Vassilia Orfanou, PhD, Post Doc
Writes for the Headline Diplomat eMagazine
In the bustling heart of the Empire State, the stage is set for a legal showdown of unprecedented proportions. Mark Zuckerberg, the visionary behind Meta Platforms Inc., and several of the company’s top brass, stand accused of a grave failure: not doing enough to thwart sex trafficking and the sexual exploitation of minors on their formidable digital domains, Facebook, and Instagram.
According to the Guardian, Meta’s platforms – Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp – were used to facilitate human trafficking in 146 of the 271 reported cases of social media platforms being used by traffickers to commit their crimes in Florida, between 2019 and 2022.
This gripping legal saga unfurled when pension and investment funds, who possess stakes in the Meta empire, stepped into the arena with a potent grievance that sent shockwaves through the corridors of justice. Their claim is as stark as it is unsettling: Meta’s upper echelons, they assert, have turned a blind eye to what they term “systemic evidence” of criminal activity. They charge that the welfare of the company and its shareholders has been recklessly disregarded.
“The results were extraordinary,” said Florida’s attorney general, Ashley Moody. “To put this number in perspective, after Meta platforms, the next highest social media platform used in human trafficking was Snapchat, and it was utilised 19 times, seven times less than Meta platforms.”
She called the situation “public safety threat” as the Meta’s platforms were used to recruit victims, as well as in trafficking operations and to control victims.
The complaint thrusts forward a pointed question, one that reverberates ominously in the absence of a satisfactory answer: How has the Meta board sought to eradicate this grave issue? The only logical deduction, the complaint contends, is that the board has knowingly allowed Meta’s platforms to serve as conduits that facilitate sex and human trafficking.
A two-year investigation Guardian investigation, published in April 2023 suggested that Meta cannot prevent predators from using their platforms (messenger) to buy and sell children for sex.
Meta’s response to this barrage of allegations has been swift and emphatic. In June, Meta announced it had set up a taskforce to investigate Instagram’s role in the distribution and sale of child sexual-abuse material.
In a resounding statement that reverberated across media channels, the company vehemently distanced itself from all forms of human exploitation, reserving their strongest condemnation for the sexual exploitation of children. In his statement to Bloomberg Law, Andy Stone, a spokesperson for Meta, said that the company “prohibits human exploitation and child sexual exploitation in no uncertain terms.”
Meta’s stance on the lawsuit is unequivocal: it does not accurately portray their relentless and unwavering efforts to purge their platforms of these insidious activities. Stone continues “The claims in this lawsuit mischaracterize our efforts to combat this type of activity”.
Meta’s goal is crystal clear – to bar malevolent actors from exploiting their digital spaces, and to ensure their platform remains a positive and secure space for users. Stone highlights “Our goal is to prevent people who seek to exploit others from using our platform, and we work closely with organizations like Polaris, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and Stop the Traffik to inform these efforts.”
This is not Meta’s inaugural encounter with such grave accusations. Since its inception in Menlo Park, California, this tech giant has been embroiled in allegations that its social media ecosystems are breeding grounds for sexual misconduct and exploitation.
The legal terrain tilted dramatically in June 2021 when the Texas Supreme Court passed a watershed ruling, granting three individuals the right to sue Facebook. These individuals had fallen prey to their abusers through the platform, leading the court to assert that Facebook could no longer evade responsibility for facilitating human trafficking. The era of Facebook being a “lawless no-man’s-land” had come to an end.
Meta’s legal quagmire doesn’t conclude there. Hundreds of families have filed lawsuits alleging that their teenagers and children developed severe psychological issues due to their addictive use of Facebook and Instagram. Unusually, even school districts have initiated legal proceedings to address this alarming issue.
Most recently, a derivative action lawsuit was filed, a unique legal maneuver where shareholders take legal action against officers and directors who are alleged to have failed in their duties. Typically, any compensation arising from such lawsuits is derived from the insurance policies of these directors and officers, thus sparing shareholders.
Besides Zuckerberg, the complaint’s nearly two dozen targets include Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings, former UK deputy prime minister Nick Clegg, leading Silicon Valley venture capitalists Marc Andreessen and Peter Thiel, and former Meta chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg.
The suit accuses them of breaching their fiduciary duty to oversee the company loyally. It cites the axiom that “a Delaware fiduciary cannot be loyal to a Delaware company while causing it to break the law.”
That’s especially true “when the category of crimes being facilitated involves commercial sex acts induced by force, fraud, coercion, and abuse,” including “involuntary servitude, peonage, debt bondage, slavery,” and “child sexual exploitation—all on a mass scale,” the complaint says.
Conclusion
The legal showdown involving Meta Platforms Inc., spearheaded by Mark Zuckerberg and other high-ranking officials, is a gripping saga marked by accusations of neglect in combating sex trafficking and the exploitation of minors on Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. The complaint, brought forth by pension and investment funds, alleges that Meta’s leadership turned a blind eye to systemic evidence of criminal activity, jeopardizing the welfare of the company and its shareholders.
The gravity of the situation is underscored by statistics indicating Meta’s platforms’ substantial role in facilitating human trafficking cases in Florida. The company’s swift response involves the establishment of a task force to investigate Instagram’s involvement in the distribution and sale of child sexual-abuse material. Meta vehemently denies the allegations, emphasizing its commitment to preventing exploitation on its platforms and collaborating with organizations to address the issue.
In the broader context, this legal battle signals a call for accountability and responsibility in an era where tech giants wield immense influence. The outcome of this case may set a precedent for other tech and media giants, emphasizing the shift from unchecked power to an age of accountability.
Looking ahead, the Meta case serves as a stark reminder of the need for enhanced security measures across all digital platforms. It underscores that even tech giants must remain vigilant in safeguarding their ecosystems against exploitation and criminal activities. Beyond legal repercussions, it signals a collective responsibility for all tech and media giants to proactively address and fortify their platforms against malicious actors. Strengthening partnerships with law enforcement, collaborating with organizations dedicated to combatting exploitation, and implementing robust technological solutions are paramount. In this evolving landscape, prioritizing user safety and well-being is not just a legal necessity but a moral obligation for any entity shaping the digital realms of our interconnected world.
Featured photo: Denafi Sy: https://www.pexels.com/el-gr/photo/786220/
