I AM “RE POSTING” AND ADDING AN “UPDATE” FROM THE “FTC” AND
SO THAT “WE”/”U.S.” AND “Y’ALL” WHO FOLLOW THE “U.S.” NETWORK 2.X CAN KEEP SHARP WHEN ONLINE..”WARNING, WARNING, WARNING: WILL ROBINSON”!!!!
Consumer Alert
How companies manipulate you online – and what the FTC is doing to protect you
By
Alvaro Puig
Consumer Education Specialist, FTC
September 21, 2022
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When you’re online, some companies try to trick you into buying things you don’t want. Or into giving them permission to use your personal information. The use of these deceptive designs, known as dark patterns, is on the rise, according to a new report from the FTC. So, what do these dark patterns look like — and how do they take your money and your data?
Companies deploy a variety of dark patterns. Here are a few examples:
- They place online ads that look like editorial content.
- They hide fees and charges until late in the buying process.
- They offer a free trial that leads to a recurring subscription charge.
- They have processes that make it hard to cancel a subscription.
- They collect personal information even if they don’t need it to complete a transaction.
- They give you confusing privacy choices that trick you into giving away your information.
To learn more about these tactics and what the FTC is doing to protect you, check out the report, Bringing Dark Patterns to Light.
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Identity Theft and Online Security
FTC policy statement: Established consumer protection and competition principles apply to gig companies
FTC policy statement: Established consumer protection and competition principles apply to gig companies
By
Lesley Fair
September 20, 2022
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Whether you’re a gig worker, work at a business that relies on gig workers, or enjoy the benefits of their labor, the FTC just announced a policy statement about the gig economy that merits your attention.
There’s no denying that the gig economy has grown exponentially. With 16% of Americans reporting that they earn money through the gig economy, a Federal Reserve study estimates that gig work accounts for hundreds of billions of dollars in economic activity each year. What’s more, as noted in a recent FTC Staff Report, many gig workers come from communities of color.
The FTC Policy Statement on Enforcement Related to Gig Work begins with the fundamental principle that “American workers deserve fair, honest, and competitive labor markets.” After outlining a number of the issues that gig workers may face – including deceptive claims about pay and hours, unfair contract terms, and anticompetitive wage fixing and coordination between gig economy companies – the statement makes it clear that while gig companies may seem unique, established principles of consumer protection and competition still apply to them. Here’s another key takeaway: that principle holds true regardless of how companies choose to classify the people who perform gig work.
The policy statement points to a number of areas where the FTC will aim to prevent harm to consumers. You’ll want to read the document for details, but here are three examples: holding companies accountable for their claims and conduct about gig work’s costs and benefits; combating unlawful practices and constraints imposed on gig workers; and policing unfair methods of competition that harm gig workers. As the statement explains, “Protecting these workers from unfair, deceptive, and anticompetitive practices is a priority, and the Federal Trade Commission will use its full authority to do so.”
Workers harmed by questionable practices can share their experience with the FTC. If workers believe their labor rights have been violated, they can call the National Labor Relations Board at 1-844-762-6572 or file a charge on the NLRB’s website.
Tags:
- Consumer Protection
- Bureau of Consumer Protection
- Franchises, Business Opportunities, and Investments
- Human Resources
- Advertising and Marketing
- Advertising and Marketing Basics
https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/ftc_gov/pdf/Matter%20No.%20P227600%20Gig%20Policy%20Statement.pdf THIS IS A 17 PAGE DOCUMENT, WHICH “ALL SMALL/ONLINE BUSINESS OWNERS NEED TO REAQD THROUGH..!!!
FTC Policy Statement on Enforcement Related to Gig Work
American workers deserve fair, honest, and competitive labor markets. Over the past
decade, internet-enabled “gig” companies have grown exponentially, and gig work now
composes a significant part of the United States economy.1 One study suggests the gig economy
will generate $455 billion in annual sales by 2023.2 The rapid growth of the gig economy is
made possible by the contributions of drivers, shoppers, cleaners, care workers, designers,
freelancers, and other workers. Protecting these workers from unfair, deceptive, and
anticompetitive practices is a priority, and the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC” or
“Commission”) will use its full authority to do so.3 As the Commission’s past work and current
initiatives illustrate, the agency’s broad-based jurisdiction and interdisciplinary approach to
market harms make it well positioned to confront the challenges this model can pose to workers…CONT…
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ALSO: NOW THIS=https://consumer.ftc.gov/consumer-alerts/2022/09/telling-truth-about-home-mortgage-help-matters?utm_source=govdelivery
Telling the truth about home mortgage help matters
By
Amy Hebert
Consumer Education Specialist, FTC
September 19, 2022
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If you’re having a hard time making your mortgage payments, we have some advice on what to do next. We also want you to know that there are companies out there who will say they’ll help but are out to take advantage of you.
Today the FTC and California’s Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) announced a lawsuit against Home Matters USA, Academy Home Services, Atlantic Pacific Service Group, Golden Home Services America, and their owners for illegally charging people thousands of dollars up-front for the false promise that the company would negotiate lower interest rates or monthly payments on a person’s mortgage.
According to the FTC, Home Matters also led people to believe the company was connected with government mortgage relief programs and COVID-19 relief programs that the company said it could enroll them in. The company also told people to stop paying and communicating with their mortgage companies for the estimated three months Home Matters said it would take to get the modification.
But in many cases, the company never got the promised modification, and people not only lost the money they paid Home Matters, but also had to pay their mortgage lenders more to avoid foreclosure. Many people ended up with lower credit scores, with homes placed in foreclosure, or even losing their homes entirely.
If you’re having trouble paying your mortgage or you’ve gotten a foreclosure notice, reach out to your mortgage servicer, even if you’re already in foreclosure. You also have the option to talk to a certified housing counselor for free. Find a list of approved housing counseling agencies at hud.gov.
If you’re targeted by a mortgage relief scammer, tell the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
Read Mortgage Relief Scams to learn more about avoiding a mortgage relief scam.
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AND THIS, ALSO: https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/blog/2022/09/ftc-issues-illuminating-report-digital-dark-patterns?utm_source=govdelivery
FTC issues illuminating report on digital dark patterns
By
Lesley Fair
September 19, 2022
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It’s ironic that the only thing clear about digital dark patterns is the FTC’s commitment to protect consumers from the injury they inflict. A new FTC Staff Report sheds light on the ways that marketers can manipulate people into buying merchandise or giving up personal information through the use of dark patterns – a phrase that describes a broad range of deceptive design elements. If your business is involved in web-based commerce, the Report discusses in detail a number of the practices that raise consumer protection concerns.
As the FTC’s 2021 workshop, Bringing Dark Patterns to Light, and recent academic literature establish, dark patterns take on a variety of nefarious guises – for example, hiding the full cost of a transaction behind nondescript dropdown arrows or small icons, sending people on a digital scavenger hunt just to cancel a subscription, using default settings to subvert their privacy choices, or even sneaking stuff into customers’ shopping carts without their knowledge. Dark patterns also may lurk in different locations – behind cookie consent banners, inside kids’ apps, and within “free” offers, to name just a few.
You’ll want to read the Report to take a deeper dive into dark patterns, but here are four examples the Report cites:
- Design elements that cause false beliefs. An example of this tactic is when marketers use deceptive “masquer-ads” that look like independent editorial content, but really are advertising.
- Design elements that hide key information. This category includes the practice of burying additional fees, mandatory charges, or “drip pricing” in hard-to-find or even harder-to-understand blocks of text, often late in the transaction.
- Design elements that lead to unauthorized charges. Marketers that take advantage of these dark patterns typically trick people into paying for goods or services they didn’t want and then bill them – often on a recurring basis – without their consent.
- Design elements that trick customers into sharing personal data. These dark patterns often appear to give consumers a choice about sharing data, but then intentionally steer them to the option that gives away the most personal information.
Another instructive resource in the Report is an analysis of recent FTC cases that have challenged allegedly illegal dark patterns. But the Report doesn’t just discuss the contours of the problem. It also makes practical recommendations for companies as they develop, design, and improve their online interfaces.
The Report sends two strong signals. Consumers, the FTC is on your side in the fight against digital booby traps designed to take your money and your data. Businesses that use dark patterns, consider this Report the written equivalent of that point-to-our-eyes-and-then-point-you gesture. We’re on to what you’re up to and will take action to protect people from deceptive or unfair schemes and subterfuges.
Tags:
- Consumer Protection
- Bureau of Consumer Protection
- Advertising and Marketing
- Online Advertising and Marketing
- Advertising and Marketing Basics
- Privacy and Security
- Consumer Privacy
- Tech
WITH ALL THE WAYS THAT “SCAMMERS” AND “CRIMINALS” CAN/DO HIDE ONLINE AND CONDUCT THEIR “CROOKED BUSINESSES” ONLINE, JUST AS WE DO: IT IS VERY MUCH IMPORTANT TO DO “DUE DILIGENCE” AND “VETTING” OF PEOPLE, COMPANIES, AND EVEN PARTNERS/POTENTIAL PARTNERS, BEFORE MAKING THE BEST DECISIONS WHICH WE CAN ALL MAKE AND EVEN STILL=SOMETIMES WE MUST HAVE AN “OUT-CLAUSE” AND/OR A WAY TO “EXIT/EXIT CLAUSE” OF THINGS WE GET OURSELVES INTO, ONLINE OR OTHERWISE IN BUSINESS AND PERSONAL VENTURES.
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