A county in the US state of California has become the latest litigant against Meta Platforms, the sprawling multinational corporation that operates Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Messenger and Threads.

The lawsuit filed earlier this week by Santa Clara County alleges that Meta knowingly profits from scam advertising, which it says generated $7bn in annual revenue.

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It is the latest US lawsuit to challenge the social media company’s ethics, following a landmark ruling in March that found the company harmed young users with intentionally addictive design features.

Meta, which made more than $200bn in revenue in 2025, has also faced a separate lawsuit filed by the Consumer Federation of America, which said its approach…