Lawmakers debate proper scope of FTC’s powers

Congressional Republicans and Democrats are engaged in a tug-of-war over the powers of the Federal Trade Commission, and neither side is likely to break the stalemate soon.

Neill Averitt

Shining a light on surveillance pricing

The Federal Trade Commission’s inquiry into personalized or “surveillance” pricing may turn out to be a fundamental game-changer for the issues of privacy and big data. It may transform these from peripheral, largely academic concerns into politically concrete issues that at long last require...

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FTC staff votes to unionize

More than 800 attorneys, economists, statisticians, investigators and other professional staff at the Federal Trade Commission have voted to unionize and form a bargaining unit under the National...

Nationwide landlord that hid fees settles with FTC

Hidden fees, poor inspections, and unfairly retained security deposits — these were just some of the problems renters faced, according to the Federal Trade Commission’s complaint against Invitation...

‘Pig butchering’ scams on feds’ radar

Your local meat market is not the likely culprit behind a “pig butchering” scam, a fraud that has cost some individuals hundreds of thousands of dollars in recent years and put government agencies...

FTC eyes adoption middlemen, sends out 31 warning letters

Those facilitating adoptions beware. The Federal Trade Commission is reaching out to ensure that truth is part of the process when a child goes from one family to another with the aid of an...

DOJ, FTC continue their push to reframe discussion, regulation of antitrust

President Joe Biden’s share of the limelight has declined as his term draws to a close, but his high-profile enforcers haven’t slowed their efforts to make a lasting mark by shifting the concepts...

Trump plan to review government operations could affect FTC

Former President Donald Trump has said he wants business mogul Elon Musk to run a commission to evaluate government efficiency. The last time a non-government entity did that, it resulted in...

on the shelf

A tricky alliance

Business leaders and presidents are at best frenemies or at worst enemies.