The Sad Truth of the FTC's Location Data Privacy Settlement

The FTC forced a data broker to stop selling “sensitive location data.” But most companies can avoid such scrutiny by doing the bare minimum, exposing the lack of protections Americans truly have...

FTC Bans Outlogic (X-Mode) From Selling Sensitive Location Data

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission FTC on Tuesday prohibited data broker Outlogic, which was previously known as X-Mode Social, from sharing or selling any sensitive location data with third-parties. The ban is part of a settlement over allegations that the company "sold precise location data that...

DOJ Slams XCast with $10 Million Fine Over Massive Illegal Robocall Operation

The U.S. Department of Justice DoJ on Tuesday said it reached a settlement with VoIP service provider XCast over allegations that it facilitated illegal telemarketing campaigns since at least January 2018, in contravention of the Telemarketing Sales Rule TSR. In addition to prohibiting the compan...

US pharmacy Rite Aid banned from operating facial recognition systems

Pharmacy chain Rite Aid has been denied the right to run facial recognition systems in its stores for five years, by a Federal Trade Commission FTC ruling. The regulator found so many flaws in the retailers surveillance program that it concluded Rite Aid had failed to implement reasonable...

FTC’s Voice Cloning Challenge

The Federal Trade Commission is running a competition "to foster breakthrough ideas on preventing, monitoring, and evaluating malicious voice cloning."...

AI and US Election Rules

If an AI breaks the rules for you, does that count as breaking the rules? This is the essential question being taken up by the Federal Election Commission this month, and public input is needed to curtail the potential for AI to take US campaigns even more off the rails. At issue is whether...

Former Uber CISO Appealing His Conviction

Joe Sullivan, Ubers CEO during their 2016 data breach, is appealing his conviction. Prosecutors charged Sullivan, whom Uber hired as CISO after the 2014 breach, of withholding information about the 2016 incident from the FTC even as its investigators were scrutinizing the companys data security a...

WordPress FTC Disclosure Plugin <= 2.0 is vulnerable to Cross Site Scripting (XSS)

Software FTC Disclosure Type Plugin Vulnerable versions = 2.0 Fixed in N/A OWASP Top 10 A3: Injection Classification Cross Site Scripting XSS CVE CVE-2023-33999 Patch priority Medium CVSS severity Medium 7.1 Developer Claim ownership PSID c482a6fc80d1 Credits Rafie Muhammad Patchstack Required...

Fake reviewers face big fines

The FTC is cracking down on fake reviews. Under the new proposed rules, organisations involved in the buying, selling, and manipulation of reviews could be very much out of pocket. Every time a consumer sees a fake review, it will carry a fine of "up to $50,000" per viewing. From the FTC release:...

Redacting Documents with a Black Sharpie Doesn’t Work

We have learned this lesson again: As part of the FTC v. Microsoft hearing, Sony supplied a document from PlayStation chief Jim Ryan that includes redacted details on the margins Sony shares with publishers, its Call of Duty revenues, and even the cost of developing some of its games. It looks li...

DNA testing company failed to protect sensitive genetic and health data, says FTC

DNA testing has long been a hot-button issue for security and privacy. Concerns about everything from law enforcement and data retention to job offers and insurance have all been examined at great length. With millions of people signing up to use these services, it was only a matter of time befor...

Microsoft to Pay $20 Million Penalty for Illegally Collecting Kids' Data on Xbox

Microsoft has agreed to pay a penalty of $20 million to settle U.S. Federal Trade Commission FTC charges that the company illegally collected and retained the data of children who signed up to use its Xbox video game console without their parents' knowledge or consent. "Our proposed order makes i...

Microsoft illegally collected and retained children's data, says FTC

Microsoft is counting the cost of privacy violations, with $20m in fines related to illegal data collection from childrens Xbox accounts. The Xbox manufacturer has reached a settlement with the Federal Trade Commision FTC, a result which promises to have other console developers looking closely a...

FTC Slams Amazon with $30.8M Fine for Privacy Violations Involving Alexa and Ring

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission FTC has fined Amazon a cumulative $30.8 million over a series of privacy lapses regarding its Alexa assistant and Ring security cameras. This comprises a $25 million penalty for breaching children's privacy laws by retaining their Alexa voice recordings for...

Amazon's Ring cameras were used to spy on customers

Every single Amazon Ring employee was able to access every single customer video, even when it wasn't necessary for their jobs. Not only that, but the employees--along with workers from a third-party contractor in Ukraine--could also download any of those videos and then save and share them as th...

Russian ‘Ghost Ships’ Identified Near the Nord Stream Blasts

Plus: Apple and Google plan to stop AirTag stalking, Meta violated the FTC’s privacy order, and how to tell if your car is tracking you...

FTC tackles tech support scams by chasing payment processor firms

A multinational payment processing company and two of its executives are facing a potential $650k fine as a result of allegedly processing credit card payments for tech support scammers. While this fine isnt exactly massive in comparison to some of the privacy breaches and other incidents seen do...

Googling for Software Downloads Is Extra Risky Right Now

Plus: The FTC cracks down on GoodRx, Microsoft boots “verified” phishing scammers, researchers disclose EV charger vulnerabilities, and more...

Data Collection Costs Epic Games Half a Billion USD

By Deeba Ahmed The FTC has announced to charge Epic Games with a $520 million settlement concerning the alleged violation of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act COPPA. This is a post from HackRead.com Read the original post: Data Collection Costs Epic Games Half a Billion USD...

FTC Fines Fortnite Maker Epic Games $275 Million for Violating Children's Privacy Law

Epic Games has reached a $520 million settlement with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission FTC over allegations that the Fortnite creator violated online privacy laws for children and tricked users into making unintended purchases in the video game. To that end, the company will pay a record $275...