FTC's Enforcement Action Against Avast Signals Increased Focus On Consumer Web Data

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has been actively flexing its authority as a privacy regulator in recent months. The agency has been especially focused on identifying data practices it views to be "unfair", thereby essentially creating substantive obligations for how companies are permitted to use data. The FTC's recent enforcement action and order against Avast Limited ("Avast") is one example of this trend.

This past summer, the agency announced its finalized order prohibiting the sale or licensing of any web browsing data for advertising purposes against Avast and two of its subsidiaries, including Jumpshot, Inc ("Jumpshot"). The FTC's case against Avast focused primarily on allegations of misrepresentations about the company's collection, retention, and sale of its consumers' browsing information and insufficient consumer notice regarding the disclosure of consumer data to over 100 third parties.