Home / Technology / FTC Denies Spy Software Ban Appeal, Upholds Ban
FTC Denies Spy Software Ban Appeal, Upholds Ban
9 Dec
Summary
- FTC upheld a ban preventing a stalkerware founder from selling invasive software.
- The ban resulted from a 2018 data breach exposing sensitive customer information.
- The founder allegedly attempted to circumvent the ban with a new stalkerware company.
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has firmly upheld a ban against Scott Zuckerman, the founder of defunct consumer spyware companies SpyFone and OneClickMonitor. This decision, announced recently, denies Zuckerman's petition to overturn a 2021 order that prohibited him from participating in the surveillance software industry. The original ban was a direct consequence of a severe data breach in 2018.
This breach, discovered by a security researcher, exposed a vast amount of sensitive personal information from SpyFone users. Data included private messages, selfies, contacts, location history, and login credentials. The FTC's 2021 order not only banned Zuckerman from selling any surveillance app but also mandated the deletion of collected data and implementation of robust cybersecurity practices.
Further complicating matters, reports emerged less than a year after the FTC's ban suggesting Zuckerman was involved in another stalkerware operation, attempting to circumvent the prohibition. Despite these allegations and the ongoing concerns about the privacy risks associated with stalkerware, Zuckerman petitioned to modify the ban, citing financial hardships for his other businesses.
