Federal Trade Commission Continues Its Enforcement Campaign Against False Safe Harbor Claims

Reiterating its commitment to enforcing the U.S.-EU and U.S.-Swiss Safe Harbor Frameworks, the Federal Trade Commission announced on Monday that it has reached settlements with 13 companies alleged to have misled consumers either by claiming Safe Harbor membership despite never having applied, or by allowing their Safe Harbor certifications to lapse.

A related FTC Business Center blog post concerning the settlements provided tips for companies to help avoid Safe Harbor compliance violations, including reminders that:

• Privacy policy representations regarding the handling of personal information must be truthful and may be subject to FTC enforcement;
• Using templates can be risky – every statement in a privacy policy must reflect that company's specific practices, so any "form" document must be reviewed line by line for accuracy; and