FTC Announces Orders to Address Deceptive Advertising on Social Media and Video Streaming Platforms

On
March
16,
2023,
the
Federal
Trade
Commission

announced
it
issued

orders
to
eight
social
media
and
video
streaming
platforms
seeking
Special
Reports
on
how
the
platforms
review
and
monitor
commercial
advertising
to
detect,
prevent
and
reduce
deceptive
advertisements,
including
those
related
to
fraudulent
healthcare
products,
financial
scams
and
the
sale
of
fake
goods.
The
FTC
sent
the
orders
pursuant
to
its

resolution
directing
the
FTC
to
use
all
available
compulsory
process
to
inquire
into
this
topic,
and
using
the
FTC’s
Section
6(b)
authority,
which
authorizes
the
FTC
to
conduct
studies
that
do
not
have
a
specific
law
enforcement
purpose.

The
orders
request
information
from
2019
through
the
present
about
the
companies’
standards
and
policies
related
to
paid
commercial
ads
and
the
companies’
processes
for
screening
and
monitoring
for
compliance
with
those
controls,
including
human
review
and
use
of
algorithmic,
machine
learning
or
automated
systems.
In
addition,
the
orders
require
the
companies
to
report
their
revenue,
number
of
views
and
other
performance
metrics
for
paid
ads.
The
inquiries
reflect
a
focus
by
the
FTC
on
the
extent
of
deceptive
advertising
on
social
media
and
video
platforms;
how
the
platforms
create
and
monitor
ads;
and
how
they
help
consumers
distinguish
advertising
and
other
commercial
messages
from
other
types
of
content.
 

About Author

AndyC

Andy Curtis is an award-winning security consultant, researcher and public speaker. He has been working in the computer security industry since the early 1990s, having been employed by state and federal government, leading healthcare and banking providers across three continents. He has given talks about computer security for some of the world’s largest companies, worked with law enforcement agencies on investigations into hacking groups, and is a regular voice on TV and radio explaining IT security threats.

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