BBB National Programs Blog

As we continue to celebrate the 50th anniversary of independent industry self-regulation in the advertising industry by looking at the impact of past decades on advertising law, this month we highlight the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) Green Guides, first issued in 1992. The Green Guides were designed to respond to changes in consumer understanding and developments in environmental technology.

As a responsible business, you have an obligation to properly vet and monitor the privacy practices of your suppliers and vendors. The reason is simple: you could be held legally and financially liable for their improper data protection practices. And while vendor privacy due diligence can be a Herculean task, it doesn’t have to be this way.

The Direct Selling Self-Regulatory Council (DSSRC) hosted direct selling industry business leaders, legal professionals, advertising experts, and salesforce members at the virtual Direct Selling Summit on July 27. The Summit, an educational event to provide individuals in the direct selling industry with an inside look at how their advertising is monitored, took place following a dynamic year full of marketing challenges for direct selling companies and their independent salesforce members.

Advertisers should be aware that child-directed marketing and advertising will be reviewed under revised self-regulatory guidelines, to go into effect on January 1, 2022. BBB National Programs Children’s Advertising Review Unit (CARU) last week issued a revised version of the CARU Advertising Guidelines, widely recognized industry standards that assure advertising directed to children is not deceptive, unfair, or inappropriate for its intended audience. These Guidelines were revised to address newer digital and immersive forms of child-directed interactive media more specifically.

Advertisers of medical devices face complex tasks when marketing their products. In addition to complying with FDA regulations, medical device advertising is subject to the same truth-in-advertising principles set by the FTC.

Researching a new product and finding the critical or in-depth information you are looking for to build confidence in your purchasing decision often requires sifting through superficial lists of “best products.” These lists are often sponsored by the products they feature, which means instead of a focus on being helpful they are full of incentivized endorsements and affiliate links. In this blog, we provide a list – not a sponsored list – of some do’s and don’ts for how to confidently research smart devices.

Recently I wrote about the proliferation of dark patterns and tried to give readers a sense of just how widespread these practices are. But it is not just the pervasiveness of dark patterns that has lawmakers and regulators concerned, it is the intent behind them and their impact on consumers. Nonprofit leaders, in particular, should be aware of this and how to guard against it given that they are well-positioned to garner and enhance consumer trust.

As we continue to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the National Advertising Division (NAD) we are looking forward while taking stock of past decades, with a special focus on decisions and developments that continue to impact advertising law and NAD cases today. This month we highlight two pivotal moments from the 1980’s that helped shape NAD’s jurisprudence.

In a world where ads are woven seamlessly into online content, advertising and data collection practices become more complex, especially in the children’s space. On June 8 and 9, 2021, the Children’s Advertising Review Unit (CARU) virtually convened experts in children’s advertising, privacy, influencers, gaming, ed tech, and state and federal regulations around the globe for our annual conference, CARU 2021 to discuss challenges, best practices, and the year ahead.

No matter the size of your business, making data privacy a priority is a key component of maintaining the trust of your customers, investors, and the public at large. To assist businesses in complying with the proliferation of different privacy laws, privacy technology platforms have grown exponentially. These tools are critical, however deploying the right privacy tech solutions can only get you part of the way in achieving a successful compliance strategy. The next step? Demonstrate to your stakeholders your business’ accountability – and commitment – to its privacy policies and practices.