February 22, 2024 at 10:39PM
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission fined antivirus vendor Avast $16.5 million for selling users’ browsing data to advertisers despite claiming to block online tracking. Avast is banned from selling web browsing data for advertising and must notify affected users. Misleading privacy practices led to public backlash and the termination of data collection by Avast’s subsidiary, Jumpshot.
Based on the meeting notes, it appears that the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has fined antivirus vendor Avast $16.5 million for selling users’ browsing data to advertisers despite claiming their products would block online tracking. The company has been banned from selling or licensing web browsing data for advertising and must notify users whose data was sold without their consent. The FTC accused Avast of unfairly collecting consumers’ browsing information, storing it indefinitely, and selling it without adequate notice or consent. This led to a merger with NortonLifeLock to form a new parent company called Gen Digital. Please let me know if you need any additional details or summaries.