The Federal Trade Commission has upheld a ban on Scott Zuckerman, founder of the consumer spyware company Support King, following a data breach that compromised customer information.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has denied a request from Scott Zuckerman, the founder of the consumer spyware company Support King and its subsidiaries, SpyFone and OneClickMonitor, to lift a ban preventing him from participating in the surveillance industry. This ban was instituted after a significant data breach exposed sensitive personal information of both customers and those being monitored.
In a press release detailing its decision, the FTC stated that Zuckerman failed to demonstrate any changed circumstances that would warrant reconsideration of the Consent Order issued against him. The Commission voted 2-0 to deny Zuckerman’s petition after reviewing 27 comments submitted regarding the matter.
The FTC’s original order, finalized in late 2021, alleged that Zuckerman and Support King, LLC, which operated under the name SpyFone.com, marketed applications that enabled users to secretly track devices without the knowledge of the device owners. The Commission noted that these applications posed risks by requiring users to disable essential security features and by secretly collecting and disseminating data, including photos, text messages, web histories, and location information.
Samuel Levine, the acting director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection at the time, criticized the operations of SpyFone, stating, “SpyFone is a brazen brand name for a surveillance business that helped stalkers steal private information. The stalkerware was hidden from device owners, but was fully exposed to hackers who exploited the company’s slipshod security.”
In his petition, Zuckerman argued that the security requirements imposed by the FTC made it increasingly difficult for him to manage his other business ventures due to the associated financial burdens. He noted that Support King is no longer operational and that he is currently focused on running a restaurant and exploring tourism opportunities in Puerto Rico.
The controversy surrounding Zuckerman and his companies escalated in 2018 when a security researcher uncovered an Amazon S3 bucket belonging to SpyFone that had left highly sensitive data exposed online. This breach included personal information such as selfies, text messages, audio recordings, and hashed passwords, affecting over 44,000 unique email addresses and revealing data from approximately 3,666 devices that had the SpyFone stalkerware installed.
In 2022, reports surfaced indicating that Zuckerman might have been involved in another stalkerware operation. TechCrunch obtained a cache of breached data from a stalkerware app named SpyTrac, which appeared to be operated by freelance developers with connections to Support King, suggesting an attempt to circumvent the existing ban.
Eva Galperin, a noted expert on stalkerware, expressed her approval of the FTC’s decision to uphold the ban. She remarked, “Mr. Zuckerman was clearly hoping that if he laid low for a few years, everyone would forget about the reasons why the FTC issued a ban not only against the company, but against him specifically.”
The FTC’s actions underscore its commitment to protecting consumers from invasive surveillance practices and holding accountable those who exploit personal data for profit.
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