⚑ Big name, big troubleNovember 6, 2026
A New Mexico judge ordered Meta to pay the state $25 billion, ABC News reported on October 21, 2026. The order followed a jury finding that the company violated the state's consumer protection laws. Meta says it will appeal.
The short version
Company: Meta (Facebook)
Who took action: New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez; ordered by a state judge
The action: Court-ordered penalty after a jury verdict
Amount: $25 billion, per ABC News
Status: Meta says it will appeal
What the state says
New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez brought the case, which ABC News says grew out of the Cambridge Analytica episode. The state accused Facebook of deceiving users about a data breach tied to a third-party personality quiz that obtained data from about 87 million Facebook profiles, according to ABC News. Fox Business reported that New Mexico sued in 2021. ABC News said 48 other states had settled with Facebook over similar allegations, but New Mexico went to court on its own. Torrez called the judgment the "single largest, if not the largest, single state verdict against the company in American history," ABC News reported.
ABC News reported that jurors found in September that Meta violated New Mexico's consumer protection laws, with more than 43 million violations. Fox Business reported that jurors found 26 of the 29 statements examined at trial were misleading. Judge Francis Mathew of the First Judicial District of New Mexico, in Santa Fe, then ordered Meta to pay $25 billion, according to ABC News. The state had asked for between $35 billion and $45 billion, ABC News said. Fox Business reported the judge wrote that Facebook's "wrongdoing" goes to the heart of its core business practices.
Meta's response and the money
Meta told ABC News it will appeal. Chief Legal Officer C.J. Mahoney said the ruling makes it "all but impossible to do business in the state of New Mexico," and said the company is "confident we will prevail on appeal." In closing arguments, Meta's lawyers called the state's evidence outdated, ABC News reported. Fox Business reported that state law could have allowed a penalty above $219 billion and that Meta had urged a limit of $3.45 billion. ABC News said the money will go into the state's education fund.
What it means for customers
According to ABC News, the $25 billion is to go to New Mexico's education fund. The coverage does not describe any payments to Facebook users.
Meta has said it will appeal, so the order could change.
Meta says it is confident it will prevail on appeal, and the penalty is not final while that process plays out. The state had asked for as much as $45 billion, ABC News reported.
Sources
ABC News: report on the $25 billion order against Meta in New Mexico, October 21, 2026
Fox Business: report on the New Mexico judgment against Meta, October 2026
This story is based on the records and reports linked above. Charges, lawsuits, and other accusations are claims, not findings of guilt or liability, unless the story says a court has ruled.