The Gambling Commission has investigated social gaming to determine whether it should be regarded as commercial gambling and regulated under the Gambling Act 2005. Are existing consumer protection laws and regulations not enough? Thomas Spanyol reports.
Transparency is often a concern in so-called “native advertising” where editorial content includes advertising messages.. To help, the IAB has published “Content and Native Disclosure Guidance” to help marketers comply with consumer laws and the CAP Code. George Garrard reports.
From 6 April 2015, the ICO can fine nuisance marketers up to £500,000 without establishing likely substantial damage or substantial distress, but what types of marketing will this extend to and what must ICO still establish? Stephen Groom reports.
PLT charged a monthly fee for a service including registration with the UK “do not call” list, but failed to tell customers that this was otherwise available free of charge. Was this an illegal “misleading omission”? Barney Sich reports.
Following an attack by hackers, three million customer records were put at risk and details of 5,000 payment cards were compromised. Had PCIDSS rules for processing credit card data been adhered to? Chloe Deng reports on the ICO’s findings.
On 12 March 2015, the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (Commencement No.11) Order 2015 became law and quietly revolutionised Magistrates’ powers to impose fines for breaches of advertising, trading and data laws. Stephen Groom reports.
In sponsored search results, CTN Solutions and uk-phone.com both promoted their “Easyjet Customer Services” helplines but had no connection with the airline. Both included disclaimers. Did they work? Ben Dunham reports on the ASA’s decision.
Alcohol Concern complained to the ASA about ads promoting a new whisky brand in the Diageo portfolio. They said featuring the retired footballer was irresponsible given his appeal to youngsters. What was the ASA’s view? Fiona Schneider reports.
An infographic from Jeroen Lub and Kevin vant Klooster of Osborne Clarke Amsterdam forecasts a more aggressive privacy law enforcement landscape in the year ahead with fines of up to €810,000 or 10% of turnover for data law breaches.
The euroclinix healthcare website featured a logo with a green tick and “PharmaCheck Know your pharmacy” linked to information about the General Pharmaceutical Council and euroclinix’s owner Hexpress. Misleading? Fiona Schneider reports.
An opinion from the French “Abusive Clauses Commission” has complained of 46 provisions in social media site terms of use and privacy policies that in its view are unfair. Georgina Graham and Gregoire Dumas report.
An Italian supermarket chain promoted offers. A customer travelled to a branch but offer products were not available. A fine for breach of EU unfair commercial practices laws ensued, but the retailer appealed to the CJEU. Why? Thomas Spanyol reports.
