Meta ordered to pay $25 billion in New Mexico privacy case

A judge ordered Meta to pay $25 billion in a New Mexico privacy case, a penalty nearly double the state's projected $14.8 billion annual revenue, marking one of the largest payouts in US legal history if upheld. Attorney General Raúl Torrez won the verdict after a jury found Meta violated state consumer protection laws 43 million times, including over Cambridge Analytica data misuse. The funds must be spent on school construction, with Meta vowing to appeal. New Mexico tried the case alone after other states settled for far less, a strategy Torrez has used before, winning nearly $1 billion from Meta earlier this year. The state hired outside private law firms to assist.