The Federal Trade Commission and Consumer Protections for Mobile Health Apps

J Law Med Ethics. 2020 Mar;48(1_suppl):103-114. doi: 10.1177/1073110520917035.

Abstract

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has an important role to play in the governmental oversight of mobile health apps, ensuring consumer protections from unfair and deceptive trade practices and curtailing anti-competitive methods. The FTC's consumer protection structure and authority is outlined before reviewing the recent FTC enforcement activities taken on behalf of consumers and against developers of mhealth apps. The article concludes with identification of some challenges for the FTC and modest recommendations for strengthening the consumer protections it provides.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

MeSH terms

  • Commerce
  • Deception
  • Economic Competition
  • Humans
  • Mobile Applications / economics
  • Mobile Applications / legislation & jurisprudence*
  • Telemedicine / economics
  • Telemedicine / legislation & jurisprudence*
  • United States
  • United States Federal Trade Commission*