Meta faces Australian lawsuit over alleged social media harm to children

Class action could be first in Australia to blame social media for harming its users.Published On 22 Oct 202622 Oct 2026Meta and its social media platforms Facebook and Instagram are facing a class action lawsuit in Australia over allegations that addictive design features are harming children and teenagers.The lawsuit, filed by MinterEllison in the Australian Federal Court, seeks to recover compensation for current and former users of Facebook and Instagram who claim they were exposed to harmful content or developed an addiction to social media as a result of using those platforms, the law firm said in a statement released on Thursday.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Australia’s proposed ‘opt out’ law targets Big Tech algorithmslist 2 of 3Australia seeks big tech support for internet safety, AI regulationlist 3 of 3Mexico to force Meta, TikTok, and X to better protect minors on platformend of list“This proceeding raises important questions about the design and operation of social media platforms and their impact on children and teenagers in Australia. Those questions will now be considered through the Federal Court process,” MinterEllison Partner William Nolan said in...