This morning, the FTC announced that it is seeking public comment on whether to make changes to its Endorsement Guides as part of the agency’s systematic review of all current rules and guides. The Guides were first enacted in 1980, and updated in 2009 to more directly address social media. Among other things, the Guides
New FTC Settlement Targets Fake Ratings and Reviews
Yesterday, the FTC announced that it had reached a settlement with LendEDU and three of its officers over misleading ratings and reviews.
LendEDU runs a website that compares student loans and other financial products. Although they advertised that the ratings are on the site are “completely objective and not influenced by compensation,” the FTC argued
FTC Announces Settlement Over Fake Reviews
This week, the FTC announced a settlement with Sunday Riley Modern Skincare and its CEO, Sunday Riley, over allegations that company managers and employees posted fake reviews on Sephora.com.
The FTC alleged that company managers, including Ms. Riley herself, posted reviews of the company’s products on Sephora.com, and asked other employees do the same. When
New NAD Decision Addresses Incentivized Reviews
NAD recently announced a decision involving Pyle Audio’s campaign to generate reviews for its NutriChef brand vacuum sealers. When consumers received their products, they would find a card promising them two rolls of vacuum sealing bags in exchange for leaving a review on Amazon.com. Near that promise, the card included the words “love this” and
NAD Doesn’t Trust Trustpilot Reviews
If a review site ranks your product as the top in a category, can you advertise that you’re “number 1” in that category? Not necessarily. A recent NAD decision explains why.
A competitor challenged TaxSlayer’s claim that it was “#1 Rated in the Tax Prep Software Category on Trustpilot.” NAD started its decision with a
FTC Settles with Companies that Sought to Prevent Bad Reviews
The Consumer Review Fairness Act was enacted in 2016 to protect consumers’ ability to share their opinions about 
businesses. In general, the law prohibits companies from using form contracts that: (a) prohibit or restrict consumers from reviewing a business’ goods, services, or conduct; (b) impose penalties or fees on consumers for those reviews; or (c)
FTC Settlement Addresses Free Trials and Incentivized Reviews
This week, the FTC announced a settlement with UrthBox and its president that addresses two topics that we frequently cover on this blog: (1) free trials; and (2) incentivized reviews.
Free Trial
The FTC alleged that Urthbox offered a “free” trial of its snack boxes for a nominal shipping and handling fee. 
For some consumers,
FTC Announces Settlement Involving Fake Amazon Reviews
This week, the FTC announced its first case involving fake reviews on an independent website.
Cure Encapsulations sells a weight-loss product exclusively on Amazon. When the company wanted to boost its sales, its owner turned to Amazon Verified Reviews (or “AVR,” for short), a website that offers Amazon sellers services designed to “push your product
NAD Examines When Companies may be Liable for Consumer Reviews
We frequently get questions about whether companies can be held liable for claims that appear in consumer reviews. Although it’s clear that there are instances in which a company can be held liable if it has a connection to the person who wrote the review, it has been less clear to what extent a company
NY AG Announces Settlement Over Fake Followers
In the world of social media, a person’s power is often measured in terms of followers. Because more followers generally means more reach, companies who engage influencers often base their compensation on this metric. But follower counts may not always be what they seem. According to a New York Times report last year, influencers can