FTC staff has been helping businesses comply with its guidelines on online endorsements, which apply to bloggers and reviewers who publish online reviews.
Your advertisement must disclose any extraordinary claims about an endorser (for instance, losing 20 pounds in two months) if their results seem extraordinary. The advertiser must state this isn’t typical performance and disclose it as such in their advertisement.
Taxes
FTC law enforcement strives to ensure businesses compete fairly. From investigating fraudulent advertising or false claims to responding to congressional inquiries or reviewing merger proposals with the Department of Justice, they’re constantly on guard against anticompetitive conduct.
FTC’s Bureaus of Consumer Protection and Competition provide economic research and policy tools that assist their enforcement and advocacy work, including protecting consumers from unfair or deceptive marketing practices such as health claims, endorsements, or testimonials and maintaining the National Do Not Call Registry.
Foreign Tax Credit (FTC) allows expatriates to offset income taxes paid abroad dollar for dollar with their Foreign Tax Credit, though not all foreign taxes qualify, and the rules vary by country. A reasonable expat tax attorney can explain its rules and limitations to you. LegalMatch’s website connects people and businesses with lawyers specializing in various areas, including consumer protection law. For more information, visit LegalMatch today!
Consumer Protection
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) enforces various consumer protection laws, such as antitrust, privacy, and identity theft legislation. Furthermore, it offers educational tools and resources for consumers and businesses to use when navigating the marketplace.
At our agency, reducing harm from misinformation collected online or offline is paramount. Focusing on mitigating harm reflects real consumer concerns while not unnecessarily restricting the free flow of information that bolsters our economy.
The agency assists consumers and businesses alike by assessing the economic impacts of various practices, such as marketers using deceptive claims to increase sales of products, which has been shown to damage the economy. To combat this practice, market research was conducted to understand who would be misled and its effects. Using this information for enforcement decisions and policy creation resulting in a flourishing economy with fair competition among companies and an educated public.
Enforcement
The Federal Trade Commission enforces an array of antitrust and consumer protection laws that affect nearly every industry. It reviews merger proposals and practices that might restrict competition, such as auditing practices or other practices that limit competition.
No matter your housing search, loan application, or efforts to lower credit card rates – the Federal Trade Commission works on your behalf. They initiate actions against companies that mislead consumers. Recently, for example, Harvest Moon Financial and BoostMyScore LLC were sued for unlawfully withdrawing millions from consumers’ bank accounts without their knowledge and authorization.
The FTC also maintains and defends the U.S. National Do Not Call Registry and strives to make consumers aware of identity theft risks. Furthermore, it serves as a federal repository for individual consumer complaints about false advertising and scams, sharing such data with law enforcement agencies with appropriate confidentiality assurances to minimize duplication and reduce business burdensome costs.
Legislation
The Federal Trade Commission enforces the Federal Trade Act to stop unfair, deceptive, and fraudulent business practices across multiple industries. It creates resources and tools to empower consumers while sharing information with government and law enforcement agencies and providing consumer education. In addition, it discourages anticompetitive mergers while reviewing any proposed mergers with the Department of Justice for review.
The Federal Trade Commission is best equipped to deal with privacy issues under its Section 5 jurisdiction; however, such limitations limit its ability to protect consumers against privacy harms that cannot be classified as misleading under this statute.
The Federal Trade Commission’s expertise on consumer protection matters allows it to collaborate with State Attorneys General in combatting and exposing frauds and scams and seeking relief for injured consumers and civil penalties against wrongdoers. Does the FTC need additional authority or an alternative mechanism to facilitate its collaboration with these officials?
