Ex-Meta engineer says Instagram used ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy on under-13 users

A former engineering director at Meta who has previously testified before Congress about child safety on Instagram told jurors on Wednesday, at a landmark trial, that the company took a “don’t ask, don’t tell” approach to kids under 13 on its platforms.

In his second day of testimony, Arturo Béjar said Meta consistently prioritised profits over safety in designing its products, focusing on how often and how long people used them, even where this harmed their mental wellbeing.