Settlement

On November 28, 2022, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) and seven state attorneys general announced that they reached settlements with Google LLC and iHeartMedia, Inc., to resolve claims that the companies aired deceptive advertisements promoting Google’s Pixel 4 phone by arranging for iHeartMedia radio personalities who never actually used the phone to personally endorse it.  The companies agreed to pay a combined $9.4 million to the states to settle these allegations.Continue Reading Google and iHeartMedia Reach Settlements with FTC and States for Deceptive Endorsements

On January 7, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) reached a proposed settlement with Tapjoy, a California-based company that operates an advertising platform within mobile gaming applications.  According to its complaint, the FTC alleges that Tapjoy deceived consumers by failing to provide in-game rewards it promised for completing actions associated with third-party advertisements.
Continue Reading FTC Reaches Settlement with Tapjoy for Allegedly Deceiving Consumers About In-Game Rewards

On September 3, 2019, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) announced settlement agreements with five companies for alleged false claims of certification under the EU-U.S. and Swiss-U.S. Privacy Shield frameworks (collectively, “Privacy Shield”).  These settlements indicate that the FTC is continuing to actively enforce Privacy Shield commitments, as it has done
Continue Reading FTC Settles Enforcement Actions Relating to Privacy Shield Certifications

Last month a federal court found Dish Network liable for calls that were alleged by the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) to violate various provisions of the FTC’s Telemarketing Sales Rule (“TSR”).  Specifically, the FTC’s 2009 complaint asserted that Dish Network initiated, or caused a telemarketer to initiate, calls to numbers on the National Do Not Call (“DNC”) Registry and to consumers who previously declined to receive such calls whose numbers were on Dish Network’s entity-specific do-not-call list or were marked “DNC” by a telemarketing vendor.  The FTC also alleged that, in violation of the “abandoned-call” provision of the TSR, Dish Network abandoned or caused telemarketers to abandon phone calls.  In its complaint, the FTC seeks monetary civil penalties from Dish Network for every violation of the TSR, for which the court is entitled to award up to $16,000 for each violation.  At issue are tens of millions of calls, making the potential level of damages to be awarded at the trial stage staggering.
Continue Reading Court Finds FTC Entitled to Partial Summary Judgment Against Dish Network for Telemarketing Violations

Last week, TRUSTe, Inc. (“TRUSTe”) settled Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) charges that it misrepresented its certification programs and non-profit status to consumers.  TRUSTe offers clients Certified Privacy Seals, representing to consumers that the website, software, data processing service, or mobile application is compliant with the relevant TRUSTe program.  These programs include specifications related to transparency of company practices, verification of privacy practices, and consumer choice regarding the collection and use of consumer personal information.

The FTC’s complaint alleges that TRUSTe represents that it annually recertifies all companies displaying the Certified Privacy Seal to ensure ongoing compliance with the program requirements, however, from 2006 until January 2013, TRUSTe did not do so in over 1,000 instances.  According to the complaint, prior to its transition to a for-profit entity in July 2008, TRUSTe required its clients’ privacy policies to include a statement that “TRUSTe is an independent, non-profit organization.”  The FTC also alleges that TRUSTe recertified clients who failed to update references to the company’s for-profit status.
Continue Reading FTC Alleges TRUSTe’s Certified Privacy Seals Misled Consumers

The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) has approved final orders settling charges against Fandango and Credit Karma that the companies misrepresented the security of their mobile apps and failed to protect the transmission of consumers’ sensitive personal information.  The FTC specifically alleged that, although the companies made security promises to consumers
Continue Reading FTC Settlement Requires Fandango and Credit Karma to Establish Comprehensive Security Programs to Protect Consumers’ Sensitive Personal Information

Earlier this week, the FCC announced that mobile wireless company Sprint will pay $7.5 million to resolve allegations that the company failed to honor consumer requests to be placed on Sprint’s entity-specific Do-Not-Call list.  The settlement represents the largest of its kind between the FCC and a carrier.

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Continue Reading FCC Obtains Record $7.5 Million Settlement With Sprint for Alleged Do-Not-Call Violations

The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) recently announced a settlement with Apple, Inc. over allegations that the company billed parents and other account holders for children’s in-app activities without obtaining the account holders’ express and informed consent. The FTC’s complaint alleged that Apple’s failure to obtain express and informed consent prior to each in-app purchase constituted an unfair act or practice in violation of Section 5 of the FTC Act.

The FTC’s allegations stemmed from an App Store feature, disclosed in Apple’s Terms and Conditions, that allowed in-app purchases for up to fifteen minutes without requiring password re-entry after the user completed a password-requiring transaction. The FTC complaint alleged that this feature allowed children who were given possession of mobile devices after an initial password entry to incur charges for up to fifteen minutes without parental or accountholder knowledge.Continue Reading FTC Announces $32.5M Settlement with Apple, Inc., May Be Seen as Expanding its “Unfairness” Authority

Mobile device manufacturer HTC America has settled Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) charges that the company failed to take reasonable steps to secure the software it developed for its smartphones and tablet computers, introducing security flaws that placed sensitive information about millions of consumers at risk.  The settlement requires HTC America

Continue Reading HTC America Settles FTC Charges It Failed to Secure Mobile Devices