FTC penalizes Cox Media for falsely advertising phone-spying to target ads
TL;DR
The Federal Trade Commission announced Cox Media Group, MindSift, and 1010 Digital Works will pay $930,000 to settle allegations they lied about secretly listening to consumers via phones and smart devices to target ads; the FTC found no listening occurred and the service largely re-sold data from brokers, violating consumer privacy laws.
- Cox Media fined after bragging it spied on users through their phones The Verge
- ‘Creepy’ Listening Tool for Targeted Ads Didn’t Actually Work, FTC Says WIRED
- Cox Media fined for claiming it used AI to track consumer conversations Yahoo Finance
- Media giant settles for $930k with FTC over allegations it lied about eavesdropping on conversations through smart devices The Register
- Cox Falsely Claimed To Target Ads Based On Conversations, FTC Charges 05/22/2026 MediaPost
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