Avast to Pay $16.5 Million Over Deceptive Data Practices in FTC Privacy Settlement
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Avast collected and sold users' private browsing data from its privacy-focused apps through a separate company called Jumpshot from 2014-2020.
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The browsing data included very sensitive information like medical searches, porn usage, and more that could be tied back to specific devices and users.
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Avast claimed the data was "anonymous and aggregated" despite it being identifiable and detailed enough for clients like Home Depot and Google to find it useful.
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The FTC ordered Avast to pay $16.5 million and is banning the company from selling user browsing data without express consent due to these deceptive privacy practices.
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Avast was recently acquired by a cybersecurity firm called Gen Digital that owns other antivirus brands like Norton, AVG, and LifeLock.