Enforcement
We enforce federal competition and consumer protection laws that prevent anticompetitive, deceptive, and unfair business practices.
,
Search or browse
the Legal Library
Find legal resources and guidance to understand your business responsibilities and comply with the law.
,
Take action
- Report an antitrust violation
- File adjudicative documents
- Find banned debt collectors
- View competition guidance
,
Competition Matters,
,
Policy
We work to advance government policies that protect consumers and promote competition.
,
Search or browse
the Legal Library
Find legal resources and guidance to understand your business responsibilities and comply with the law.
,
Take action
,
Technology Blog,
Staff in the Office of Technology,
,
Advice and Guidance
Learn more about your rights as a consumer and how to spot and avoid scams. Find the resources you need to understand how consumer protection law impacts your business.
,
Take action
- Report fraud
- Report identity theft
- Register for Do Not Call
- Sign up for consumer alerts
- Get Business Blog updates
- Get your free credit report
- Find refund cases
- Order bulk publications
,
Consumer Advice
- Shopping and Donating
- Credit, Loans, and Debt
- Jobs and Making Money
- Unwanted Calls, Emails, and Texts
- Identity Theft and Online Security
- Scams
,
Business Guidance
- Advertising and Marketing
- Credit and Finance
- Privacy and Security
- By Industry
- For Small Businesses
- Browse Business Guidance Resources
- Business Blog
,
Servicemembers:
Your tool for financial readiness
,
Get consumer protection basics, plain and simple
,
Learn how the FTC protects free enterprise and consumers
,
Looking for competition guidance?
,
News and Events
,
,
–
,
Follow us on social media
,
About the FTC
Our mission is protecting the public from deceptive or unfair business practices and from unfair methods of competition through law enforcement, advocacy, research, and education.
,
Looking for legal documents or records? Search the Legal Library instead.
,
Looking for legal documents or records? Search the Legal Library instead.
,
For Release,
BetterHelp agreed to pay $7.8 million to settle FTC allegations that the online therapy provider used and shared consumers’ health data for advertising,
,
About 800,000 people will begin receiving notices today that they are eligible for refunds stemming from the Federal Trade Commission’s 2023 settlement with BetterHelp related to allegations that the online therapy firm used and shared consumers’ health data, including sensitive information about their mental health, with third parties for advertising.
BetterHelp agreed to pay $7.8 million to settle the FTC’s charges, first announced in March 2023, that it used and revealed sensitive consumer data—specifically email addresses, IP addresses, and answers to personal health questions—for advertising purposes. The FTC alleged that BetterHelp shared this information with Facebook, Snapchat, and others for advertising, despite promising consumers that it would only disclose personal health data for limited purposes, such as to provide counseling services. The FTC charged that BetterHelp failed to obtain consumers’ consent before disclosing their health data and failed to limit how third parties use that data.
Eligible consumers will begin receiving emails about their payment from an independent redress administrator, Ankura Consulting Group. This email provides several payment options. Consumers who do nothing will get a payment via PayPal at the email address where they received their notice. Consumers who wish to choose a different payment method, such as a check or Zelle payment, will have until June 10, 2024 to select a different method. The administrator plans to send all payments this summer.
Payments will go to people who signed up and paid for services from a BetterHelp website between August 1, 2017, and December 31, 2020. BetterHelp has offered online counseling through several websites, including BetterHelp, MyTherapist, Teen Counseling, Faithful Counseling, Pride Counseling, iCounseling, Regain, and Terappeuta, which are all included in the refund program.
Consumers who have questions about the refund process should contact the independent refund administrator, at 1-833-637-4774 or via email at info@BetterHelpRefundProgram.com. The Commission never requires people to pay money or provide sensitive financial information to get a refund.
The Commission’s interactive dashboards for refund data provide a state-by-state breakdown of refunds in FTC cases. In 2023, FTC actions led to $324 million in refunds to consumers across the country.
,
,
,
The Federal Trade Commission works to promote competition and protect and educate consumers. The FTC will never demand money, make threats, tell you to transfer money, or promise you a prize. Learn more about consumer topics at consumer.ftc.gov, or report fraud, scams, and bad business practices at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. Follow the FTC on social media, read consumer alerts and the business blog, and sign up to get the latest FTC news and alerts.
,
Ankura Consulting Group,
Refund Administrator,
1-833-637-4774,
Office of Public Affairs,
202-326-2924
