Federal Trade Commission v. OkCupid

Background

The FTC alleges that OkCupid operator Humor Rainbow and affiliate Match Group Americas engaged in deceptive practices under section 5 of the FTC Act by sharing personal data from millions of OkCupid users with an unrelated third party despite OkCupid’s privacy policy stating that personal information would be shared only in specified circumstances or after users were informed and given an opportunity to opt out; the complaint says the shared data included photos, demographic information, and location information, and that the disclosure was later concealed and denied. On the same day, the FTC filed a stipulated proposed order resolving the case, under which the defendants neither admit nor deny the allegations, waive appeal, and agree to injunctive and compliance obligations. [Complaint; Stipulated Order]

AI Interaction

The AI-specific element is that the allegedly unauthorised recipient was a facial recognition technology company, and the FTC says OkCupid gave that company access to nearly three million user photos together with other personal data even though it had no qualifying business relationship under the privacy policy, no user opt-out was provided, and no formal agreement or restrictions governed the recipient’s access or use of the data. The proposed order then prohibits future misrepresentations about how covered information is collected, used, disclosed, deleted, protected, or controlled through privacy interfaces. [Complaint; Stipulated Order]