FTC serves health-app maker massive slice of humble pie—and $1.5M bill

FTC serves health-app maker massive slice of humble pie—and $1.5M bill

By Beth Mole

The idea was that Pact app users would set their own goals for going to the gym, exercising, logging their food, and/or eating veggies each week. Users agreed to be automatically charged if they didn’t meet any of their weekly goals. The users themselves selected their own monetary punishment, with charges ranging from $5 to $50 for each broken pact. If the users met their goals, they were promised that they would be paid a share of the money collected that week from pact-breaking users.

The FTC has announced that the maker of the app, Pact Inc., agreed to a $1.5 million judgement. Nearly $1 million will go to users as refunds and unpaid rewards. Pact has 30 days to fork over the dough.

Along with the settlement announcement, the FTC released its full complaint against Pact (PDF). The complaint outlines how the app was supposed to work and how it allegedly went terribly wrong.

According to the FTC, Pact failed to acknowledge when users met their goals and charged them without authorization. Users that suspended or canceled their service or straight-up deleted their entire account continued getting charged—often hundreds of dollars.

Read full article and learn more about Deceptive Advertising here.

Here’s How To Make Sure You, Your Business & Website Is FTC Compliant

By now it should be clear how important it is for you to be FTC compliant. But how can you do that without spending $7,500-$8,000 or more on Internet Attorneys?

Smart business owners around the world are doing it with the help of FTC Guardian.

FTC Guardian is a service that is 100% focused on helping to keep you get and stay FTC compliant and fully protected. And right now, we are offering a free training to give you the knowledge, information, and guidance that you need to stay out of trouble with the Federal Trade Commission.

Free Compliance Workshop: Join Chip Cooper, Esq., the #1 FTC Compliance trainer in the World, for a one-of-kind, completely free online compliance workshop. Workshops fill up quickly, so register now.

Here are some of the things you’ll discover on the training:

  • Real-Life Examples of People Who Didn’t Think They Were At Risk, But Who Got Nailed By The FTC, And Why It Could Happen To You, Too
  • The 3 Enormous Powers The FTC Has That Can Change Your Life – And Your Family’s Life – Forever!
  • How to Avoid FTC Claims When Collecting Leads With Optin Forms
  • 3 Privacy Policy Mistakes Every Digital Marketer Is Making, And Why You’re In The FTC Crosshairs.
  • And Much More…

Remember: legal protection is a massively important part of your business, and it’s one you cannot afford to ignore any longer.

Go here to register for our next FREE training and make your business is FTC compliant today!

Disclaimer:  This article is provided for informational purposes only. It’s not legal advice, and no attorney-client relationship is created. Neither the author nor FTC Guardian, Inc. is endorsed by the Federal Trade Commission.

Contact us!

If you have any questions feel free to contact us!

Malcare WordPress Security