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ARTICLE · 18 JANUARY 2016

FTC Report Examines Legal And Policy Considerations For Big Data Analytics, Promises More Enforcement

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The Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) recent report, Big Data: A Tool for Inclusion or Exclusion?, released on January 6, warns businesses engaged in big data analytics that the practice poses liability risks.

United StatesConsumer Protection
D. Reed Freeman, Jr.
D. Reed Freeman, Jr.
David Ogden
David Ogden
Franca Harris Gutierrez
Franca Harris Gutierrez
Jonathan Cedarbaum
Jonathan Cedarbaum
Debo Adegbile
Debo Adegbile
Stephen Carey
Stephen Carey
Joseph Jerome
Joseph Jerome
Lauren Moore
Lauren Moore
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The Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) recent report, Big Data: A Tool for Inclusion or Exclusion?, released on January 6, warns businesses engaged in big data analytics that the practice poses liability risks. While the FTC does not propose new law or policy, the report advises that existing laws—including the FTC Act, the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), and the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA)—already can reach certain uses of big data. 

The FTC's warning is not intended as a prohibition. Indeed, the Commission recognizes, and even encourages, the use of big data to innovate and improve the ability of businesses to serve underserved communities. Nevertheless, the FTC plans to monitor the use of big data under privacy, credit, and fair lending laws and bring enforcement actions where appropriate. Accordingly, businesses using or considering the use of big data analytics should review the FTC's report carefully and consider the risks those practices may present,

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