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Meta's trial defense highlights fight over who should verify kids' ages online

By Maria Dinzeo ( March 16, 2026, 23:47 GMT | Comment) -- If children under 13 are not allowed on Instagram, why do so many appear to be using it? Testimony in two social media addiction trials has repeatedly returned to this question. Meta Platforms says the answer is complicated.About the only time Meta Platforms' chief executive showed any emotion defending his company during a trial in Los Angeles over social media addiction was when the plaintiff's attorney pressed him on an obvious contradiction: Instagram doesn’t “allow” children under 13 on the platform, yet Meta knew back in 2018 that at least 4 million of them were using it....

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