Meta Humiliated in Court Over Claims It Mass-Downloaded 2,300 Pirated X-Rated Movies to Train Its AI

Meta is facing a copyright lawsuit after a US federal judge allowed an adult entertainment studio to pursue claims that the tech giant illegally downloaded thousands of its films to train artificial intelligence models.

The ruling marks the latest legal challenge to Meta's AI practices and could intensify scrutiny of how major technology companies obtain data for AI development.

A federal judge has refused to let Meta off the hook, ruling that the tech giant must face a lawsuit over allegations it used pirated adult films to train its AI systems.

Meta Blocked from Dismissing AI Copyright Lawsuit

The litigation was cleared to proceed on 11 June when US District Judge Eumi K. Lee decided that adult entertainment firms Strike 3 Holdings and Counterlife Media 'have plausibly alleged that [Meta] is liable for direct, vicarious, and contributory copyright infringement based on the torrenting of their films.'

The legal battle began in July 2025 when Strike 3 Holdings, which 404 Media notes owns major platforms such as Blacked, first took Meta to court.

Alongside Counterlife Media, the company claims that Meta spent seven years using the BitTorrent file-sharing network to unlawfully download more than 2,300 copyrighted adult films. The plaintiffs allege the massive illicit downloads were carried out to train the company's artificial intelligence models.

Inside the Alleged Mass Torrenting Operation

Strike 3 Holdings launched its legal action after unsealed internal communications from a separate lawsuit exposed Meta's data collection tactics.

Those documents revealed the tech giant had extracted more than 81 terabytes of content by scraping Anna's Archive, a notorious open-source search engine dedicated to hosting pirated media ranging from books and television series to films and adult material.

An inquiry conducted by Strike 3 Holdings discovered that Meta employees or systems allegedly used 47 of the company's IP addresses to pirate its content.

Between 2018 and 2025, those networks were allegedly used to download 2,396 of the studio's videos, resulting in a total of 6,008 individual downloads.

According to the lawsuit, network traffic linked directly to Meta's corporate offices behaved 'consistently in non-human patterns', pointing to 'mass infringement beyond what a human could consume'.

In the wake of the alleged automated downloading operation, the firms are seeking damages of up to $359 million (£267.87 million).

Meta Blames Rogue Staff for Adult Film Downloads

Thursday's ruling by Judge Lee blocked Meta's effort to have the case dismissed, allowing the litigation to move forward.

In its defence, the tech giant argued that the plaintiffs could not prove the downloaded videos were actually intended for artificial intelligence training.

Meta's lawyers also argued that the company should not be held responsible, suggesting the downloads may have been the work of rogue employees watching adult content on company time using corporate networks.

Judge Rejects Meta Defence as Uncoordinated Activity

Judge Lee noted that the evidence pointed away from random staff activity, as Strike 3 Holdings uncovered what it described as a clear pattern of digital coordination across Meta's network that indicated 'a coordinated effort to gather data.'

The data showed that various corporate IP addresses were downloading files with matching naming conventions on the same days.

The alleged harvesting operation included everything from adult films to cartoons and television sitcoms, suggesting systems were systematically downloading content based on specific search parameters.

'For example, IP Ranges A and F torrented the following files on 15 December 2022: Teen Sex Sessions 2 (2012), Teen Titans Go to the Movies (2018), Teens Love Tats XXX, TeensLoveAnal.16.09.30.Amara, Teenfidelity Pics, TeensLoveAnal.16.06.10.Casey, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1987-1996), Teen Mom Girls Night In S02E08, TeenyTaboo.22.12.07.Kiana, and TeenageDelinquents.Maryjane,' the decision says.

'On the same day, a Corporate IP Address was used to torrent TeenCurves.22.12.09.Willow. The connection between these files is plain: The word "teen" appears in every file name.'

The judge flatly rejected Meta's theory, writing that the idea of separate employees independently downloading all of the files at the same time 'strains credulity'.

Illicit Downloads Alone Constitute Copyright Breach

Furthermore, the judge clarified that whether Meta ultimately used the files for artificial intelligence development does not alter the legality of the alleged conduct, as the initial downloads alone would constitute a breach of copyright.

By using the file-sharing network, the company allegedly not only obtained the files unlawfully but also 'seeded' them, meaning corporate systems simultaneously distributed the pirated material to other internet users.

'In sum, Plaintiffs [Strike 3 Holdings] have plausibly alleged that Defendant [Meta] is liable for direct, vicarious, and contributory copyright infringement based on the torrenting of their films,' the decision said.

'Defendant's motion to dismiss is therefore DENIED.'