Developers of New Apps Need to Consider Privacy Issues
There’s been much talk of Google’s upcoming streamlined privacy policy. Now come new demands for cleaner, user-friendly data collection and usage disclosures in the mobile app world. Two recent events highlight changes that online advertisers and app developers need to prepare for: (1) a letter from Congressmen Henry Waxman and G.K. Butterfield to Apple regarding…
Read MoreHCG Marketers Face Hot Pursuit by FDA, FTC
Putting a snag in New Year’s resolutions for pound-shedding, the FDA and the FTC recently sent out warning letters to several companies that sell HCG-based diet products online. (These companies include Nutri-Fusion Systems LLC, Natural Medical Supply, HCG Platinum, LLC, theoriginalhcgdrops.com, HCG Diet Direct, LLC, and Hcg-miracleweightloss.com.) The warning letters, which came at the outset…
Read MoreInside the Privacy Event Keynoted By FTC Chair Leibowitz
Federal Trade Commission Chairman Jon Leibowitz delivered the keynote speech at a forum on Internet privacy on Oct. 11, 2011. He was part of a panel that discussed the protection of consumer data and the tracking of online consumer behavior. The Stanford Law School Center for Internet and Society also released a study the same…
Read MoreIs It a Real Breast Cancer Cause – Or ‘Pinkwashing’?
October is Breast Cancer Awareness month. And pink is everywhere – all over the shelves of retail stores like Wal-Mart and adorning the backs of NFL linemen. We’ve been trained to know that the color pink represents a supporter of breast cancer awareness or research. So sporting a pink ribbon, jersey, or band should demonstrate…
Read MoreFTC Is Asked to Crack Down on ‘Supercookies’ as Data Privacy Violation
The bastard stepchild of online behavioral advertising – the supercookie – is in the hot seat. Two members of the House of Representatives sent a letter to the FTC on September 27 calling on the commission to look into the usage and impact of supercookies on consumers. Reps. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) and Joe Barton (R-Tex.),…
Read MorePrepaid Phone Companies Dial a Wrong Number at the FCC
Companies marketing prepaid phone cards should be on the lookout: the Federal Communications Commission is threatening more-severe penalties for deceptive advertising. The prepaid phone card business is pretty profitable, with the industry raking in billions every year. Plastering phone cards with names like “Africa Magic” and “Hola Amigo,” prepaid calling card companies target immigrant populations,…
Read MoreGoogle Agrees to Forfeit $500 Million: What Does This Mean for Affiliate Marketers?
In an unusual and little-noticed recent settlement, Google Inc. has agreed to pay a forfeiture of $500 million because it permitted Canadian pharmacies to advertise to United States consumers on its site using Google AdWords, resulting in the illegal sale of prescription drugs through online channels into the United States between 2003 and 2009. The…
Read MoreWhat Priorities Will FTC Stress in Its Impending Online Advertising Guidelines?
If you advertise or sell over the Internet, be aware that changes are afoot at the FTC that will affect your business. The Commission is in the midst of revamping its Dot Com Disclosures, guidelines it prepared back in 2000 regarding online advertising. It issued a request for public comment on prospective revisions in late…
Read MoreFTC’s Mortgage Acts and Practices Advertising Rule May Not Help Consumers
The FTC recently issued the Mortgage Acts and Practices – Advertising Final Rule. This rule is the FTC’s response to a congressional directive to address unfair or deceptive acts in the mortgage loan industry. Briefly, the MAP Rule (1) gives the FTC and state authorities the ability to seek civil penalties for deceptive mortgage advertising,…
Read MoreShould FTC Sue Law Schools For Misrepresentation?
On May 25, 2011, a class action was filed against the Thomas Jefferson School of Law (TJSL) in San Diego for intentionally misrepresenting employment data of recent alumni. The complaint states that in order to continue attracting students despite exorbitant law student debt and a depleted legal job market, TJSL has “adopted a practice of…
Read More