Meta is suing the Federal Trade Commission, claiming the agency’s in-house courts are unconstitutional and violate due process protections, a bid that also aims to stop the FTC from making blanket changes to a 2020 privacy violation settlement that would further restrictions on Meta’s data monetization practices.
Key facts
- Meta filed the lawsuit to challenge “the structurally unconstitutional authority” of the FTC, according to a filing, arguing that the agency’s “dual role as prosecutor and judge” is a violation of due process.
- Meta also requested the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia permanently block the FTC proceeding in which the agency is looking to impose new restrictions on Meta including a prohibition from monetizing data from users under the age of 18.
- The lawsuit comes a few days after U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly ruled the FTC could advance the proceeding designed to revise a $5 billion privacy violation settlement Meta agreed to in 2020.
- Kelly’s decision was appealed this week by Meta, which also asked the FTC to pause its proceeding, according to Bloomberg.
- The FTC declined to comment while Meta did not immediately respond to Forbes’ request for comment.
Tangent
Meta’s stock, now $322.74 per share, is trading down more than 2.5% on Thursday, continuing a decline the company’s stock experienced Wednesday amid a broader drop among tech stocks. Shares of Meta have rocketed this year and jumped more than 160% since January.
Key background
The FTC accused the company in May of failing to follow the agency’s 2020 privacy order, claiming the social media platform misrepresented the access some app developers had to private user data and misled parents about their means of controlling their children’s communications through the Messenger Kids app.
The FTC is specifically seeking to prohibit the company from profiting off the data it collects from users under 18, including through virtual reality products. The prohibition targets Meta’s core advertisement business, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Meta asked Kelly to stop the FTC’s proposal and have it moved to federal court.
This article was first published on forbes.com and all figures are in USD.
