The state of New Mexico is suing the makers of Snapchat, claiming that the social media app’s design and algorithms facilitate child sexual exploitation.
Attorney General Raul Torrez announced this morning the filing of the lawsuit against Snap, Inc.
New Mexico’s department of justice has been conducting a months-long investigation and alleges that Snap and its executives have misled the public about the platform’s safety.
In today’s announcement, Torrez said that although Snap tells users their photos and videos disappear, predators can still capture the content, and store, trade, and sell them.
One aspect of the DOJ’s case was built through an undercover investigation that found a network of dark websites dedicated to sharing stolen, nonconsensual sexual images from Snap, including 10,000 from the past year.
The complaint also alleges that Snap designed the platform to make it addicting to young people, which has led some users to experience depression, anxiety, sleep deprivation, and other mental health issues.
New Mexico’s Department of Justice has also gone after Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram. In May, a judge denied Meta’s motion to dismiss the state’s lawsuit focusing on the company’s role in enabling child sexual exploitation.
According to today’s new complaint, Snapchat is used by 20 million teens in the U.S, and about half of them use it every day.
