Two former Meta researchers on Tuesday accused the social media giant of prioritising profits over the safety of children using its virtual-reality platforms, telling a Senate panel that the company ignored or suppressed internal findings of harm.
Cayce Savage, a former user experience researcher at Meta, told the Senate subcommittee on privacy and technology that the company shut down investigations that showed that children were being exposed to sexually explicit material while using its VR products.
“Meta cannot be trusted to tell the truth about the safety or use of its products,” Savage testified, adding that she had documented cases of bullying, sexual assault, and requests for nude photos involving children in VR environments.
Jason Sattizahn, another former researcher with Meta’s Reality Labs, said he was not surprised when told about internal policies allowing chatbots to engage in romantic or sensual conversations with children, as first reported by Reuters.
Meta has denied the allegations, with spokesperson Andy Stone saying the whistleblowers’ claims were “based on selectively leaked internal documents … picked specifically to craft a false narrative,” and insisting that there was no blanket ban on research involving young users.
The revelations have fuelled renewed calls in Congress for stronger safeguards. Senator Marsha Blackburn, a Tennessee Republican, said the testimonies underscore the need to pass the Kids Online Safety Act, a bill that cleared the Senate last year but stalled in the House.
