta, the parent company of Facebook, a record $25 billion over allegations that the technology giant misled users for 11 years about the protection and use of their personal information.The ruling, delivered by Judge Francis Mathew, marks the largest fine in the state’s history, according to a BBC report published on Thursday, October 22.The court found that Meta and its top executives, including Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg, deliberately misled the public between 2010 and 2021 about how users’ personal data was handled.Despite assurances that third parties would not receive users’ information without permission, the court found that the company’s practices left personal data exposed through various means, including the Cambridge Analytica scandal.New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez said the ruling demonstrated that no powerful corporation was above the law.Millions of Users AffectedMore than half of New Mexico’s population, or approximately two million people, were affected by Meta’s allegedly misleading practices, according to the report.The court found more than 40 million violations of state law in connection with the case.Although the initial calculation put the potential penalty at $219 billion, Judge Mathew reduced the amount to $25 billion.The fine is roughly equivalent to Meta’s earnings in a single quarter, highlighting the financial scale of the ruling.However, Meta’s lead attorney, CJ Mahoney, announced that the company would appeal the decision.AI Spending Adds to Financial PressureThe ruling comes as Meta pours billions of dollars into artificial intelligence (AI) to compete with Google and other technology companies.Meta Chief Financial Officer Susan Li said the company could spend between $135 billion and $145 billion on AI projects this year.The massive investment has put pressure on the company’s finances, with Meta facing negative cash flow for the first time, according to the report.The legal battle over data privacy could therefore add another challenge for the company as it expands its AI operations while facing scrutiny over its handling of users’ personal information.Source: BBC
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