Marketing firm that promoted an “ad feature that eavesdrops on users’ mobile phones” is fined, with no evidence it actually listened in

The FTC ordered Cox Media Group and two partner firms to pay nearly $1 million over deceptive AI-ad targeting claims.

Regulators said the companies falsely suggested their “active listening” service used smart-device conversations and had user consent.

In reality, the service did not use voice data and lacked valid opt-in consent, according to the FTC.

The case underscores tighter scrutiny of invasive ad-tech claims and consumer privacy misrepresentations.