Meta whistleblower accuses Zuckerberg of misleading public on child safety

A former Meta safety engineer has accused CEO Mark Zuckerberg of creating a misleading impression about the company's commitment to protecting children on Facebook and Instagram.

Arturo Bejar told a federal jury in Oakland, California, on Tuesday that Meta knew its platforms were exposing young users to harmful content but failed to adequately address the problems.

Bejar said Meta followed a “don’t ask, don’t tell” approach to child safety, alleging its recommendation systems could expose children to sexual predators and violent or graphic material.

The former engineer said he repeatedly raised safety concerns with senior executives and had spoken to Zuckerberg at least 100 times during his time at the company.

“I felt that he created a false and misleading impression of Facebook’s commitment to young people,” Bejar testified, referring to Zuckerberg's public statements about safety.

The landmark case was brought by 29 U.S. state attorneys general, who accuse Meta of deliberately designing addictive products that harmed young people and illegally collecting data from children under 13 without parental consent.

Meta denies the allegations and company lawyer Paul Schmidt said there was “no dispute” some people struggle with social media, but Meta has “come up with tools to try and address that”.

Zuckerberg and Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri are also expected to testify during the trial, which could last at least six weeks.