FTC Chairman Suggests Agency Is Scrutinizing Zoom Privacy Practices
Chairman Joe Simons suggested the FTC is examining Zoom’s privacy practices in light of COVID-19 concerns (see 2005070044). During a Monday teleconference with the House Consumer Protection Subcommittee, Simons didn’t directly link the company to any specific agency effort but said the agency monitors major events in the news media. “If you’re reading about it in the press, then you can be assured that either we’re looking at it already, or if we’re not, we will as a result of that media attention,” he responded to questions from Rep. Jerry McNerney, D-Calif., about Zoom. The company didn’t comment.
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House Consumer Protection Subcommittee ranking member Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., asked Simons if the agency has best practices or guidelines for unauthorized access to videoconferencing apps. Simons said the agency issued such guidance on its website.
Rep. Kathy Castor, D-Fla., asked how the agency is monitoring children’s privacy, given increased demand for technology during the pandemic. She asked if COVID-19 is affecting review of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act rule. The agency is thinking hard about how children are using tech more for education and entertainment. The COPPA review remains open and active on all fronts, Simons said.
Several members, including Chair Jan Schakowsky, D-Ill.; Reps. Fred Upton, R-Mich.; and Darren Soto, D-Fla., pressed Simons about what the commission is doing about COVID-19-related price gougers (see 2003200066). The agency lacks authority to pursue price-gouging cases, so it’s making referrals to DOJ and state attorneys general, Simons said. “If we get our own authority, then we’ll enforce that as well,” he told Soto, noting some 35 states have separate statutes to address deceptive acts and price gouging.
House Antitrust Subcommittee Chairman David Cicilline, D-R.I. (see 2005070056) said last week the FTC doesn’t seem to “accept the notion” it has a role to play with price gougers. Cicilline participated in an April 22 briefing with top FTC and DOJ officials on price gouging. An official said House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., and House Antitrust Subcommittee ranking member Jim Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., also participated.
The FTC is sending referrals to states with price-gouging statutes and making referrals to DOJ, which is hugely active in this area, Simons said. Justice has about 200 open investigations for price gouging, he said. The FTC has 200 open investigations total in its Consumer Protection Bureau, he added.
Upton noted President Donald Trump asked enforcers to look out for price gougers. The FTC would be enthusiastic about protecting consumers under any provided statute, he said. Congress should have urgency to give the commission “clear authority to take action,” Schakowsky said.
The agency is monitoring the rollout of contact tracing apps related to COVID-19, Simons said. Apple and Google partnered to create such an app (see 2004170060). Simons noted the agency’s privacy order with Google, saying the commission is watching closely to ensure Google is complying.
House Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone, D-N.J., and ranking member Greg Walden, R-Ore., raised concerns about the online ticketing industry (see 2002260022) and complaints from consumers having to “jump through hoops” to collect refunds for postponed and canceled events due to COVID-19. It’s an issue the agency looks at regularly outside pandemic circumstances, Simons said. Sometimes companies are overwhelmed, and other times they’re placing undue burden on consumers deliberately, which is “problematic,” he said. Simons noted the FTC can currently address unfair and deceptive acts on refunds. If other legislation is enacted, the agency will enforce it vigorously to ensure there’s a consumer-friendly market, he said.