The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has accused Amazon of using so-called “deceptive” tactics by the tech giant to trick millions of consumers into unknowingly signing up for its Amazon Prime service. complaining. The FTC alleges that Amazon illegally enrolls customers in Amazon Prime accounts without their consent, making it difficult for them to cancel subscriptions once enrolled. The lawsuit comes just before Prime Day, one of Amazon’s biggest sale days of the year, on July 11th and 12th.
What you should know. Did Amazon use “dark patterns” to trick customers?
The FTC filed a complaint on June 21, alleging that Amazon used so-called “dark patterns” to deliberately trick millions of customers into signing up for Amazon Prime accounts.
Dark patterns are intentionally created to mislead or trick customers into taking actions they might not have intentionally taken, or into fully understanding the consequences of their actions. It’s a design choice of what you see on the screen.
Examples of dark patterns include hidden costs, misleading information, forced consent, confusing interfaces, and other tactics that exploit user vulnerabilities. The FTC alleges that the dark patterns Amazon employed were designed to trick customers into signing up for a Prime account. At that time, the FTC accused Amazon of violating the FTC Act and the Online Shoppers’ Restored Confidence Act.
Amazon’s cancellation procedure is said to be difficult
To make matters worse, the company is also said to have made the cancellation process very difficult for people who find themselves on accounts they don’t want. According to the FTC, Amazon has done this by delaying or outright rejecting changes that make the cancellation process much easier for people.
It’s time to take control of your online privacy with Amazon
Amazon prime membership opt-out issue
The FTC complaint alleges that the company has refused to change its policy to make it easier for Prime members to opt out.
The complaint also says that many customers are constantly asked to subscribe to Prime for $14.99 a month when trying to purchase items on Amazon, making it much more difficult to purchase items without subscribing. He also said he has experience. Amazon Prime costs $139 a year and gives consumers free two-day shipping, plus access to Prime Video and music streaming.
The registration button is difficult to understand and the cancellation procedure is difficult
The FTC wasn’t made clear enough because many people didn’t know that clicking the button that people were shown to click to buy the product meant they were subscribing. He claims he had a case.
What you need to know to receive Facebook’s $725 million settlement
The FTC says that when canceling a membership, people are redirected to a number of different pages asking multiple times to continue with Amazon for the discounted price, turn off auto-renewal, or not cancel altogether. It states that it was
How did Amazon respond to this complaint?
The complaint alleges that Amazon was aware of its conduct but failed to take material steps to change it. However, Amazon has fiercely fought back against these allegations. In a statement to CyberGuy, an Amazon spokesperson strongly denied the accusations, saying:
The FTC’s allegations are factually and legally false. The truth is, customers love Prime and we designed it to be clear and easy for customers to sign up for or cancel their Prime membership. As with all of our products and services, we continually listen to customer feedback and look for ways to improve the customer experience, and we look forward to hearing more facts as this case unfolds. to Also, he is in discussions with FTC staff to ensure they understand the facts, circumstances and legal issues, and that the FTC will notify us before interacting with the FTC. We are also concerned that we have announced this lawsuit without The Commissioner himself before filing a lawsuit. We are very sorry that we didn’t have the usual engagement, but we look forward to proving our case in court. ”
How do I claim part of the $23 million Google Privacy Settlement?
Cart key points
The Federal Trade Commission’s complaint against Amazon raises serious concerns about the company’s practices and use of dark patterns to get customers to sign up for Amazon Prime without their consent. But what you need to know is that this lawsuit is still ongoing and we don’t know what the outcome of that will be, or if those who were deceived will somehow be reimbursed as the FTC claims. It’s too early to judge. If Amazon really is deceiving customers and making it difficult to cancel subscriptions, it could make important changes to its policies that are needed. People have the right to choose how they spend their money, and no company, large or small, should be allowed to dictate it to them.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Have you ever had trouble with your Amazon Prime membership? Please email us at CyberGuy.com/contact
To get these alerts and other tech tips, visit the link below and subscribe to our free CyberGuy Reports newsletter. CyberGuy.com/Newsletter
Copyright 2023 CyberGuy.com. all rights reserved.