Senate Commerce Committee urges FTC to investigate claims Facebook misleads advertisers, public

The Senate committee has called on the Federal Trade Commission to look into potentially misleading information about ads conveyed by Facebook.

On Wednesday, Senate Commerce Committee chairwoman Sen. Maria Cantwell sent a letter to the FTC's Linda Khan regarding allegations that Facebook has been misleading customers about their advertising practices.

As Reuters reports, Sen. Cantwell said in the letter that, "evidence suggests that Facebook may have deceived its advertising customers about its brand safety and advertising metrics."

She added that, "public information suggests that Facebook’s potential misrepresentations about brand safety and advertising metrics may be unfair, as well as deceptive."

"A thorough investigation by the Commission and other enforcement agencies is paramount," Sen. Cantwell concluded, "not only because Facebook and its executives may have violated federal law, but because members of the public and businesses are entitled to know the facts regarding Facebook’s conduct."

This is not the first time Sen. Cantwell has voiced her displeasure with Facebook's tendency not to be held accountable. In 2019, following a settlement between the FTC and Facebook, she stated that she was, "concerned that the settlement lets Facebook off the hook for unspecified violations," and that it could "serve as an ineffective deterrent against future policy violations."

Two years later, Facebook is once again in the hotseat, and Sen. Cantwell is leading the charge to ensure the tech giant is held accountable.