KINGSHILL — The Virgin Islands filed a lawsuit accusing Facebook and Instagram of intentionally designing its platforms to be addictive to children and teenagers while publicly downplaying the severe mental health risks they pose,
Today’s 152-page complaint in Virgin Islands Superior Court seeks damages from Facebook and Instagram owner Meta Platforms. It accuses the defendants of negatively impacting the “well-being and safety of thousands of U.S. Virgin Islands teens and children.”
In addition, VIDOJ’s complaint marks the first effort by an attorney general to address reports of rampant fraud and scams on Meta’s platforms, which impacts all Virgin Islands residents, including the elderly, Virgin Islands Attorney General Gordon C. Rhea said.
“With this lawsuit, the Virgin Islands not only joins 42 other state attorneys general who have
taken Meta to court for its failures to protect children and to honestly disclose the risks on its
platforms, but expands their efforts by seeking to hold Meta accountable for knowingly facilitating,
failing to address, and richly profiting from widespread fraud on its platforms” according to the
complaint.
The attached complaint, includes allegations that Meta:
- Knowingly profited from widespread fraudulent advertising. Meta projected that 10% of
its revenue in 2025, roughly $16 billion, would derive from fraudulent ads and privately
acknowledged that its platforms were responsible for a third of all successful scams in the
United States; - Intentionally failed – despite public representations to the contrary – to crack down on fraudulent advertising citing potential impacts on profits;
- Detected ads it believed to be fraudulent, and rather than taking them down, charged fraudsters extra for the right to advertise scams;
- Allowed fraudsters to use Meta’s algorithms and user data to target the most vulnerable
users; - Adopted algorithms and platform designs that disabled teens from controlling their time
spent on Meta’s platforms and foster addiction, problematic use, anxiety, depression, selfharm, and suicide; - Allowed its platforms – including its social media, messaging, and virtual reality (VR)
platforms – to become breeding grounds for predators who groom, solicit, and sexually
exploit children; - Publicly promised various policies and initiatives to keep consumers and children safe and
privately decided not to follow through on these promises to protect the company’s bottom
line.
The lawsuit was filed in the Superior Court of the Virgin Islands on St. Croix. The complaint asserts that Meta violated the Consumer Protection Law of 1973 (12A V.I.C. § 101) and the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act (12A V.I.C. § 304) and seeks injunctive relief to require Meta to stop its practices that violate the law, as well as civil penalties and disgorgement of Meta’s improper profits.
Consumers who believe they have been victims of fraud or other abuse on Meta’s platforms are encouraged to report their experiences to the VIDOJ Special Investigations Division. Reports may be directed to Ms. Joycelyn Conner at joycelyn.conner@doj.vi.gov or by telephone at 340-774-5666, extension 10343.