FTC shuts down telemarketing scammers posing as tech support

The FTC today froze the assets of 14 companies involved in a long-term scam. These companies, usually based in India, cold-called up English-speaking consumers posing as a representative of a major tech company, such as Microsoft, Symantec (makers of Norton Antivirus), and Dell. Using the credibility that they stole posing as representatives of a tech company, they told the marks that their PCs (usually Windows) were infected with nasty malware. Regardless of whether the PC was actually infected or not, the scammers offered to clean the machines, but not for free. Usually the scammers asked for $50-$500 in exchange for “cleaning” the computer. (more…)

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: iPhone 5 email scam in full swing, “Lady Gaga found dead in hotel room” is a scam,

FTC declines to fine companies who sold 10000s of laptops with spyware preinstalled

Earlier today, we noted an FTC settlement which shows that seven rent-to-own business sold PCs with installed spyware that secretly collect consumer information. The software is designed by a possibly-defunct company called DesignerWare, and the FTC estimates that over 420,000 computers had included a utility called “Rental Agent,” which included a feature called “Detective Mode,” which not only included a keylogger but the ability to access the computer’s webcam. Creepy. This is one of the biggest corporate invasions of privacy in recent memory and the FTC report issues no fines and finds no criminal culpability.

(more…)

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Google could be fined $22.5 million for bypassing Safari privacy settings, Google could face fines up to $10 million over Apple’s Safari browser issue,

How Vicious Spyware Contaminated Hundreds of Thousands of Rental PCs [Security]

Hundreds of thousands of PCs are rented every year in the United States. And, it turns out, a huge chunk of them have absurdly invasive, incredibly dangerous spyware preinstalled—by the company that rents them. More »

SlashGear Evening Wrap-Up: August 22, 2012

Welcome to Wednesday, folks. This particular hump day saw news that the Department of Justice and the FBI have brought down a trio of websites that dealt in pirated Android apps, while a picture of a mini dock USB cable for the iPhone 5 surfaced as well. Microsoft announced a number of things related to the Xbox 360 today, kicking off a search for people to beta test its new dashboard update, permanently dropping the price of the Kinect by $40, and announcing Xbox 360 Essentials packs, which come packed with accessories to accommodate Xbox 360 owners.


The FTC has ended its investigation of Facebook’s Instagram purchase, though the FTC wrapped things up rather silently. LG has a massive new 4K HDTV available now in South Korea, HP posted less-than-stellar results for quarter 3 of its fiscal year, and today NASA talked about how the Curiosity rover has been getting around on the surface of Mars. Today also brought some new sample shots of the Nikon CoolPix S800c Android camera, along with a new video demo for the device.

We got a closer look at the Archos Gen10 XS tablet line today, and the struggling HTC is planning to cut the price on its One series of phones after the line posted disappointing sales. T-Mobile announced that it will begin offering nationwide unlimited 4G next month, while Rockstar delivered a new round of Grand Theft Auto V screenshots today, and we have a feeling that move screenshots are coming sometime later this week, so keep an eye out for those.

AT&T has reiterated its decision to block FaceTime, and cited an FCC ruling in support of it. Verizon looks be gearing up to offer a Nokia Windows Phone 8 later this year, and sadly, Nintendo confirmed that Nintendo Power magazine will be shutting down in December. NASA has kicked off a simulation meant to test landing on a near-Earth asteroid, and there’s a new iPhone app on the scene that will help you determine which Super PACs are putting out those constant political ads. Black Isle Studios appears to have risen from the dead, but no one seems to know the circumstances surrounding the re-opening.

Finally tonight, we have a review of the new Archos 101 XS tablet by Chris Burns. Enjoy the rest of your evening, everyone!


SlashGear Evening Wrap-Up: August 22, 2012 is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.


FTC Facebook Instagram investigation ends silently

Today an investigation into the proposed purchase of the photo sharing app Instagram by the social network Facebook has been ended as silently as it was started. The acquisition of Instagram was made famous earlier this year as Facebook payed a reported $1 billion dollar sum to take over the brand in its entirety. The FTC’s Bureau of Competition worked with the Bureau of Economics to investigate the deal to make sure no anticompetitive business practices were taking place – they found nothing to write home about.

Now that the FTC has approved of the deal here in the United States, Facebook and Instagram may move forward – of course there’s always your international regulatory groups snooping around the deal, but once the FTC has had their say, generally a deal such as this pretty much hits the afterburners. The Commission this week voted to close the investigation of the deal with a vote of 5-0 to complete – to a degree.

April J Tabor, Acting Secretary for the Federal Trade Commission’s letter to Councel for Instagram read in part as follows:

“Upon further review of this matter, it now appears that no further action is warranted by the Commission at this time. Accordingly, the investigation has been closed. This action is not to be construed as a determination that a violation may not have occurred, just as the pendency of an investigation should not be construed as a determination that a violation has occurred. The Commission reserves the right to take such further action as the public interest may require.”

The same letter was sent to Councel for Facebook, citing in both cases a possible violation of Section 7 of the Clayton Act or Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act. Have a peek at our timeline below to track this deal back to its roots, and let the Instagram flow through you, you Facebook-loving socialite!

BONUS: the image you see at the head of this post comes from a conceptual design rendering of a Facebook phone designed by Tolga Tuncer – complete with an Instagram button!

[via FTC]


FTC Facebook Instagram investigation ends silently is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.


FTC closes investigation into Facebook’s buyout of Instagram, filtered photo fans rejoice

FTC closes investigation into Facebook's buyout of Instagram, filtered photo fans rejoice

While the financials for Mark Zuckerberg and his minions hasn’t been the best of late, Facebook got some good news today when the FTC closed its investigation of the social network’s acquisition of Instagram. That means that the merger now has the green light to be completed, and filtered photographs will be joining all those pokes, likes and Spotify songs in Timelines sooner rather than later. You can get the good news straight from the government’s mouth at the source below.

FTC closes investigation into Facebook’s buyout of Instagram, filtered photo fans rejoice originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 22 Aug 2012 18:07:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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FTC considering new settlement process so companies can’t deny wrongdoing

FTC considering new settlement process so companies can't deny wrongdoingGoogle recently paid the FTC $22.5 million and Facebook was ordered by the commission to change the way it handles data, but you might be surprised to hear that both companies did nothing wrong. Well, not exactly, but by settling their privacy violation cases, the internet giants are entitled to deny any misconduct. The New York Times reports that J. Thomas Rosch, a commissioner who voted against both settlements, feels that current rules will invite “denials of liability in every case in the future.” Rosch wants the policy changed so companies can’t deny responsibility when settling, much like the way the SEC handles similar indiscretions. Most of his colleagues weren’t in a hurry to back his opinions, but three did say that refining the process could “avoid any possible public misimpression” of how the FTC strikes such deals. The commission is expected to look at the issue in the near future, but until then, we’re sure you’re more than able to separate the reality from the legalese.

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FTC considering new settlement process so companies can’t deny wrongdoing originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 13 Aug 2012 20:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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FTC Facebook verdict: “express consent” required

This week the FTC has settled its privacy complaint with Facebook with an agreement that the social network will obtain “express consent” before they share any information of said users outside its pre-written privacy settings. The agreement makes it so that Facebook must provide users with “clear and prominent notice” any time user information is shared. It also makes Facebook keep a “comprehensive privacy program” maintained and subject to biennial privacy audits.

This settlement is the end of a process which started in November of 2011, today’s date being the final announcement and cut-off time for Facebook to comply with said orders. Each violation of these orders will result in a penalty from the FTC for up to $16,000 apiece. The investigation itself began back in 2009 when initial complains from privacy watchdogs suggested private information was being shared by Facebook from users who had opted out of such activities.

This settlement comes just one day after the FTC’s settlement with Google which resulted in a $22.5 million dollar fine. That fine was the largest ever levied by the company for a violation of their orders. The agency’s commissioners issued a joint statement today which read in part as follows.

“We intend to monitor closely Facebook’s compliance with the order, and will not hesitate to seek civil penalties for any violations.

… A statement from Facebook about an app’s conduct may well amount to a promise that Facebook is taking steps to assure the level of privacy or security that the app provides for consumers’ information.” – FTC

Have a peek at the timeline below to see other FTC activities as of late to see how they’re taking care of business across the web in the USA here in the summer of 2012.


FTC Facebook verdict: “express consent” required is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.


FTC and Facebook settle privacy dispute, skip the fine

FTC and facebook settle privacy dispute

Well, Mark Zuckerberg is finally trying to make things right after admitting to a “bunch of mistakes” when dealing with user privacy on his juggernaut of a social network. The FTC and Facebook had agreed to settle the dispute in November, and now the final details of the deal have been ironed out. Noticeably missing from the list of concessions is cash. The government isn’t asking Facebook to cough up any dough as part of the settlement — avoiding the sort of hefty fine that Google recently found itself on the wrong end of. The company will, however, have drastically revamp how it handles user data and subject itself to privacy audits every two years for 20 years. Customers will now be provided with “clear and prominent” warnings any time information is shared. And, before anything can be shared, users must give express consent to for that information to be distributed. Ideally, these measures would have been in place on day one, but we’ll take what we can get at this point. For more details, check out the FTC’s press release after the break.

Continue reading FTC and Facebook settle privacy dispute, skip the fine

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FTC and Facebook settle privacy dispute, skip the fine originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 10 Aug 2012 12:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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FTC Lets Facebook Off the Hook With No Fines for Repeatedly Deceiving Users About Privacy [Facebook]

The FTC has accepted a settlement over its allegation that it repeatedly misled its users about privacy. Facebook was accused of telling users they could keep their information private and then repeatedly disclosing it anyway. Facebook won’t take a fine for the privacy violations. Sigh More »