Snap Inc.—New Mexico sues Snapchat over sextortion epidemic affecting children
Attorney General filed lawsuit after investigation revealed Snapchat received 10,000 sextortion reports monthly by late 2022 but failed to act. Internal surveys showed 70% of victims didn't report knowing Snap wouldn't take action.
Scoring Impact
| Topic | Direction | Relevance | Contribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Child Safety | -against | primary | -1.00 |
| Overall incident score = | -0.680 | ||
Score = avg(topic contributions) × significance (critical ×2) × confidence (0.68)× agency (negligent ×0.5)
Evidence (2 signals)
NM AG unredacted complaint revealed Snap knew 90% of account reports were ignored by design
In October 2024, the New Mexico AG released the unredacted complaint revealing internal Slack messages where Snap employees discussed that 'by design, over 90% of account-level reports are ignored.' Internal investigations found 70% of abuse victims did not report because they knew no action would be taken. CEO Evan Spiegel suggested not storing child abuse images. The court denied Snap's motion to dismiss in April 2025.
New Mexico sues Snapchat over sextortion epidemic affecting children
Attorney General filed lawsuit after investigation revealed Snapchat received 10,000 sextortion reports monthly by late 2022 but failed to act. Internal surveys showed 70% of victims didn't report knowing Snap wouldn't take action.