FTC finalizes Myspace privacy settlement

The Federal Trade Commission voted on Tuesday to finalize its settlement with Myspace over privacy violations.

The vote was four to zero, with Commissioner Maureen Ohlhausen not participating.

The settlement bars Myspace from misrepresenting its privacy practices going forward and requires the company to develop a comprehensive privacy program. Myspace will also be required to submit to outside privacy audits for 20 years.

According to the FTC, Myspace enabled advertisers to match a user's browsing history with personal information, such as their name, age and gender.

Officials concluded that practice violated Myspace's privacy policy, which promised not to share users' personal information with third parties without first receiving their permission.

Myspace and the FTC first reached an agreement over the violation in May, but the commission needed to review public comments before finalizing the settlement.

Myspace, which is now owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake, was once a dominant social networking site, but has since fallen far behind competitors like Facebook.

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