FTC Fines Cox Media Group Nearly $1M for Fake "Active Listening" AI Marketing
The FTC fined Cox Media Group and two partners $930K for selling a fake "Active Listening" AI service that claimed to target ads by eavesdropping on smart device conversations. The service didn't use voice data at all—it merely resold email lists from data brokers. The FTC warned that mandatory terms-of-service clickthroughs don't constitute valid consent.