The FTC has been active across both consumer protection and competition spaces in the past two weeks. In the consumer protection space, the Commission published guidance on auto dealer price transparency, announced proposed settlements with companies and individuals resolving complaints of alleged deceptive marketing and unfair practices, and sought public comment on platforms’ role in amplifying impersonation scams. In the competition space, the Commission endorsed a Department of Education proposal to increase competition among higher education accreditors. The Commission also revised its Rules of Practice. These stories and more after the jump.

Tuesday, September 15, 2026

Bureau of Consumer Protection | Deceptive/Misleading Conduct | Automobiles | Advertising and Marketing

• The FTC published a set of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) to assist the automobile industry in understanding and complying with the agency’s price transparency requirements under the FTC Act. The FAQs address common price transparency questions, including how dealers must disclose the offering price of vehicles, what an advertised price should include, how to account for price negotiations, and how to handle document fees, rebates, and discounts. This guidance comes in the wake of the FTC’s earlier action this year, in which the agency sent letters to 97 auto groups nationwide cautioning that advertised prices must reflect the actual price, including all mandatory fees.

Thursday, September 17, 2026

Bureau of Consumer Protection | Franchises, Business Opportunities, and Investments | Online Advertising and Marketing | Advertising and Marketing

• The FTC announced a proposed order, resolving its September 2026 complaint against Amway Corporation (“Amway”), a multi-level marketing company, and its two affiliates, World Wide Group, L.L.C., and Leadership Team Development, Inc. (“affiliates”). The FTC and the State of Washington’s complaint alleged that Amway and its affiliates used deceptive and unfair tactics, including misrepresentations about likely earnings, to pressure participants, referred to as Independent Business Owners (“IBOs”), to purchase Amway products that were difficult to resell, in violation of Section 5 of the FTC Act and the Washington Consumer Protection Act. The proposed order imposes a $225 million judgment against Amway and its affiliates. The proposed order also requires that Amway and its affiliates change their practices, including that IBOs sell at least 70% of purchased products each month, that Amway terminate IBOs who fake sales, and that an independent auditor regularly audit Amway’s sales records.

Bureau of Consumer Protection | Deceptive/Misleading Conduct | Transportation | Credit and Finance | Payments and Billing | Small Business

• The FTC announced a settlement order, resolving its December 2019 complaint against FleetCor Technologies Inc. (“FleetCor”), a global payments company, and its CEO, Ronald Clarke. The FTC’s complaint alleged that FleetCor misrepresented fuel savings to small business customers in connection with its fuel cards and imposed unauthorized and hidden fees totaling hundreds of millions of dollars, in violation of Section 5 of the FTC Act. The complaint further alleged that FleetCor charged improper late fees and engaged in deceptive billing practices by obscuring fees on customer invoices. The settlement order imposes a $100 million judgment against FleetCor and Ronald Clarke, which will be used to provide consumer redress.

Monday, September 22, 2026

Bureau of Competition | Higher Education Accreditation

• In a September 21, 2026 comment letter, the directors of the FTC’s Office of Policy Planning and Bureau of Competition backed a Department of Education proposal aimed at making it easier for new higher education accreditors to enter the market. Drawing on the agency’s experience with occupational licensing and professional accreditation, the comment argues that existing accreditation monopolies drive up tuition and suppress innovation, in part because university insiders dominate the standard-setting process. The comment singles out the ABA’s law school accreditation practices as a prime example of the competitive harms that result when incumbent interests control the gate. The Commission vote to file the comment was 2-0.

Wednesday, September 24, 2026

Bureau of Consumer Protection | Impersonation Fraud | Online Platforms

• The FTC published an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking seeking public comment on whether its existing Impersonation Rule should be updated to hold platforms accountable for ad-optimization tools that scammers exploit to pose as legitimate businesses and government agencies. The agency noted that imposter scams have consistently ranked among the top consumer fraud categories in recent years, with consumers reporting nearly $3.5 billion in losses in 2025 alone. Comments are due 60 days after Federal Register publication. The ANPRM inquires about numerous topics, including:
  • The financial incentives driving platforms to offer ad-optimization tools and services, and the steps platforms currently take to prevent the use of such tools for deceptive advertising;
  • The extent to which platform ad-optimization tools and services constitute unfair or deceptive acts or practices by furthering impersonation scams;
  • Whether the Commission should address these acts or practices by amending the existing Impersonation Rule, proposing a new separate rule, or implementing non-regulatory measures; and
  • Potential regulatory measures, including vetting advertisers, monitoring posted ads, investigating suspected impersonation scam ads, removing confirmed impersonation scam ads, and pursuing disciplinary action against offending advertisers.

Office of General Counsel | Rules of Practice

• The FTC amended the agency’s Rules of Practice with the stated goals of better alignment with the FTC Act and to reflect organizational changes, including the creation of the American Competition Enforcement Division.  The amendments also correct a number of minor errors and omissions in the previous version of the Rules. A detailed discussion of these and all rule amendments can be found in two Federal Register notices covering 16 CFR Parts 0–4 and 16 CFR Parts 4 and 5, respectively.