FTC Poses Eight Questions to Ask When Choosing a College After Military Service

The Federal Trade Commission is advising servicemembers, veterans, and their families that some for-profit schools may be more interested in gaining access to their post 9/11 GI Bill benefits than helping them fulfill their education goals. To help servicemembers identify a school that will meet their needs as they transition to student status, the FTC released […]

FTC Approves Kinder Morgan, Inc.’s Request to Modify Final Decision and Order, Divestiture Agreement Related to 2012 Acquisition of El Paso Corp.

The Federal Trade Commission has approved a request by Kinder Morgan, Inc., that the Commission modify the final FTC order and approve a change to a related divestiture agreement.  The order resolved Commission charges that Kinder Morgan’s 2012 acquisition of El Paso Corporation would harm competition in several markets for pipeline transportation and processing of […]

FTC Charges HCG Marketer with Deceptive Advertising

The Federal Trade Commission has sued an Arizona man who markets HCG Platinum diet products by falsely claiming the products will cause consumers to lose substantial amounts of weight. Kevin Wright and his companies must respond to the complaint in federal court. HCG, or human chorionic gonadotropin, is a hormone produced by the human placenta […]

FTC Cracks Down on Misleading and Unsubstantiated Environmental Marketing Claims

The Federal Trade Commission today announced six enforcement actions, including one that imposes a $450,000 civil penalty and five that for the first time address biodegradable plastic claims, as part of the agency’s ongoing crackdown on false and misleading environmental claims. The plastic cases include a complaint against a company that markets an additive it […]

Internet Innovator Vinton G. Cerf to Keynote FTC’s Internet of Things Workshop Nov. 19

Vinton G. Cerf, co-creator of the Internet’s key networking technology, will give the keynote address at the Federal Trade Commission’s Internet of Things workshop on Nov. 19 in Washington, D.C. FTC Chairwoman Edith Ramirez and Commissioner Maureen K. Ohlhausen will give remarks during the event. The tentative agenda for the workshop includes speeches and panel […]

FTC Extends the Deadlines for Public Comments on 13 Matters Before the Agency

In light of the recent, temporary government shutdown, the Federal Trade Commission is extending the public comment periods for 13 matters that currently are pending before the agency in order to ensure that interested parties have a full opportunity to file comments.  The Commission also previously extended the comment periods in two proceedings under the […]

FTC Approves Final Order Settling Charges that Solera Holdings’ 2012 Acquisition of Actual Systems Was Anticompetitive in the Market for Yard Management Systems

Following a public comment period, the Federal Trade Commission has approved a final order settling charges that Solera Holdings, Inc.’s 2012 purchase of rival Actual Systems of America, Inc. was anticompetitive. The FTC’s complaint alleges that the acquisition significantly harmed competition in the concentrated market for yard management systems (YMS) used by automotive recycling yards. […]

At the FTC’s Request, Court Halts Collection of Allegedly Fake Payday Debts

At the request of the Federal Trade Commission, a U.S. district court has halted an operation based in Atlanta and Cleveland that allegedly used deceptive and threatening tactics to collect phantom payday loan “debts” that consumers either did not owe, or did not owe to the defendants.  The court order freezes the defendants’ assets to […]

FTC Extends Public Comment Deadlines on Two COPPA Proposals

The Federal Trade Commission is extending the public comment periods for two proposals made under the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule in light of the recent lapse in federal appropriations that resulted in the temporary shutdown of the agency. The public comment period for the verifiable parental consent proposal from Imperium, LLC, previously scheduled to […]

Aaron’s Rent-To-Own Chain Settles FTC Charges That it Enabled Computer Spying by Franchisees

Aaron’s, Inc., a national, Atlanta-based rent-to-own retailer, has agreed to settle FTC charges that it knowingly played a direct and vital role in its franchisees’ installation and use of software on rental computers that secretly monitored consumers including by taking webcam pictures of them in their homes. According to the FTC’s complaint, Aaron’s franchisees used […]