FTC Chair Takes Aim at Gmail's Filtering Practices

In a shocking move, Andrew Ferguson, the FTC Chair appointed by Trump, has raised serious questions about Gmail's filtering practices, suggesting a possible partisan bias.

In a letter to Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, Ferguson highlighted a stirring report from the New York Post, revealing complaints by Targeted Victory — a consulting outfit with ties to the Republican National Committee and Elon Musk's X. They claim Gmail's spam filters are targeting emails from the Republican fundraising platform WinRed as spam, while allowing similar messages from the Democratic platform ActBlue to slip through.

Alarming Accusations of Bias

"Recent reports indicate that Gmail’s spam system tends to block messages from Republican senders more frequently than those from Democrats,” Ferguson asserted. He further cautioned that if Gmail's filters hinder Americans from receiving expected communications or impede their ability to donate freely, they might be infringing the FTC Act’s provisions against unfair or deceptive trade practices. This could trigger an investigation or even enforcement action by the FTC.

Google Responds: Claims Fairness in Filtering