Video Games

The FTC fines Fortnite developer $520m for duping "millions of players"

Epic Games is accused of tricking players into making purchases

Kirk McKeand

The FTC fines Fortnite developer $520m for duping "millions of players"
The FTC fines Fortnite developer $520m for duping "millions of players" /

The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has fined the developer of Fortnite $520 million, a record-breaking sum. 

Epic Games is accused of "lax privacy practices" for in-game chat, as well as using methods to "dupe millions of players" into spending on microtransactions accidentally.

The FTC announced the judgment, which cites the US Children's Online Privacy Protection Act as justification, saying Epic Games collected information on its users by default. 

Additionally, the FTC claims the developer likely knew many of its players were underage and they didn't ask for parental consent to collect this data. 

On top of that, the FTC claims Epic Games was using "illegal dark patterns" to "trick players into making unwanted purchases and let children rack up unauthorized charges without any parental involvement".

Most of this dates back to before 2018, when it was easy for children to purchase in-game currency without the knowledge of their parents. 

"We accepted this agreement because we want Epic to be at the forefront of consumer protection and provide the best experience for our players," Epic Games wrote in a reply. 

"Over the past few years, we've been making changes to ensure our ecosystem meets the expectations of our players and regulators, which we hope will be a helpful guide for others in our industry."

The fines include $275 million for the privacy breach and $245 million in refunds for its practices with "dark patterns". 

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Kirk McKeand
KIRK MCKEAND

Kirk McKeand is the Content Director for GLHF.  A games media writer and editor from Lincoln, UK, he won a Games Media Award in 2014 in the Rising Star category. He has also been nominated for two Features Writer awards. He was also recognized in MCV's 30 Under 30 list in 2014. His favorite games are The Witcher 3, The Last of Us Part 2, Dishonored 2, Deus Ex, Bloodborne, Suikoden 2, and Final Fantasy 7.  You can buy Kirk McKeand's book, The History of the Stealth Game, in most bookstores in the US and UK.  With a foreword written by Arkane's Harvey Smith, The History of the Stealth Game dives deep into the shadows of game development, uncovering the surprising stories behind some of the industry's most formative video games.  He has written for IGN, Playboy, Vice, Eurogamer, Edge, Official PlayStation Magazine, Games Master, Official Xbox Magazine, USA Today's ForTheWin, Digital Spy, The Telegraph, International Business Times, and more.  Kirk was previously the Editor-in-Chief at TheGamer and Deputy Editor at VG247. These days he works as the Content Director for GLHF, a content agency specializing in video games coverage, serving media partners across the globe.  You can check out Kirk McKeand's MuckRack profile for more.  Email: kirk.mckeand@glhf.gg

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