MEDAN – Tech giant Meta Platforms Inc. has been ordered to pay a staggering penalty of IDR 9.4 trillion (approximately $600 million) and implement major structural updates to its Facebook and Instagram platforms following a landmark legal ruling regarding youth safety and mental health risks.
Under the ruling, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram must submit bi-annual progress reports to state authorities detailing the implementation and effectiveness of these required safeguard measures. Despite the ruling, Meta expressed its intention to appeal the decision, maintaining that it remains fully committed to protecting young users online and arguing that its existing platforms incorporate robust age-appropriate safety mechanisms.
The presiding judge highlighted that the adverse impacts of Meta’s social media design do not remain confined to the digital realm. Instead, they spill over into real-world consequences, placing significant psychological, social, and financial strain on families, schools, medical institutions, and law enforcement agencies tasked with addressing adolescent crisis situations.
This verdict aligns with broader public health warnings issued in recent years. In a landmark 2023 report titled Social Media and Youth Mental Health, the U.S. Surgeon General under the Department of Health and Human Services concluded that there is currently insufficient evidence to prove that social media platforms are sufficiently safe for children and teenagers.
Meta is currently confronting thousands of additional lawsuits across the United States raising similar claims. A massive coordinated legal battle led by nearly three dozen state attorneys general is set to proceed in California, alleging that the company intentionally engineered addictive features while violating child privacy and consumer protection laws.
The legal pressure on Meta marks a decisive turning point in how social media giants are held accountable for user safety. For years, critics and mental health professionals have warned that algorithmic feed design, push notifications, continuous scrolling, and unvetted content exposure create compulsive usage patterns that significantly exacerbate anxiety, depression, and body dysmorphia among young audiences.
In response to growing regulatory scrutiny globally, Meta has previously introduced several measures, including mandatory age verification prompts, default private accounts for young users, and strict parental control settings under its “Teen Accounts” initiative. However, regulators and state litigators argue these self-regulatory steps have arrived too late and fail to address the core engagement-driven algorithms that prioritize user retention over well-being.
As tech regulation tightens across both the United States and the European Union, the legal precedent set by this multi-trillion rupiah fine signals that social media platforms will face increasing financial penalties and mandatory oversight unless they fundamentally restructure how young users interact with their platforms.
