At the request of the Federal Trade Commission, a federal court has halted the activities of four individuals who allegedly promoted deceptive money-making schemes involving cryptocurrencies. These alleged schemes falsely promised that participants could earn large returns by paying cryptocurrency such as bitcoin or Litecoin to enroll in the schemes. In a complaint, the FTC … Read more
Canada’s telecommunications regulator says that more than 200 companies and websites have been flagged for follow up by a multinational group investigating problems with affiliate and performance marketing. The problem sites were found last summer through an investigation co-ordinated by the Unsolicited Communications Enforcement Network (UCENet), which includes Canada. The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, … Read more
Late on Friday, Facebook made an unexpected announcement: The data firm Cambridge Analytica, hyped as integral to President Donald Trump’s election, was suspended from the social network for using data collected improperly from Facebook users. Now the FTC has announced they will investigate Facebook and Cambridge Analytica. This Announcement from the FTC comes as the UK’s … Read more
Officials said an Arizona woman was killed after being struck by a self-driving Uber vehicle early Monday — an incident believed to be the first of its kind. The accident in Tempe caused the company to pause all testing of self-driving vehicles in cities across the country. Tempe Police Sgt. Ronald Elcock told FOX10 Phoenix … Read more
The products include Snuggies, the Magic Mesh Door, and other “As Seen on TV” type products. The products were marketed by Allstar Marketing Group, LLC. Consumers who bought them will receive checks averaging $33.14. The Federal Trade Commission is issuing more than 200,000 refund checks worth more than $7.2 million to consumers who bought products … Read more
Dozens advertising-technology companies have cut ties with Newsweek Media Group over concerns about allegedly fake website traffic, moves that threaten to exacerbate the company’s financial difficulties as it contends with a wider fraud investigation. Newsweek said Wednesday it had fired two employees connected with the ad issue, but the developments nevertheless have the potential to … Read more
The Affiliate Marketing Industry is doing almost nothing to fix issues in compliance with rules and laws about privacy and unsolicited communications, according to the Unsolicited Communcations Enforcement Network. An investigation by UCENet, involving nine agencies from five countries, reviewed 902 websites and examined 6,536 consumer complaints related to affiliate marketing in their respective databases. … Read more
The FTC recently announced a $1.3 million settlement with online lingerie seller, AdoreMe. The FTC charged AdoreMe with falsely promising consumers who joined AdoreMe’s VIP program that they could use their store credits “anytime.” FTC also charged the company with violating ROSCA by making it unreasonably difficult for consumers to cancel their memberships. In addition … Read more
The Interactive Advertising Bureau has published a new influencer marketing program guide, “Inside Influence: Why Publishers are Increasingly Turning to Influencer Marketing—and What That Means for Marketers.” Influencer marketing is a tactic by which a brand/agency/publisher works with individuals, aka influencers, to drive brand messages to meet strategic goals. Influencers are those who are deemed … Read more
Reports are that two senators are asking the Federal Trade Commission to investigate a company that sells allegedly fake Twitter followers, retweets, likes and other social media actions. This comes in the wake of a New York Times report that revealed that dozens of public figures may have purchased social media followers. Sens. Jerry Moran and … Read more
eHarmony has agreed to pay up to $2.2 million in penalties and restitution to put an end to an action filed by the Santa Monica city attorney and several district attorneys that challenged its automatic renewal practices. The plaintiffs alleged that the dating site violated state consumer protection laws by failing to clearly, conspicuously and … Read more
On January 18, 2018, Federal Trade Commission Acting Chairman Maureen K. Ohlhausen released a summary of the agency’s recently major accomplishments “In the past year, the Commission has actively pursued its mission to protect consumers and promote competition while avoiding undue burdens on legitimate businesses. American consumers, military members and law-abiding businesses deserve and expect … Read more
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced Dec. 28 that it has charged a group of defendants with allegations of deceiving consumers about a “work from home” scheme. The defendants in the case are Ronnie Montano, Hyong Su Kim, Martin Schranz, and related companies that they owned. According to the FTC, the defendants told consumers it … Read more
On January 8, 2017 the FTC announced its first children’s privacy settlement involving Internet-connected toys. According to the Commission, electronic toy manufacturer VTech Electronics Limited and its U.S. subsidiary have agreed to settle charges that the company violated the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) by collecting personal information from children without providing direct notice … Read more
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