United States of America: Federal Trade Commission opened consultation on petition to amend 2021 order against Support King

On 18 July 2025, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) initiated a 30-day public comment period, open until 19 August 2025, regarding a petition submitted by the chief executive officer of a company previously operating under the name SpyFone, requesting that the FTC vacate or modify its 2021 order. The original order was issued following allegations that Support King, LLC and its executive marketed “stalkerware” applications that enabled covert monitoring of device activity without the knowledge of device owners, collecting data such as photographs, messages, browsing history, location, and movement. The 2021 FTC order permanently prohibited the respondents from offering, promoting, or selling any surveillance-related products or services and imposed ongoing obligations to implement an information-security programme and submit to biennial third-party assessments. In the petition, the respondent claimed that Support King, LLC had been permanently closed and requested either complete rescission of the order or removal of the reporting, audit, and compliance obligations that continue to apply to his current non-surveillance-related business ventures. Public comments may be submitted via the docket until the closing date, after which the Commission will deliberate and vote on the petition’s resolution.