The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has just announced a significant update to their FAQ page regarding the endorsement requirements, and it appears to be focused on how people are using social media for marketing. This is the first update they have made since 2010, and many expect them to begin cracking down on social media … Read more
The Southern District of Alabama recently clarified that the treatment of offers for free goods and services is the same whether the call is made to a wireless number or a residential number and illustrated how a call offering free goods or services can become a “dual purpose” call. Bennett v. Boyd Biloxi, LLC (S.D. … Read more
Anthony Renfrow has pleaded guilty in a California court to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. During the plea he admitted to making claims to attempt to convince people to pay to become what he called ‘autosurf investors.’ He said he knew the claims were fraudulent. The issue is related to the site … Read more
FCC Chairman Wheeler has announced that he is circulating a proposal to address more than twenty backlogged petitions seeking clarity regarding the scope of the requirements under the U.S. Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”). He authored a blog post on the proposal. As part of the Chairman’s proposal, the FCC would issue the following rulings: … Read more
Beginning October 16, 2013, prior express written consent became a requirement for all autodialed/pre-recorded calls and text messages, made and/or sent to cell phones, and pre-recorded calls made to residential land lines for marketing purposes. What follows is intended to be a brief refresher of relevant consent requirements and obligations under the Telephone Consumer Protection … Read more
The Federal Trade Commission has filed a federal court complaint seeking to prohibit Lunada Biomedical, Inc. and its principals from advertising that their dietary supplement Amberen causes substantial weight loss for women over 40, and that the weight loss is clinically proven. Between 2010 and 2013, Lunada sold almost $65 million worth of Amberen nationwide. “Lunada … Read more
Plaintiff American Furukawa Inc. brought Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and related claims against an employee who took a job with a competitor and subsequently spent several weeks downloading corporate files. The former employee downloaded a number of files in the first week of the relevant time period, then took a leave of absence for four weeks while continuing to download … Read more
The Federal Trade Commission has obtained a court order temporarily halting a California operation that allegedly used millions of illegal SPAM emails, along with bogus weight-loss claims and fake, unauthorized endorsements from celebrities like Oprah Winfrey, to market its unproven diet pills. The court order halts the defendants’ illegal conduct, freezes their assets and appoints a temporary … Read more
It was recently confirmed that Twitter is being investigated by TheGrantLawFirm, PLLC for possible securities fraud. The fraud is in connection with the Company’s statements about the net users and ad revenues that were stated during the first quarter of 2015. In addition to Twitter as a company, some of its officers and directors are … Read more
The FTC has recently alleged that a small mobile tracking firm that was acquired by Brickstream in 2014 (after the activities in question) has improperly used mobile tracking. Specifically, they claim that while they said that users could opt out of the tracking, there was never actually an option to do so. The activities in … Read more
Regulators in the European Union have decided that they are going to be filing charges against Google. The charges, which are related to a five year antitrust investigation that is ongoing, will be based around the apparent abuse of their market position in the EU according to sources. They will be accused of violating the … Read more
In addition to being the go-to place for online shopping, Amazon has also become a leader in online reviews. With thousands of people posting millions of reviews, many shoppers come to Amazon to see what others have said about a product before they purchase it. This is true even when they don’t end up purchasing … Read more
In a movement being popularly called the ‘right to be forgotten’ more and more individuals as well as companies are demanding that information written about them online is removed. This is primarily impacting search engines, which are being asked to delist or remove different content, though it can also be directed directly at the sites … Read more
It is no secret that dietary supplements, herbal remedies, patches, creams, wraps and products rubbed into the skin are high-profile. Weight loss offers are among the most intensely scrutinized by local, state and federal regulators, including those for garcinia cambogia. Each website must be in substantial compliance based on the specific facts and nature of … Read more