General Motors has agreed to pay $220 million to 35 states and Washington, D.C. to resolve claims it sold driver behavior and location data collected through its Smart Driver program, offered via dealerships from 2016 to 2024, without proper consent. State attorneys general say the data was in some cases used by insurers to raise premiums, with one driver reportedly facing a 22% rate increase. GM ended the program in 2024 and must now get explicit consumer consent before collecting or sharing such data.
cnet.com
· 2026-10-30
A Joint Economic Committee investigation led by Democratic lawmakers Sen. Maggie Hassan and Rep. Don Beyer found that Americans reported about $18 billion in cyberfraud losses to the FBI last year, while federal agencies have no unified tally of money seized from overseas scam compounds or returned to victims. Agency figures cited include $336 million returned by the FBI in 2025, $1.83 billion by the FTC, and over $770 million by the Secret Service across 2024-2025, though much of that spans fraud types beyond scam compounds.
fastcompany.com
· 2026-10-27
Court documents obtained by NPR show TikTok employees repeatedly warned executives about risks to minors, including sexual exploitation, exposure to suicide-related content, and minors bypassing age restrictions. The filings also indicate TikTok avoided surveying users' ages to prevent having to report results to the Federal Trade Commission. These depositions, filed in March 2026, are part of broader litigation against TikTok, Meta, Google and Snap over alleged harms to young users.
techcrunch.com
· 2026-10-20
The Federal Trade Commission's annual report to Congress found that Americans aged 60 and older reported losing $3 billion to fraud in 2025, up from $600 million in 2020. Investment scams accounted for the largest share, with losses rising 42% to over $1 billion, often initiated through social media contact. The report also found that adults 80 and older had the highest median individual losses, at $2,000.
cnet.com
· 2026-10-20
U.S. Representative Ritchie Torres (D-NY) is introducing the Power To The Players Act, which would direct the FTC to write rules guaranteeing that buyers of digital video games own more than a revocable license. The bill would also require games with online features to include offline modes that keep working after servers shut down. Torres cited 2K Games' decision to delist NBA 2K25 and shut its servers by January 2027 as an example of the problem he wants to fix.
news.slashdot.org
· 2026-10-18
Representative Ritchie Torres of New York has introduced the Power To The Players Act, which would direct the FTC to create rules ensuring buyers actually own games they pay for rather than merely licensing them. The bill also would require developers to add offline modes before shutting down servers that games depend on. Torres cited NBA 2K25, which 2K is delisting and cutting server support for by December 31st, as an example of the problem.
theverge.com
· 2026-10-18
New York Representative Ritchie Torres announced plans to introduce the Power To The Players Act, which would direct the Federal Trade Commission to require that video game purchases grant actual ownership rather than revocable licenses. The bill would also mandate that games with online features include an offline mode before their servers are shut down. Torres cited NBA 2K25, which will be delisted and have its servers closed just two years after release, as an example of the problem the legislation targets.
ritchietorres.house.gov
· 2026-10-16
Investigative journalist Mariana van Zeller's new documentary Super Scam Me, premiering on National Geographic and streaming on Disney+ and Hulu, examines how romance scammers manipulate victims online. The film follows van Zeller posing as a scam target herself and working with an ethical hacker to expose a scammer impersonating Jon Bon Jovi on Instagram.
arstechnica.com
· 2026-10-16
New York Democratic Representative Ritchie Torres plans to introduce the Power to the Players Act, which would direct the FTC to ensure consumers actually own purchased video games rather than licensing them, and to require offline modes when publishers shut down servers. The bill cites NBA 2K25 as an example, noting the $70 game will be delisted October 30 and lose online server support by December, just two years after release.
engadget.com
· 2026-10-15
President Trump announced via Truth Social the formation of a federal task force called the Super Intelligence Force, appointing Jay Clayton as its head. The group, which also includes FTC chair Andrew Ferguson, Pentagon official Emil Michael, and OPM director Scott Kupor, must produce a report on AI's risks and opportunities within 120 days and will report directly to Trump and chief of staff Susie Wiles.
engadget.com
· 2026-10-04
New York City's click-to-cancel rule took effect Thursday, requiring businesses to make canceling a subscription as easy as signing up for one. The city's Department of Consumer and Worker Protection says the policy could save residents between $21.5 million and $162.5 million a year, and residents can now file complaints with the city over violations.
theverge.com
· 2026-10-01
Executives from Google, Anthropic, Meta, OpenAI, xAI and Nvidia signed the 'White House Accord on Super Intelligence' at a luncheon hosted by President Trump. The pact asks companies to build internal safety controls, empower internal safety teams, partner with external monitors for independent assessment, and have board committees track the work, but it carries no binding regulatory force.
wired.com
· 2026-09-30
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