Editing Federal Trade Commission (section)

==== Definitions of deception ====
In a letter to the Chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, the FTC defined the elements of [[deception]] cases. First, "there must be a representation, omission or practice that is likely to mislead the consumer."<ref name="Deception Policy">{{cite web|title=FTC Policy Statement on Deception, Oct. 14, 1983|url=http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/policystmt/ad-decept.htm|access-date=August 14, 2012|publisher=Ftc.gov}}</ref> In the case of omissions, the Commission considers the implied representations understood by the consumer.

A misleading omission occurs when information is not disclosed to correct reasonable consumer expectations.<ref name="Deception Policy" /> Second, the Commission examines the practice from the perspective of a reasonable consumer being targeted by the practice. Finally the representation or omission must be a material one{{snd}}that is one that would have changed consumer behavior.<ref name="Deception Policy" />[[File:Federal Trade Commission Entrance Doorway.jpg|thumb|Federal Trade Commission entrance doorway in Washington, DC]]

===== Dot Com Disclosures guide =====
In its Dot Com Disclosures guide,<ref name="Dot Com Disclosures">{{cite web|url=https://www.ftc.gov/sites/default/files/attachments/press-releases/ftc-staff-revises-online-advertising-disclosure-guidelines/130312dotcomdisclosures.pdf |title=.com Disclosures: How to Make Effective Disclosures in Digital Advertising, March 2013 |publisher=FTC |access-date=January 19, 2016}}</ref> the FTC said that "disclosures that are required to prevent deception or to provide consumers material information about a transaction must be presented clearly and conspicuously."<ref name="Dot Com Disclosures"/> The FTC suggested a number of different factors that would help determine whether the information was "clear and conspicuous" including but not limited to: 
*the '''placement''' of the disclosure in an advertisement and its '''proximity''' to the claim it is qualifying,
*the '''prominence''' of the disclosure,
*whether items in other parts of the advertisement '''distract attention''' from the disclosure,
*whether the advertisement is so lengthy that the disclosure needs to be '''repeated''',
*whether disclosures in audio messages are presented in an adequate '''volume and cadence''' and visual disclosures appear for a sufficient '''duration''', and 
*whether the language of the disclosure is '''understandable''' to the intended audience.<ref name="Dot Com Disclosures"/>
However, the "key is the overall net impression."<ref name="Dot Com Disclosures"/>