Federal Trade Commission News

Federal Trade Commission Reports Nationwide Fraud Losses Topped $10B in 2023

Consumers reported losing more than $10 billion to fraud in 2023, marking the first time that fraud losses have reached that benchmark, and a 14% increase over reported losses in 2022, Newly released Federal Trade Commission data shows. Consumers reported …

FTC Fines Experian Unit for Spamming Consumers

A unit of the Experia credit reporting bureau agreed to pay a $650,000 civil fine to settle U.S. Federal Trade Commission charges it spammed consumers with marketing emails without giving them a way to opt out. The FTC said ConsumerInfo.com, …

Viewpoint: AI Investigations and Claims Gather Pace in the United States

Generative AI tools such as ChatGPT have been in the headlines since 2022, with many users (including children) using the tools to generate content with little thought as to the data protection risks associated with its use. Last month, we …

Amazon to Pay $31 Million in Privacy Violation Penalties for Alexa Voice Assistant and Ring Camera

WASHINGTON (AP) – Amazon agreed Wednesday to pay a $25 million civil penalty to settle Federal Trade Commission allegations it violated a child privacy law and deceived parents by keeping for years kids’ voice and location data recorded by its …

Twitter Leak Exposes 235 Million Email Addresses from Hack

Personal emails linked to 235 million Twitter accounts hacked some time ago have been exposed according to Israeli security researcher Alon Gal _ making millions vulnerable to having their accounts compromised or identities exposed if they have used the site …

Walmart Seeks to Dismiss Lawsuit by FTC over Money Transfers

NEW YORK (AP) — Walmart filed a motion on Monday to dismiss a Federal Trade Commission lawsuit that accuses the nation’s largest retailer of allowing its money-transfer services to be used by scam artists. The motion calls the FTC’s June …

FTC Looking at Rules to Corral Tech Firms’ Data Collection

WASHINGTON (AP) — Whether it’s the fitness tracker on your wrist, the “smart” home appliances in your house or the latest kids’ fad going viral in online videos, they all produce a trove of personal data for big tech companies. …

Twitter to Pay $150M Penalty over Privacy of Users’ Data

WASHINGTON (AP) — Twitter will pay a $150 million penalty and put in new safeguards to settle federal regulators’ allegations that the social platform failed to protect the privacy of users’ data over a six-year span. The Justice Department and …

Feds Eye Rule to Claw Back Money From Companies That Lie About Gig Worker Earnings

WASHINGTON –– The U.S. Federal Trade Commission, which enforces consumer protection rules, voted on Thursday to embark on regulations that would allow it to win back money from companies that are deceptive about the earnings that workers can make. The …

Agency Eyes ‘Right-To-Repair’ Rules to Aid Consumers, Shops

WASHINGTON (AP) — Americans would be freer to repair their broken cellphones, computers, videogame consoles and even tractors themselves or to use independent repair shops under changes being eyed by federal regulators that target manufacturer restrictions. Responding to a new …