The FTC and HHS sent warning letters to approximately 130 hospital systems and telehealth providers about the privacy and security risks of using online tracking technologies, such as Meta/Facebook pixel and Google Analytics, which may impermissibly disclose sensitive health information to third parties. The agencies emphasized that such disclosures could violate HIPAA for covered entities and the FTC Act for others, citing recent enforcement actions against companies like BetterHelp and GoodRx.
In-house legal teams should review all agreements where online tracking technologies (e.g., Meta Pixel, Google Analytics) are integrated, including vendor contracts with analytics providers, customer-facing terms of service or patient portal agreements, and any data processing addendums. Specific clauses to scrutinize include data sharing provisions, consent mechanisms for collecting sensitive health information, breach notification obligations, and requirements under HIPAA business associate agreements. Changes may be needed to prohibit impermissible disclosure of protected health information (PHI) to third-party advertisers, mandate explicit patient consent for tracking, update BAAs to reflect tracking risks, and revise privacy policies to disclose tracking practices transparently. State privacy laws (e.g., CCPA) may also require modifications to opt-out rights and data retention terms.
Entity
Hospital Systems and Telehealth Providers
Industry
HealthcareOfficial Press Release
https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2023/07/ftc-hhs-warn-hospital-systems-telehealth-providers-about-privacy-security-risks-online-tracking
FTC OCR Letter Third Party Trackers 07 20 2023
https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/ftc_gov/pdf/FTC-OCR-Letter-Third-Party-Trackers-07-20-2023.pdf
Federal Trade Commission Enforcement Page
https://www.ftc.gov/enforcement
"to approximately 130 hospital systems and telehealth providers"
"Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)"
"FTC Act"
"FTC’s Health Breach Notification Rule"
"impermissibly disclosing consumers’ sensitive personal health data to third parties"
$750K
The FTC finalized an order against Vanilla Chip LLC (doing business as TruHeight) and its principals for deceptively advertising height-enhancing supplements for children and teens without scientific evidence. The company also used fake reviews and incentivized 5-star ratings. The order requires a $750,000 payment and prohibits false health claims and deceptive review practices.
$2.3M
The FTC alleged that RentGrow, a tenant screening company, violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) by failing to use reasonable procedures to ensure the accuracy of its reports, including by reporting duplicate records and failing to disclose data sources. RentGrow agreed to pay a $2.25 million penalty and is prohibited from further FCRA violations and from misrepresenting dispute outcomes.
The FTC and New York Attorney General took action against Handy Technologies for deceptive earnings claims and failure to disclose fees and fines that led to millions of dollars being withheld from workers' wages. The FTC is sending over $2.7 million in refunds to 62,893 affected consumers.
$35.0M
The FTC alleged that Hopper, a travel booking app, charged consumers hidden and pre-selected fees (Tip and VIP Support) without their consent, misrepresented the benefits of VIP Support and Price Freeze services, and failed to clearly disclose total prices. Hopper agreed to pay $35 million for consumer redress and is prohibited from misrepresenting fees under a proposed order.
$1.5M
The FTC finalized a settlement with Publishing.com LLC and its principals for misleading consumers about potential earnings from self-publishing products. The company will pay $1.5 million and is prohibited from making unsubstantiated earnings claims, failing to disclose refund terms, and misrepresenting endorsements and reviews.
The FTC is seeking public comment on a proposed policy statement addressing concerns that AI companies may be manipulating AI system outputs contrary to consumer expectations for objectivity and accuracy. The statement explains that such conduct could be considered deceptive under Section 5 of the FTC Act. The public comment period runs until July 31, 2026.