The Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Office for Civil Rights are cautioning hospitals and telehealth providers about the privacy and security risks related to the use of online...more
7/31/2023
/ Breach Notification Rule ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Security ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FTC Act ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Hospitals ,
Investigations ,
Mobile Apps ,
OCR ,
PHI ,
Risk Assessment ,
Telehealth ,
Third-Party ,
Tracking Systems ,
Unauthorized Disclosure ,
Websites
The Federal Trade Commission’s Endorsement Guides were first enacted in 1980 and amended in 2009. The Guides provide guidance to businesses and others to ensure that advertising using endorsements or testimonials is...more
7/3/2023
/ Advertising ,
AMG Capital Management LLC v FTC ,
Bureau of Consumer Protection ,
Child Safety ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Endorsements ,
Enforcement ,
Fake Reviews ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FTC Act ,
Guidance Update ,
Incentives ,
Influencers ,
Investigations ,
New Guidance ,
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) ,
Online Reviews ,
Penalties ,
Proposed Rules ,
SCOTUS ,
Social Media ,
Targeted Digital Advertising ,
Testimonial Statements
As previously blogged about here by FTC defense lawyer, the Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys general continue to aggressively investigate and prosecute those that advertise, market, distribute, promote and sell...more
6/19/2023
/ Advertising ,
Business Opportunity Laws ,
Consumer Review Fairness Act (CRFA) ,
Cooling-Off Rule ,
E-Commerce ,
False Advertising ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Frozen Assets ,
FTC Act ,
Investment ,
Marketing ,
Real Estate Investments ,
Remote Working ,
Restraining Orders ,
Sales Promotions ,
Social Media ,
Software ,
Unlawful Practices
On May 23, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission hosted a national workshop designed to consider the current state of recycling practices and recycling-related advertising.
This follows an FTC announcement in December 2022 that...more
6/5/2023
/ Advertising ,
Environmental Claims ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Green Guides ,
Green Marketing ,
Marketing ,
Popular ,
Public Comment ,
Recycling ,
Section 5 ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices
On May 22, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission announced that as a result of a lawsuit filed along with the Utah Division of Consumer Protection, the principals of a Utah-based real estate investment training company will pay...more
As previously blogged about here, the FCC recently proposed a rule that would turn the lead generation on its head. The proposed new rule goes quite a bit further than simply requiring wireless carriers to block texts from...more
In 2018, the Federal Trade Commission announced “Operations Donate with Honor,” as law enforcers united to challenge deceptive fundraising.
At the time, 54 Attorneys General from all 50 states, the District of Columbia,...more
5/15/2023
/ Charitable Donations ,
Charitable Organizations ,
Compliance ,
Enforcement ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Fraud ,
Fundraisers ,
Misrepresentation ,
Sham Transactions ,
Telemarketing ,
Telemarketing Sales Rule
As discussed by ecommerce law attorney Richard B. Newman, here, the FTC’s Deceptive Pricing Guides address different types of pricing representations. These include, without limitation, representations that a current price...more
On May 3, 2023, the FTC announced that it is proposing a blanket prohibition preventing Facebook from monetizing youth data. The Commission alleges that the company violated the 2020 privacy order and now proposes new...more
5/5/2023
/ COPPA ,
Data Collection ,
Data Protection ,
Facebook ,
Facial Recognition Technology ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FTC Act ,
Instagram ,
Personal Information ,
Privacy Laws ,
Social Media ,
WhatsApp
It is no secret amongst digital advertisers and FTC practice defense counsel that the Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys general continue to aggressively investigate and prosecute those that advertise, market,...more
5/1/2023
/ Advertising ,
Amazon ,
Business Opportunity Laws ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Compliance ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
E-Commerce ,
Enforcement ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FTC Act ,
Investment Management ,
Robocalling ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices
In April 2023, the Federal Trade Commission announced a number of consumer protection actions and inquiries involving an important U.S. Supreme Court Ruling regarding the ability of defendants in FTC and SEC actions to raise...more
4/24/2023
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Advertising Substantiation ,
Automatic Renewals ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Counterfeiting ,
Credit Cards ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Dietary Supplements ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Enforcement ,
False Advertising ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Homeopathic Remedies ,
Investigations ,
Misleading Statements ,
Opioid ,
Over The Counter Drugs (OTC) ,
Penalties ,
Robocalling ,
Rulemaking Process ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Social Media ,
Subscription Services ,
Targeted Digital Advertising ,
Telemarketing ,
VoIP
On April 14, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court afforded defendants the ability to directly challenge the structural constitutionality and existence of the Federal Trade Commission (and the Securities and Exchange Commission) in...more
4/17/2023
/ Advertising ,
AMG Capital Management LLC v FTC ,
Appeals ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Consent Order ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Due Process ,
Endorsements ,
Enforcement ,
Equal Protection ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Fifth Amendment ,
Misleading Statements ,
Misrepresentation ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
The Federal Trade Commission recently announced a proposed a “click to cancel” provision requiring sellers to make it as simple for consumers to cancel their enrollment as it was to enroll.
According to the FTC, if...more
In March 2023, the Federal Trade Commission announced a number of consumer protection actions involving data privacy, COVID health claims, a robocall debt relief pitch scheme, and alleged harmful noncompete restrictions. The...more
3/20/2023
/ Consumer Protection Laws ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
COVID-19 Consumer Data Protection Act ,
Data Privacy ,
Debt-Relief Industry ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
FTC Act ,
LGBTQ ,
Mental Health ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Penalties ,
PHI ,
Popular ,
Robocalling ,
Social Media ,
Targeted Digital Advertising ,
Telemarketing ,
Telemarketing Sales Rule
On March 15, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission announced that it ordered manufacturing company Anchor Glass Container Corp. to drop noncompete restrictions that it allegedly imposed on its workers.
This marks the fourth...more
When it comes to evaluating false and deceptive advertising, the Federal Trade Commission considers an ad deceptive, in part, if it contains a statement - or omits information – that is likely to mislead consumers acting...more
Lead generators beware. The FTC has issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that would turn the lead generation industry on its head.
Amongst numerous items currently on the FCC’s agenda, there is discussion on closing the...more
February 2023 has been a busy couple of months at the Federal Trade Commission. High-profile consumer protection actions and announcements span a broad spectrum of digital advertising and marketing. From “review hijacking,...more
2/20/2023
/ Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) ,
Advertising Substantiation ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Data Retention ,
Dietary Supplements ,
Digital Marketplace ,
Enforcement ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Misleading Statements ,
Online Reviews ,
PHI ,
Popular ,
Ratings ,
Settlement ,
Targeted Digital Advertising ,
Third-Party Service Provider
In September 2022, the Federal Trade Commission announced that it had taken action against credit services company Credit Karma for allegedly deploying dark patterns to misrepresent that consumers were “pre-approved” for...more
1/27/2023
/ Consent Order ,
Credit Checks ,
Credit Karma ,
Credit Scores ,
Deceptively Misdescriptive ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Financial Products ,
FTC Act ,
Informed Consent ,
Misrepresentation ,
Personal Information ,
Settlement ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices
Advertisers, beware.
On January 13, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission announced that as a result of a Federal Trade Commission lawsuit, investment advice company WealthPress has agreed to a proposed court order that...more
1/17/2023
/ Advertising ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Dot Com Disclosure Guide ,
False Statements ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FTC Act ,
Investment ,
Investment Adviser ,
Refunds ,
ROSCA ,
Trading Platforms
The Business Opportunity Rule (“Biz Opp Rule”) was first adopted in 2012. It applies to commercial arrangements where a seller solicits a prospective buyer to enter into a new business, the prospective purchaser makes a...more
1/10/2023
/ Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) ,
Business Opportunities ,
Buyers ,
Compliance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
E-Commerce ,
Endorsements ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Investment ,
Penalties ,
Remote Working ,
Risk Assessment ,
Sellers ,
Testimonial Statements ,
Truth in Advertising
In December 2022, the FCC’s Robocall Response Team announced that the Enforcement Bureau has ordered telecommunications companies to stop carrying robocalls related to known student loan scams. Voice service providers must...more
In December 2022, the the Federal Trade Commission published new guidance regarding representations about the benefits and safety of health-related products: Health Products Compliance Guidance. Federal Trade Commission...more
12/23/2022
/ Advertising Substantiation ,
Clinical Trials ,
Compliance ,
Deceptively Misdescriptive ,
Diagnostic Tests ,
Dietary Supplements ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
DSHEA ,
Enforcement ,
False Advertising ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
FTC Act ,
Homeopathic Remedies ,
Liability ,
Misleading Statements ,
Mobile Apps ,
New Guidance ,
Over The Counter Drugs (OTC) ,
Safe Harbors
On December 6, 2022, New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed legislation intended to crack down on unwanted telemarketing calls.
Legislation (S.8450-B/A.8319-C) requires telemarketers to give customers the option to...more
The FTC continues to issue Notices of Penalty Offenses concerning FTC Endorsement Guide violations to digital advertisers and marketers, both alone and in conjunction with the issuance of FTC Civil Investigative Demands....more
12/9/2022
/ Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) ,
Advertising ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fake Reviews ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Fraud ,
FTC Act ,
FTC Endorsement Guidelines ,
SCOTUS ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices