Meta CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, is set to testify this week in a high-stakes $8 billion trial where he stands accused of overseeing Facebook as an unlawful enterprise that permitted users’ data to be exploited without their consent.

The lawsuit, brought by shareholders of Meta Platforms, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, targets Zuckerberg and several current and former company leaders. The plaintiffs allege that the executives repeatedly breached a 2012 agreement with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) that was intended to protect users’ data.

The case stems from the 2018 revelation that Cambridge Analytica, a now-defunct political consultancy that worked with Donald Trump’s successful 2016 presidential campaign, gained access to data from millions of Facebook users without authorisation.

Shareholders are seeking more than $8 billion in reimbursement from Zuckerberg and other defendants. The amount covers fines and other expenses Meta incurred following the Cambridge Analytica scandal, including a record $5 billion fine the FTC imposed on Facebook in 2019 for violating the 2012 settlement.

Other high-profile defendants include former Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg, board member Marc Andreessen, Palantir Technologies co-founder Peter Thiel, and Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings.

All defendants, including Zuckerberg, have denied the allegations in court filings, describing them as “extreme claims.” Both Meta and the individuals named in the lawsuit declined to comment publicly.

The trial, which begins Wednesday in Wilmington, Delaware, will run without a jury and is expected to last eight days. Much of the proceedings will centre on events and board decisions dating back a decade, aiming to determine whether Meta leadership adequately enforced the FTC agreement.

Though the case revisits old policies, it comes amid ongoing criticism of Meta’s privacy practices, particularly regarding the use of user data to train artificial intelligence systems. The company claims it has invested billions since 2019 in enhancing user privacy protections.

Jason Kint, CEO of Digital Content Next, a trade group representing content creators, said the trial could shed new light on the company’s internal handling of user data. “There’s an argument we can’t avoid Facebook and Instagram in our lives,” he said. “Can we trust Mark Zuckerberg?” (AriseNews TV)