I\u2019ll start with a sentence every mother and father should know:<\/p>\n
According to court records, company CEO Mark Zuckerberg<\/strong> is said to have stated that the safety of children is \u201cnot his main concern<\/strong>\u201d as he focuses on the Metaverse.<\/p>\n This wording comes from an internal text message from 2021, quoted in newly unsealed documents from a US class action lawsuit against Meta. In it, Zuckerberg essentially writes that he would not claim child safety is his personal main focus if he is \u201cmore focused on a number of other areas\u201d\u2014such as building the Metaverse. <\/p>\n Meta denies that this could be interpreted as a misplacement of priorities. Legally, the case is still open. For me, however, the crucial question is another:<\/p>\n What does it mean for you as a mother or father if the CEO himself explicitly does not name child safety as his personal priority\u2014while his company is aggressively fighting for your children\u2019s attention?<\/em><\/p>\n \u2e3b<\/p>\n 1. The new wave of revelations: Project Mercury & Co.<\/strong><\/p>\n In recent days, extensive court records have become public. They contain internal studies and chat logs that Meta originally wanted to keep secret.<\/p>\n Key point: A research project codenamed \u201cProject Mercury\u201d<\/strong> (2020). Together with the polling institute Nielsen, Meta investigated what happens when people deactivate Facebook for a week. According to internal documents, the result was:<\/p>\n People who did not use Facebook for a week reported less depression, anxiety, loneliness, and social comparison<\/strong>. <\/p>\n Instead of publishing these results or adapting their own products, the project was discontinued<\/strong> according to the lawsuit. Internally, it was said that the negative effects were distorted by \u201cexisting media coverage\u201d\u2014while researchers signaled that the effects were robust. Employees compared the approach to the tobacco industry<\/strong>, which suppressed its own cancer data for decades. <\/p>\n At the same time, there are external studies that show almost the same thing: Even a short social media break measurably improves well-being, depression, and anxiety. <\/p>\n If a corporation knows both internal and external evidence that less use improves mental health\u2014and still continues to optimize for maximum use\u2014then that is not an \u201caccident.\u201d It is a business decision<\/strong>.<\/p>\n \u2e3b<\/p>\n 2. Children as a target group\u2014explicitly<\/strong><\/p>\n The major US class action lawsuit \u201cIn re: Social Media Adolescent Addiction \/ Personal Injury\u201d (MDL 3047)<\/strong> now bundles over 2,000 cases from families, school districts, and states against Meta and other platforms. They all allege that the products are deliberately designed to be addictive<\/strong> and massively harm children. <\/p>\n From the newly unsealed documents:<\/p>\n \u2022 Meta\u2019s internal research assumed that millions of under-13s<\/strong> use Facebook and Instagram, even though this is officially prohibited. <\/p>\n \u2022 In internal chats, an employee complains: \u201cZuck has been talking about this for a while \u2026 targeting 11-year-olds feels like the tobacco industry\u2014we\u2019re basically saying: We have to get them hooked young<\/em>.\u201d <\/p>\n \u2022 Strategy papers specifically analyze the psychology of \u201ctweens\u201d (5\u201312 years) to develop products for this age group. <\/p>\n Added to this is the major lawsuit by 33 US states, accusing Meta of deliberately exploiting dopamine mechanisms<\/strong> and social comparison processes to draw young people into a kind of endless scroll loop. The attorneys general openly speak of a youth mental health crisis<\/strong> fueled by Instagram and others. <\/p>\n In short: Children and adolescents are not collateral damage for Meta, but a strategically planned market<\/strong>.<\/p>\n \u2e3b<\/p>\n 3. Zuckerberg\u2019s public line: \u201cNo causality, but we\u2019re investing so much\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n Publicly, Zuckerberg paints a different picture.<\/p>\n Before the US Senate in 2024, he visibly apologized to parents whose children were exploited or driven to suicide via social media\u2014and at the same time emphasized that existing research shows no causal link<\/strong> between social media use and poorer mental health in adolescents. <\/p>\n In his written statement, Meta lists long tables of safety features and billions in investments in moderation teams, AI filters, and reporting systems. <\/p>\n Also in 2021, after the revelations of whistleblower Frances Haugen<\/strong>, Zuckerberg wrote on Facebook that at the core of all allegations is the claim that Meta puts profit over safety\u2014\u201cthat\u2019s simply not true.\u201d <\/p>\n This is how tobacco companies talk, too.<\/strong><\/p>\n They deny causality, emphasize voluntary filters, and point to \u201clack of clear studies,\u201d while internally knowing exactly how addictive their product is.<\/p>\n \u2e3b<\/p>\n 4. When algorithms find vulnerable teens\u2014and give them even more<\/strong><\/p>\n In October 2025, another internal Meta study became public: Researchers examined what Instagram shows to those teenagers who say they regularly feel bad about their bodies because of the app. The result:<\/p>\n \u2022 This group saw three times as much \u201ceating-disorder-adjacent\u201d content<\/strong> (content close to eating disorders, extreme thinness ideals, body shaming) as peers without this problem.<\/p>\n \u2022 Overall, more than a quarter of their feed consisted of \u201crisky\u201d or distressing content (provocation, suffering, self-harm). <\/p>\n The researchers themselves point out that no clear causal direction can be derived from this data\u2014do vulnerable teens seek out such content, or does the feed make them vulnerable?<\/p>\n The crucial point is something else: Instagram algorithms apparently profile vulnerable teenagers so that they encounter potentially harmful content much more often.<\/strong><\/p>\n Meta spokesperson Andy Stone explains that the study proves Meta\u2019s commitment to better products. At the same time, the report admits that Meta\u2019s existing filters do not detect 98.5\u202f%<\/strong> of this sensitive content. <\/p>\n To me, that sounds less like \u201cprotection\u201d and more like loss of control at full speed<\/strong>.<\/p>\n \u2e3b<\/p>\n 5. Meta bots: Flirting AI with minors<\/strong><\/p>\n While all this is going on, Meta is rapidly integrating its AI assistants into WhatsApp, Instagram, and Facebook. Internal guidelines published by Reuters in August 2025 show:<\/p>\n \u2022 The bot rules explicitly allowed minors to be drawn into conversations that are \u201cromantic or sensual<\/strong>.\u201d <\/p>\n \u2022 The AI was allowed to provide false medical and legal information as long as it attached a brief disclaimer. <\/p>\n Meta confirmed the authenticity of the documents and stated that problematic passages have since been removed. After massive public pressure and senators announcing an investigation, the company announced new \u201cPG-13 guidelines\u201d for teen accounts and promised to allow parents to completely disable AI chats for their children in the future. <\/p>\n The order is important:<\/p>\n 1. First, flirting AI avatars<\/strong> are rolled out to children.<\/p>\n 2. Then an investigation uncovers it.<\/p>\n 3. Only then<\/strong> do restrictions and apologies follow.<\/p>\n The pattern repeats itself.<\/p>\n \u2e3b<\/p>\n 6. \u201cMetaverse first, safety later\u201d\u2014the VR front<\/strong><\/p>\n Zuckerberg\u2019s Metaverse vision means: Even more immersive environments, even fewer barriers, even more direct interaction\u2014including with strangers.<\/p>\n Whistleblowers and researchers presented documents to the US Congress in September 2025, according to which Meta\u2019s legal department systematically<\/strong> tried to slow down or water down research on child safety in VR:<\/p>\n \u2022 After researchers documented cases where children under 13 in Horizon Worlds were sexually approached or harassed by adults, supervisors allegedly demanded that corresponding notes be deleted or toned down. <\/p>\n \u2022 Internal instructions recommend referring to \u201calleged youth\u201d rather than \u201cchildren\u201d in reports to be less legally vulnerable. <\/p>\n \u2022 A former marketing manager of Horizon Worlds accuses Meta before the US consumer protection agency FTC of knowingly allowing children under 13 into the Metaverse via adult accounts to inflate user numbers. <\/p>\n Meta rejects all allegations as \u201cdistorted\u201d and points to new youth protection features, parent dashboards, and default privacy settings.<\/p>\n From a parent\u2019s perspective, the sober calculation remains:<\/p>\n A hyper-immersive environment + known problems with harassment, grooming, and lack of moderation + legally redefining \u201cchildren\u201d = not a place where your 10- or 12-year-old child should be wandering around alone.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u2e3b<\/p>\n 7. How it all fits together neurobiologically<\/strong><\/p>\n \u2022 The child\u2019s brain develops impulse control<\/strong> (prefrontal cortex) significantly later than the reward system<\/strong> (dopamine).<\/p>\n \u2022 Social media design\u2014endless feed, variable rewards, likes, stories, \u201creels\u201d\u2014works exactly with these mechanisms: small, unpredictable dopamine kicks<\/strong>.<\/p>\n \u2022 Especially children and adolescents with ADHD, autism, or already high sensitivity are more susceptible to this pattern: They often regulate emotions more through external stimuli.<\/p>\n If a product is designed so that even adults have trouble putting it down\u2014then it is systematically unfair for 11-, 13-, or 15-year-olds<\/strong>. That\u2019s why many lawsuits speak of \u201cproduct design-induced addiction,\u201d not \u201cpoor media literacy.\u201d<\/p>\n Meta\u2019s own studies on \u201cproblematic use,\u201d in which a significant proportion of users experience symptoms such as loss of control and withdrawal, show that Meta internally knows exactly how addictive the use is. Publicly, only the small proportion with \u201csevere\u201d problems was communicated for a long time\u2014the rest disappeared under the rug. <\/p>\n \u2e3b<\/p>\n 8. What does this mean concretely for parents?<\/strong><\/p>\n I\u2019ll summarize this structurally. This is not<\/strong> legal advice, but a risk assessment from the perspective of neurobiology and existing evidence<\/strong>.<\/p>\n 8.1 Meta products for children under 13<\/strong><\/p>\n My clear recommendation:<\/p>\n No Facebook, no Instagram, no Horizon Worlds, no Meta AI chatbots for children under 13. Period.<\/strong><\/p>\n Meta officially prohibits this anyway. Internally, however, the documents show that millions of children under 13 are on the platforms\u2014often with the company\u2019s knowledge. <\/p>\n If your child still has accounts here (friends, school, \u201ceveryone else is doing it\u201d):<\/p>\n \u2022 Delete the account or at least move it completely to a parent email address<\/strong> and manage it yourself.<\/p>\n \u2022 Explain honestly why: \u201cNot because you are wrong\u2014but because this platform deliberately<\/em> overwhelms you.\u201d<\/p>\n 8.2 Teenagers (13\u201317)<\/strong><\/p>\n If a complete ban is not realistic, then:<\/p>\n 1. Structure instead of panic bans<\/strong><\/p>\n \u2022 Strictly limited usage times<\/strong> (e.g., 30\u201360 minutes\/day) with a clear daily structure.<\/p>\n \u2022 No smartphone in the bedroom\u2014especially with ADHD\/autism, sleep problems are otherwise pre-programmed.<\/p>\n 2. Pull the brakes on the product side<\/strong><\/p>\n \u2022 Set accounts to private<\/strong>, limit followers to real contacts.<\/p>\n \u2022 Block direct messages from strangers, go through reporting functions together.<\/p>\n \u2022 Deactivate<\/strong> AI chats in Meta apps as soon as the new parent settings are available\u2014and strictly prohibit them until then. <\/p>\n 3. Coach on content<\/strong><\/p>\n \u2022 Look at feeds together: \u201cHow do you feel after 10 minutes of reels? Lighter or smaller?\u201d<\/p>\n \u2022 Actively address eating disorders, self-harm, suicide, extreme ideals\u2014don\u2019t wait for your teen to bring it up.<\/p>\n 4. VR \/ Metaverse<\/strong><\/p>\n \u2022 For minors, I currently consider Meta\u2019s VR worlds to be not responsible<\/strong>: too much uncertainty, too many documented assaults, too little reliable moderation. <\/p>\n 8.3 Schools and daycare centers<\/strong><\/p>\n If Meta approaches your school with \u201csafety roadshows\u201d or \u201ceducational partnerships\u201d\u2014a loud trend according to the new court documents\u2014then the following applies:<\/p>\n \u2022 Demand written disclosure<\/strong> of what data is collected, who finances the materials, and which lobbying organizations are behind it. <\/p>\n \u2022 Insist on independent sources<\/strong> (universities, public institutions, NGOs without tech money) when it comes to media literacy or \u201conline safety.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2e3b<\/p>\n 9. \u201cNot his main concern\u201d\u2014what you can make of it<\/strong><\/p>\n If the CEO of a corporation writes in internal messages that child safety is not<\/strong> his personal main concern because he prioritizes other projects like the Metaverse, then I believe him. <\/p>\n \u2022 At the same time, internal studies show that less Facebook\/Instagram use reduces mental health problems\u2014and these studies are stopped. <\/p>\n \u2022 Internal data proves that vulnerable teenagers see particularly large amounts of problematic content\u2014and the filters detect almost none of it. <\/p>\n \u2022 AI chatbots flirt with minors until the media and politics intervene. <\/p>\n \u2022 VR researchers report sexual assaults on children, and instead of consistent protection, there is legal wordplay. <\/p>\n If you ask me as Dr. AuDHS how you should assess this, then my sober diagnosis is:<\/p>\n Meta behaves toward children like a high-risk company that only systematically reacts when public pressure is greater than growth pressure.<\/strong><\/p>\n And you don\u2019t let your children play alone in the living room<\/strong> with such companies.<\/p>\n \u2e3b<\/p>\n To take away in one sentence<\/strong><\/p>\n As long as Mark Zuckerberg does not clearly and verifiably show that child safety is actually his<\/em> main concern\u2014including transparent research, independent audits, and safety-by-design\u2014you should treat Meta products for your children like cigarettes or alcohol:<\/p>\n available, legal\u2014but taboo or strictly rationed for minors.<\/strong><\/p>\n I\u2019ll start with a sentence every mother and father should know: According to court records, company CEO Mark Zuckerberg is said to have stated that the safety of children is \u201cnot his main concern\u201d as he focuses on the Metaverse. This wording comes from an internal text message from 2021, quoted in newly unsealed documents […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12436,"parent":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[642],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12432","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n