Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, who is facing trial over youth social media addiction, has given false testimony to Congress in the past, a watchdog group said.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg testified in court on February 18, 2026, in a lawsuit brought by hundreds of American families alleging that platforms like Meta, TikTok, and YouTube are harming children. The day before his testimony, the Tech Oversight Project, a civil watchdog group, released a report alleging that Zuckerberg had lied to the Senate Judiciary Committee during a hearing on youth social media use.

TOP REPORT: Mark Zuckerberg Lied to Congress. We Can't Trust His Testimony.
https://dispatch.techoversight.org/top-report-mark-zuckerberg-lied-to-congress-we-cant-trust-his-testimony/

A large group of approximately 1,600 plaintiffs, including parents, teenagers, and school districts, is seeking monetary damages and injunctive relief, alleging that platforms like Meta, Snap, TikTok, and YouTube are 'driving young people toward depression, eating disorders, self-harm, and other mental health issues.' Key witnesses expected to appear include Snap CEO Evan Spiegel, YouTube CEO Neil Mohan, Instagram head Adam Mosseri, and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, and attention is focused on how this will affect similar social media lawsuits. TikTok and Snapchat settled their cases on confidential terms just before the trial was scheduled to begin, while YouTube and Meta have disputed the plaintiffs' claims.

The Tech Oversight Project, a technology policy group, analyzed court documents related to social media addiction and reported that 'conclusive evidence has emerged that these social media platforms have intentionally engineered social media addiction, without any regard for the known harm to the health of children and young people, resulting in mass youth addiction.'

Documents submitted to court show that Google, TikTok, Meta, and others designed their platforms to be addictive, knowing the negative health effects on children and young people - GIGAZINE

Furthermore, the Tech Oversight Project analyzed Zuckerberg's comments regarding efforts to reduce social media harm to young people at a hearing on 'Big Tech and the Crisis of Online Child Sexual Exploitation' held before the Senate Judiciary Committee in February 2024. Comparing his comments with Zuckerberg's past statements and internal company documents, the Tech Oversight Project found inconsistencies and false data, concluding that 'Zuckerberg's testimony cannot be trusted.'

For example, during the hearing, CEO Zuckerberg directly addressed families who have lost children to suicide or other social media-related incidents, saying, 'We're committed to investing heavily and continuing our industry-leading efforts to ensure no one has to go through the pain your family has experienced.' However, according to a research report (PDF file) conducted by multiple organizations, 47 of Instagram's 53 safety features were tested and found that 64% were unavailable or ineffective, 19% were partially functional but with limitations, and only 17% worked without issues. The Tech Oversight Project pointed out, 'Meta's investment in teen safety measures after the hearing was merely a PR stunt. Despite its public promises, it became clear that the majority of Instagram's teen safety features fail to protect young users.'

During the hearing, Zuckerberg also claimed, 'A lot of people talk about the harms of social media as if it's already proven, but I think there's very little scientific evidence to back it up.' However, a Facebook study published by The Wall Street Journal in 2021 found that Instagram use is consistently associated with poor mental health, including anxiety and depression, among teenagers.

In addition, claims such as 'sexually explicit content is not permitted' and 'people under the age of 13 cannot use Meta's social media' may actually indicate that safety standards are set quite loosely and regulations are not being properly enforced. Furthermore, Meta's internal documents state its internal goals, such as 'To make Meta the most relevant social product for children around the world, we focus on each life stage of young people: children aged 6-10, teenagers aged 10-13, and teens aged 13+,' which contradicts the claim that 'people under the age of 13 are prohibited from using the app.' Internal documents have also revealed some of Meta's efforts to attract children in the past.

It turns out that Facebook was trying to come up with ways to attract children other than Instagram for kids - GIGAZINE

During the hearing, Zuckerberg expressed sympathy for parents who have lost children due to social media, saying, 'We want to ensure that everyone who uses our services has a safe and positive experience.' However, the Tech Oversight Project criticized the company for viewing children as a commercial asset, citing a 2018 internal email that stated, 'The opportunity cost and lifetime value of teenagers' and, 'If we don't solve the teen problem, Facebook will lose 30 million users by 2030.'

Furthermore, the Tech Oversight Project has pointed out that Meta's statements and reports, even outside of the hearings, contain falsehoods. In its 2023 report, Meta stated that 'Meta's automated systems are highly effective at detecting and removing harmful content,' claiming that they removed 87.8% of bullying and harassment content, 99% of child exploitation content, and 95% of hate speech before receiving reports from users. However, a Meta whistleblower revealed that these numbers 'relied on internal metrics that downplayed actual experience,' and the true accuracy of the automated detection tools is estimated to be less than 5%.

Sasha Howarth, executive director of the Tech Oversight Project, said, 'Meta has long been hiding behind Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act , which exempts providers from legal liability for user-generated content. Meta's lawyers may have assumed that the product liability lawsuit would never go to trial and that past documents would never see the light of day, but their predictions were wrong. The unreleased documents prove that Zuckerberg lied to Congress. They lied, concealed their research, and we know that they will continue to recklessly harm young people until Congress forces them to change their behavior. The only way to make Meta's dangerous and egregious actions illegal is to pursue them rigorously and pass laws that force them to protect children and young people. '

The Tech Oversight Project is analyzing Meta's announcement and Zuckerberg's past statements, comparing them with actual internal company documents, and publishing the results as 'trial evidence' throughout the trial. The 'Big Tech on Trial' page, where some of the evidence is posted, will be updated as needed.

Trial Evidence - Tech Oversight Project
https://techoversight.org/bigtechontrial/