FTC orders Amazon pay $30M for alleged Alexa, Ring privacy violations
By 
Adrianne Appel2023-06-01T20:34:00
Amazon is set to pay more than $30 million comprised of a civil penalty and consumer refunds to resolve two separate cases alleging privacy violations regarding its Alexa voice assistant service and Ring doorbell subsidiary.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Department of Justice (DOJ) proposed Amazon pay a $25 million penalty for allegedly collecting and retaining children’s voice recordings and location data via Alexa. In a separate action, the FTC proposed Ring refund $5.8 million to resolve accusations it illegally surveilled customers.
The proposed orders must be approved by federal courts before becoming final.
Related articles
-
News BriefFTC seeking comment on proposed COPPA enhancements
The Federal Trade Commission issued a notice of proposed rulemaking to strengthen data security requirements and modernize certain aspects of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act Rule.
-
PremiumFTC cases thrust COPPA compliance into spotlight
The Federal Trade Commission’s recent children’s privacy enforcement activity—including fines against Microsoft and Amazon—leaves no doubt businesses must make complying with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act a top priority.
-
News BriefFTC sues Amazon over Prime enrollment, ‘cancellation trickery’
The Federal Trade Commission filed a complaint against e-commerce giant Amazon for allegedly enrolling consumers into Amazon Prime without their consent and making it difficult to cancel Prime subscriptions.
More from Regulatory Enforcement
-
News BriefFTC fines telehealth firm over deceptive weight-loss claims and fake reviews
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission said it has settled with telemedicine service Southern Health Solutions, Inc. over allegations the company used deceptive pricing and weight-loss claims, along with fake reviews and testimonials, to sell its weight-loss programs.
-
ArticleU.K. extends bullying and harassment rules to 37,000 financial services firms
Serious bullying and harassment count as misconduct in regulated financial services firms, per a July 1 clarification by the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority, which said non-financial misconduct rules now applied only to banks will extend to 37,000 more firms starting September 1, 2026.
-
News BriefDOJ clears $4.4 Billion T‑Mobile acquisition of UScellular
The U.S. Department of Justice arppoved T-Mobile’s acquisition of competitor UScellular. The move came a day after T-Mobile announced it had dropped its diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, a frequent target for Trump’s administration.