Media giant settles for $930k with FTC over allegations it lied about eavesdropping on conversations through smart devices

Legal

Media giant settles for $930k with FTC over allegations it lied about eavesdropping on conversations through smart devices

Cox Media Group allegedly sold a bogus AI-powered snoopfest service

It’s not every day a titan of industry pays six figures to settle claims it lied about spying on users via their smart home devices, but the FTC said that it would conclude the case against TV, radio, and advertising giant Cox Media Group (CMG) if it does.It would also need to make certain commitments around making misrepresentations. CMG, together with two smaller marketing companies, New Hampshire-based MindSift LLC and 1010 Digital Works LLC in Wisconsin, is alleged to have misled customers in advertising a supposed AI-powered service.This marketing product, called “Active Listening,” was pitched as a novel algorithm that could take snippets from user conversations, supposedly overheard by their smart home devices, and use them to generate targeted ads to other users in specific geographic regions.

The FTC alleged that these companies were, in essence, claiming to be selling data they said they'd gathered by spying on users, who were said to have given their consent to all of this.