August 9, 2022
Cecilia Tesch, mother of a 13-year-old, is suing Facebook and its parent company Meta.
The lawsuit alleges that the content shown to Tesch’s daughter on Facebook and the app’s recommendations led her to develop problems such as “body dysmorphia eating disorder, self-harm, service anxiety, depression and a decrease in motivation to do schoolwork or socialize with her family and peers.”
The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court in Denver, Colorado.
According to the lawsuit, Tesch’s daughter began using Facebook at the age of seven and quickly developed an “addictive and problematic use of the platform.”
Tesch’s daughter, who was identified as R.P. throughout the complaint, is described as a “heavy user of Facebook,” and the lawsuit says that R.P.’s interest in other activities has waned and her sleep has suffered due to “constant notifications” from the social media app.
The plaintiffs say Facebook’s age verification policies are weak and accuse the company of knowingly exploiting “vulnerable users” for profit.
Meta “designed Facebook to allow children and adolescents to use, become addicted to, and abuse their product without the consent of the users’ parents,” the lawsuit says.
The sources for this piece include an article in BusinessInsider.
