Consumer Alerts

It’s a persistent problem the FTC’s aggressive enforcement program’s been fighting for decades: we’re talking about companies and programs that lure in entrepreneurs, investors, or participants with

People often talk about “safety” when discussing the risks of AI causing harm. AI safety means different things to different people, and those looking for a definition here will be disappointed. These

Tech support scams can happen to anyone: small business owners, your employees, and family members — especially those over 60, according to reports to the FTC. These scams usually happen when someone

We’ve heard it loud and clear from tens of thousands of people: hidden and misleading fees, also known as junk fees, hurt consumers and businesses. Today the FTC announced it is sending to the Federal

As companies depend on accumulating more consumer data to develop products such as artificial intelligence, targeted advertising, or surveillance pricing tools, they may create valuable pools of

A job you truly enjoy is a good thing, but if the work feels more like an online game than an actual job, you can bet it’s a scam. Reported losses to job scams increased more than threefold from 2020

‘Tis the season for healthcare-related marketing and advertising. That’s right; it’s open enrollment time for the Health Insurance Marketplace, and it’s also almost the end of the plan year for

In the Bureau of Economics, we value an open exchange of ideas between our staff and experts outside the agency. Such an exchange enables us to learn new ideas and perspectives, hone our professional

The turkey is gone, and the relatives have departed. We’ve now officially entered holiday shopping season, also known as make-or-break busy season for small business owners relying on Q4 profits to

Earlier this year, the Office of Technology (OT) published a list of research questions and made reference to the long history in mathematics of doling out questions that, as mathematician Paul Erdős

The FTC recently announced a new enforcement action in which it alleged that the data broker Mobilewalla collected and retained sensitive location information from consumers—often without their

Don’t judge a book by its cover – how a technology is named doesn’t tell you how it is used. This is the case with Data Clean Rooms (“DCRs”), which are not rooms, do not clean data, and have

As antitrust practitioners know, parties to certain mergers and acquisitions are required to submit premerger notification forms that disclose information about their proposed deal and business

Professionals in the pest control and HVAC fields show up to your home when you need them most. Unexpected repairs can be a pain for consumers and their budget, but millions of Americans depend upon

The FTC has long regulated negative options through the Negative Option Rule and strategic enforcement actions. Today, the FTC builds on that work by announcing a set of common-sense revisions to the

Get ready. It’s almost Store Your Records Day for telemarketers everywhere. You’re probably asking, what do telemarketers have to do with folks lining up outside of their local record stores to buy

Ahoy there, restaurant owners and other friends! Gather around to hear about the restaurant that tricked people into thinking its shrimp and fish were wild caught right nearby, when, actually, they

To safeguard the widgets in the warehouse, companies secure their facilities and put inventory controls in place. To protect assets that may be even more valuable – intellectual property like patents

Think your MLM income disclosure statement is a model of clarity? Think again. Think your disclosure supports claims that participants can earn lots of extra money if they join? Think again (again)

Bitcoin ATMs (or BTMs) [1] have been popping up at convenience stores, gas stations, and other high-traffic areas for years. [2] For some, they’re a convenient way to buy or send crypto, but for