Fortnite developer, Epic Games, has been slapped with a £201million ($245million) fine by the United States Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for allegedly using "dark patterns" to trick players into making unintended purchases in the game. The FTC also accused Epic of making it easy for children to make purchases without their parents' permission and locking the accounts of customers who disputed unauthorised charges.
The order, finalised on March 14, will prohibit Epic from using such dark patterns and from allowing players to make purchases without consent. The company will also be unable to lock players' accounts for disputing unauthorised charges with their credit card company.
Furthermore, the FTC voted unanimously to approve the order and said that the fine would be used to refund customers. Anyone who bought unwanted in-game items, had their accounts locked for disputing unauthorised charges, or had children use their credit card to make similarly unauthorised purchases can seek a refund.
Epic Games' fines from the FTC currently stand at over half a billion dollars, as the company has already agreed to pay £226million ($275million) for violating the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act.
This is not the first time Epic has faced legal troubles. In 2020, the company's legal dispute with Apple over in-app purchases led to Fortnite being removed from the App Store. Epic then sued Apple, claiming it was monopolising the market and using anticompetitive practices.
In December 2020, Epic also faced criticism for its acquisition of Houseparty, a social networking app, after it was found that the app had significant security vulnerabilities. However, Epic defended the acquisition, saying that it was committed to the privacy and security of its users.
In response to the FTC's latest ruling, Epic Games issued a statement claiming it shares "the underlying principles of fairness, transparency, and privacy that the FTC enforces, and the practices referenced in the FTC’s complaints are not how Fortnite operates". It remains to be seen how the company will respond to the order and whether it will make changes to its in-game purchasing system.
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