Fake Audio-Targeting Service Costs Companies $930K in FTC Settlement

Cox Media Group and two other companies deceived their business clients by falsely claiming an 'Active Listening' service could collect audio from smart devices to target ads—a capability that never actually existed. The companies exploited consumer privacy concerns to sell ordinary email lists at inflated prices, demonstrating the FTC's escalating efforts to punish misleading claims about data collection and AI-driven targeting technologies.