Iran says seven ships hit near Hormuz as US and Israel reportedly plan post-midterm strikes Aramco evacuates headquarters and US pulls diplomats as Houthi strikes on Saudi Arabia intensify Russia strikes Kyiv after Witkoff-Putin talks as Ukrainian drones target Moscow Ebola reaches Nigeria as WHO warns of a more complex outbreak Oil climbs to five-month high as global stocks fall Millions of exploit attempts follow AI-found PHP flaws as sites return online French risk premium hits euro-crisis levels as borrowing costs pass US Death toll passes 150 after drone strike on Abyei market Trilateral Ukraine talks eyed for November as Witkoff's Putin remark angers allies Magnitude 7 earthquake kills at least 16 in northern Tibet France bans non-union protests ahead of Saturday demonstrations Lula accepts Bolsonaro's terms for record disclosure before Brazil run-off AI debt worries weigh on markets as Meta credit risk hits record Taiwan and China prepare as Super Typhoon Champi approaches Israel's race stays tight as Netanyahu courts right-wing voters Experts expect Meta to fight $25bn New Mexico penalty on appeal Israel frees nine settler suspects to house arrest as UN calls West Bank violence out of control Serbia's student list rallies in Belgrade as campaign closes before Sunday's vote North Korea to restart border propaganda broadcasts as tensions rise DeepSeek reportedly raises $15bn as TSMC seeks rare-earth workarounds Germany arrests Ukrainian man suspected of spying for Russia Italian truckers ease fuel-price protests as government lines up aid Trump asked Musk to lift Starlink limits in Ukraine, as Rubio says access is Musk's call Tesla profit falls as analysts debate SpaceX merger Protests in Indonesia demand action as haze blankets Southeast Asia Ankara rejects Greek and EU criticism of Libya maritime deal Afghanistan-Pakistan conflict turns to proxy groups after eight months ICC wins EU Sakharov Prize while under US sanctions Indonesia moves to shore up markets ahead of MSCI index change Retail investors fully subscribe Jio Platforms IPO Qatar, Turkey, Pakistan and Indonesia sign defence industry pact Nestlé removes Russian business from accounts after Kremlin takeover Albanian lawmakers scuffle in parliament as street protests continue NATO agency to let Ukraine buy weapons through its procurement system Aung San Suu Kyi speaks to son for first time in over five years Israeli fire kills four in Gaza as hospitals face fuel and medicine shortages Barclays to cut 5,000 jobs as it steps up AI adoption Iran says seven ships hit near Hormuz as US and Israel reportedly plan post-midterm strikes Aramco evacuates headquarters and US pulls diplomats as Houthi strikes on Saudi Arabia intensify Russia strikes Kyiv after Witkoff-Putin talks as Ukrainian drones target Moscow Ebola reaches Nigeria as WHO warns of a more complex outbreak Oil climbs to five-month high as global stocks fall Millions of exploit attempts follow AI-found PHP flaws as sites return online French risk premium hits euro-crisis levels as borrowing costs pass US Death toll passes 150 after drone strike on Abyei market Trilateral Ukraine talks eyed for November as Witkoff's Putin remark angers allies Magnitude 7 earthquake kills at least 16 in northern Tibet France bans non-union protests ahead of Saturday demonstrations Lula accepts Bolsonaro's terms for record disclosure before Brazil run-off AI debt worries weigh on markets as Meta credit risk hits record Taiwan and China prepare as Super Typhoon Champi approaches Israel's race stays tight as Netanyahu courts right-wing voters Experts expect Meta to fight $25bn New Mexico penalty on appeal Israel frees nine settler suspects to house arrest as UN calls West Bank violence out of control Serbia's student list rallies in Belgrade as campaign closes before Sunday's vote North Korea to restart border propaganda broadcasts as tensions rise DeepSeek reportedly raises $15bn as TSMC seeks rare-earth workarounds Germany arrests Ukrainian man suspected of spying for Russia Italian truckers ease fuel-price protests as government lines up aid Trump asked Musk to lift Starlink limits in Ukraine, as Rubio says access is Musk's call Tesla profit falls as analysts debate SpaceX merger Protests in Indonesia demand action as haze blankets Southeast Asia Ankara rejects Greek and EU criticism of Libya maritime deal Afghanistan-Pakistan conflict turns to proxy groups after eight months ICC wins EU Sakharov Prize while under US sanctions Indonesia moves to shore up markets ahead of MSCI index change Retail investors fully subscribe Jio Platforms IPO Qatar, Turkey, Pakistan and Indonesia sign defence industry pact Nestlé removes Russian business from accounts after Kremlin takeover Albanian lawmakers scuffle in parliament as street protests continue NATO agency to let Ukraine buy weapons through its procurement system Aung San Suu Kyi speaks to son for first time in over five years Israeli fire kills four in Gaza as hospitals face fuel and medicine shortages Barclays to cut 5,000 jobs as it steps up AI adoption

Symbolic image: Experts expect Meta to fight $25bn New Mexico penalty on appeal

Symbolic image

Experts expect Meta to fight $25bn New Mexico penalty on appeal

7 sources

A New Mexico judge ordered Meta to pay $25 billion for misleading users about data privacy. Reuters cites experts who say the penalty has a strong chance of being cut on appeal.

Judge Francis Mathew signed the order on Wednesday, 21 October, after a Santa Fe jury found Meta liable in September in a case tied to the Cambridge Analytica scandal. Jurors counted more than 43 million violations of the state's Unfair Practices Act, which at up to $5,000 each produced $219.5 billion; the judge cut that to $25 billion, with 15 percent annual interest until paid. Meta's chief legal officer C.J. Mahoney called the suit a "tax on speech" and said the company is confident it will prevail on appeal. Attorney General Raúl Torrez called the ruling a signal to Silicon Valley. According to Telesur, the money is meant for education, but Torrez warned that an appeal could delay it.

Mounting legal pressure on Meta

Earlier this year New Mexico won $942m against Meta in two trials over child sexual exploitation and platform safety, Al Jazeera reports. A multistate trial over allegedly addictive design began in a California federal court in August. The New York Times describes such lawsuits as a de facto regulatory regime forcing changes at Meta and Google.

Other opinions

Breitbart calls Torrez "Soros-backed" and cites an unnamed source alleging anti-Trump politics at trial. Al Jazeera and Telesur instead stress that Cambridge Analytica worked for Trump's 2016 campaign.