Blog Posts Tagged with Advertising and Marketing

In the 2014 movie Ex Machina , a robot manipulates someone into freeing it from its confines, resulting in the person being confined instead. The robot was designed to manipulate that person’s...

FTC staff has a prescription for certain eyewear prescribers: It’s time to focus on complying with the FTC’s Eyeglass Rule. Cease and desist letters went to 37 prescribers about whom the FTC received...

When consumers dispute the validity of a credit card charge, merchants may hire a “chargeback mitigation company” to dispute the consumer’s dispute. That’s the business of a company called...

Using their own colorful vocabulary, motocross devotees do their best to distance themselves from flat landing, roosting, and whiskey throttle. Something else many motocross, motorcycle, and all...

To borrow a phrase the Supreme Court coined in a different context, if there is a “fixed star” in the consumer protection constellation, it’s the advertising substantiation doctrine. In place for...

Spend time on social media and video streaming platforms and what will you find? Photos from friends’ vacations, aspirational kale salads, the latest dance fads – and ads for bogus health products...

The FTC is considering proposed changes to the Eyeglass Rule and has announced a May 18, 2023, public workshop, A Clear Look at the Eyeglass Rule. I f you have clients in the industry – or if you’re...

You may have heard of simulation theory, the notion that nothing is real and we’re all part of a giant computer program. Let’s assume at least for the length of this blog post that this notion is...

Is there a community, family, or workplace that hasn’t been impacted by addiction? For people struggling with substance use disorders, including those devastated by the opioid epidemic, claims made by...

Here’s an essential truth about essential oils: There is no sound science that demonstrates they can treat, prevent, or cure COVID-19. The FTC announced three settlements with distributors for Utah...

The word “recyclable” shows up in a lot of environmental claims for consumer products, but what do people understand the term to mean? Does that perception reflect the current state of recycling...

A creature is formed of clay. A puppet becomes a boy. A monster rises in a lab. A computer takes over a spaceship. And all manner of robots serve or control us. For generations we’ve told ourselves...

There are prime numbers, irrational numbers, and Fibonacci’s numbers – but from a consumer protection perspective, no number is quite as sobering as the dollar amount that people reported losing to...

In response to reports that some eye doctors may be violating the Contact Lens Rule, the FTC recently sent cease-and-desist letters to 24 prescribers’ offices reminding them of their legal obligations...

It’s for sure you’ve seen ads like this online and in social media. They use a litany of iffy claims to advertise equally questionable products: “drop the pounds” diet pills, IQ-boosting brain...

The announcement of the launch of the FTC’s Office of Technology is an important next-step development in the agency’s commitment to protecting consumers in the digital marketplace. As we look forward...

Regardless of which of the many remakes of “Mutiny on the Bounty” you’ve seen, they all involve an illegal takeover. Challenging a practice called review hijacking, an FTC complaint against The...

Hard at work on your response to the FTC’s request for comments about the Green Guides? You can breathe easier because the public comment period has been extended to April 24, 2023. In December, the...

It’s a match that should have been made in Home Improvement Heaven: consumers looking for service providers and service providers looking for new clients. But the FTC alleged in a 2022 complaint that...

The workplace is in transition, with people considering career changes or dealing with layoffs. But as the FTC has warned for years, scammers find a way to exploit every trend – and this time they...