Fergie's Tech Blog

FTC: 'Let Us Fine Spyware Operations, Already'

Anne Broache writes on the C|Net News Blog:

Federal consumer protection authorities say they want nothing more than to put the financial hurt on deceptive spyware purveyors. The trouble, they say, is that the law still doesn't let them.

Sure, the Federal Trade Commission has the ability to go after spyware purveyors now, and it has done so a dozen or so times. So can state attorneys general and the U.S. Department of Justice.

But currently, the FTC can only force an offending company to turn over ill-gotten profits or to pay a finite amount to affected consumers--"consumer redress," as it's known in legal speak--to help make things right, said FTC Commissioner Jon Leibowitz.

posted by Fergie @ 10/29/2007 01:14:00 PM