Avast to pay $16.5M in FTC case over deceptive data selling
By 
Adrianne Appel2024-02-22T22:14:00
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) proposed Avast pay $16.5 million and be prohibited from selling any browser data to settle charges the software provider sold consumer information to third parties after promising it would not.
The commission voted 3-0 to issue an administrative complaint against Avast and accept a proposed consent agreement. A description of the consent agreement package will be published in the Federal Register and subject to public comment for 30 days, after which the agency will decide whether to finalize the order.
U.K.-based Avast Limited collected the private browsing preferences of consumers, stored it “indefinitely,” and sold the data without notifying the consumers or obtaining their consent, the FTC alleged in its complaint.
Related articles
-
News BriefDOT launches first data privacy review of 10 biggest airlines
The U.S. Department of Transportation is looking to thwart the nation’s 10 largest airlines from monetizing passenger data or selling it to third parties.
-
PremiumFTC ‘will not stand for’ misuse of browsing, location data
The Federal Trade Commission is amid a crackdown on businesses misusing browsing and location data that provide enough information to be used to identify nonconsenting consumers.
-
News BriefBlackbaud avoids fine in FTC deal requiring data deletion
Software company Blackbaud will be required to delete unnecessary data and boost cybersecurity as part of a proposed settlement with the Federal Trade Commission stemming from a 2020 data breach.
More from Regulatory Enforcement
-
ArticleSeven years in, GDPR faces growing challenges from AI and ‘consent or pay’ models
Europe’s pioneering data protection legislation turned seven years old in May, but the compliance and enforcement difficulties that have dogged the rules since they came into force look set to present both companies and data regulators with fresh headaches for some time to come.
-
News BriefDOJ charges crypto executive with laundering $530M for sanctioned Russian banks
The Department of Justice has charged the founder of cryptocurrency company Evita with 22 violations for allegedly laundering more than $500 million through U.S. banks and cryptocurrency exchanges, on behalf of sanctioned Russian entities.
-
News BriefSEC Chair Atkins signals end to ‘regulation by enforcement’ in line with Trump’s pro-crypto agenda
The Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Paul Atkins explained his agency’s shift on cryptocurrency regulation to a Senate committee as legislators bargain over President Donald Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” and the GENIUS Act, which would have the federal government invest heavily in cryptocurrency.