The deletion of data and algorithms as an US Federal Trade Commission remedy for unfair or deceptive data privacy practices could go by the wayside. These “are viewed as the more extreme measures,” US Federal Trade Commissioner Mark Meador said at a conference Monday.
The deletion of data and algorithms as an US Federal Trade Commission remedy for unfair or deceptive data privacy practices could go by the wayside. Such data algorithm deletions “are viewed as the more extreme measures,” US Federal Trade Commissioner Mark Meador said at a conference* Monday. And while “all options are definitely on the table… the remedy needs to actually solve the problem.”
Meador was speaking the same day the commission released a settlement with dating app companies OkCupid and Match Group Americas; the companies agreed to stop allegedly deceptive data-processing practices (see here). Meador reiterated that the FTC isn't coming from the “outside and telling everyone how to run their business.”
Under former FTC Chair Lina Khan, data deletion and algorithmic discouragement were common remedies in privacy settlement agreements with an array of companies, including General Motors, Weight Watchers and Amazon (see here and here).
The OkCupid and Match Group Americas settlement, which is subject to court approval, doesn't order any monetary payment. It also does not require the deletion of any data. It does prohibit the companies from misrepresenting their data collection and processing practices, their data-processing purpose, and the functions of their privacy controls and tools.
The commission isn't looking to proactively regulate data privacy through its settlement agreements, and will be issuing guidance that companies will hopefully follow, Meador said. In the instance with OkCupid, the commission's settlement was "law enforcement, which is very different from ex-ante regulations,” Meador told MLex on the sidelines of the conference.
The FTC also didn't require any type of data deletion in its $10 million settlement with Disney over alleged violations of the Children's Online Privacy Protection Rule (see here).
The FTC is focused on enforcing the laws it already has in place, Meador said.
– AI –
When it comes to artificial intelligence, the FTC is primarily exercising its authority to root out deceptive practices in the context of scams. AI-generated deepfakes pose a “much thornier but admittedly more interesting question” about when deception claims are appropriate, according to Meador.
“There the key concept for me is, what is a reasonable user’s expectation,” he said. Any future cases will be very fact-specific, looking for details like a misrepresentation or material omission. “In order to get it right, we can’t really be painting with broad brush strokes,” Meador said. “It’s not going to be a one-size fits all approach.”
Meador also said that enforcing the Take It Down Act is a “top priority” for the agency, and that the FTC is “actively spinning everything up that we need to in order to enforce it.” The law will require social media companies to take down non-consensual intimate content flagged by users, including deepfakes.
“I hope we never enforce it because that means that people are complying with their obligations under the law,” Meador said.
*IAPP Global Summit 2026: Privacy-AI Governance, Washington, DC, March 30-April 2, 2026.
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