Showing posts filed under: FTC Beat by Nicole Kardell
FTC’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 More
For-Profit Colleges Challenge Education Department’s Rules
The Association of Private Sector Colleges and Universities is taking on the Department of Education. The organization, which represents some 1500 for-profit education institutions, filed its second lawsuit this year to contest the agency’s new regulations aimed at career colleges. The ASPCU won one and lost two in the first suit, and is currently appealing… Read More
Those ‘Voluntary’ Rules for Food Companies are Anything But Voluntary
There’s been a lot of talk of late about the cost to industry of government regulation. The president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Tom Donohue, asserted at a job summit on Monday that recent government initiatives are “unjustified and uncalled for in a free society and a free economy” and are “killing American jobs.”… Read More
Feds Should Think Twice About Regulating For-Profit Colleges
Business is booming at America’s for-profit colleges. With steady high unemployment rates, many of the job-hungry have opted to pursue higher or specialized degrees in an effort to make themselves more marketable. Pricy for-profit institutions, like the 400,000 strong University of Phoenix, are flourishing with this increased demand as students flock to their courses to… Read More
FTC Goes After a Consumer-Endorser for the First Time
When deciding whether to buy a product or service, how often do you check out product reviews or testimonials and how often does that research impact your purchasing decision? The FTC seems to consider consumer reviews and testimonials as pretty persuasive – most notably in the context of online write-ups. In 2009, the Commission revised… Read More
FTC Tries to Stay One Step Ahead of Internet Fraud
The FTC’s recent settlement with a California-based Internet marketer may provide a good example of why the Commission is revising its online advertising guidelines. The FTC announced last Thursday that it has reached a settlement with Jaivin Karnani, his company, Balls of Kryptonite, and several associated companies. The settlement resolves charges the FTC brought against… Read More
Sellers Beware: Regulatory Action May Lead to Criminal Charges
Having the Federal Trade Commission – or any other government agency – initiate an action against you or your company may seem like very bad news. But it can get much worse. Sometimes, what starts as a civil action by a government regulator can culminate in jail time. This is the hard lesson learned by… Read More
Since When Did the FTC Start Regulating Cyber Security?
There’s no question that the Federal Trade Commission has the authority to prevent deceptive and unfair trade practices, such as false or misleading claims directed at consumers. Somehow, however, that authority has morphed into a much broader reach than one would have expected on the basis of common sense. We’ve written extensively about such jurisdictional… Read More
FTC Files Suit Against Acai Marketing Sites Disguised as ‘News’
The FTC recently filed suit against ten operations with websites that market acai berry weight loss products. The FTC alleged that the companies’ websites – which look like news websites – deceived consumers who thought the sites were credible journalistic outlets as opposed to elaborate marketing schemes. According to the FTC, the sites contained titles… Read More
Do Companies Need to Change the Way They Use Online Consumer Data?
The FTC recently entered into an agreement with Internet advertising company Chitika, Inc., settling charges that the company deceptively tracked consumers’ online activities. At issue in the FTC’s complaint was that Chitika’s privacy policy gave consumers the ability to opt out of being tracked by the company’s use of online “cookies,” but that – unbeknownst… Read More
