The State of New Mexico has asked a judge to order Meta Platforms, the parent company of Facebook, to pay between $35 and $40 billion in fines after a jury found the company had misled users about how their personal data was protected on Facebook. This case is linked to the Cambridge Analytica scandal, which involved the misuse of Facebook user data. The jury concluded that Meta had violated New Mexico's consumer protection laws, finding more than 43 million violations based on misleading statements made by the company and its executives. Judge Francis Mathew, who presided over the trial in Santa Fe, will now decide the exact amount of the financial penalties Meta must pay. The case originated from revelations that Cambridge Analytica, a British political consulting firm involved in Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign, collected the personal data of 87 million Facebook users through a third-party application without their consent. In 2018, it was revealed that Cambridge Analytica paid a researcher to gather data using an app called "thisisyourdigitallife." Users were asked to connect their Facebook accounts and answer questions, with over 270,000 people participating. This data was used to create user profiles and influence the political landscape in the United States. Although Facebook faced significant backlash and made changes to its privacy policies, Cambridge Analytica and its parent company, SCL Group, shut down their operations shortly after the scandal emerged. During a recent hearing, attorneys for the State of New Mexico argued that the maximum penalty of $5,000 per violation—allowed under state law—would be too harsh under the U.S. Constitution's due process protections. However, they suggested that a fine between $35 and $40 billion, which is about 20 percent of the total possible fines, would still have a major impact on Meta's financial standing. Meta's lawyers, on the other hand, called the requested penalty "astronomical" and argued that the company did not sell users' data and that no consumer had been proven to be misled. They requested that the penalties be capped at $3.45 billion. This case is part of a broader trend in legal challenges against major technology companies. In March, a jury in Los Angeles ruled that Meta and Google were negligent in the design of their platforms, Instagram and YouTube, for making minors dependent on their services. This is the first time in the U.S. that the design of digital products, rather than the content they host, is being legally challenged. The outcome of this case could set a precedent for future lawsuits against large technology firms, potentially reshaping the legal landscape for Big Tech. Judge Mathew is expected to issue his decision within the month.