The offense or civil violation of making a materially false or misleading claim about a product or service in advertising or other promotional material, intended to induce a consumer to make a purchase they would not have made had they known the truth. In the United States, false advertising is addressed both by the Federal Trade Commission Act's prohibition on unfair or deceptive practices, enforced by the Federal Trade Commission, and by the Lanham Act, which additionally allows a competing business to sue over a false advertising claim that damages its own commercial interests, a distinct civil remedy from the consumer-protection enforcement route. Documented categories of false advertising include a false claim about a product's health or safety benefit, a fabricated or unsubstantiated scientific or performance claim, a misleading price or discount comparison, and deceptive use of a testimonial or endorsement; regulators in a number of countries have in recent years extended false advertising enforcement to paid social media influencer promotion that fails to disclose the payment or relationship.
Facts
Classification CodeThe Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. 1125(a)(1)(B), creates civil liability for misrepresenting the nature, characteristics, qualities, or geographic origin of goods or services in commercial advertising or promotion 1 Typical PenaltyA successful Lanham Act false advertising plaintiff may recover the defendant's profits, the plaintiff's own damages, and the costs of the action 2 Elements of OffenseUnder the Lanham Act, any person who believes they are or are likely to be damaged by a false advertising act may bring a civil action 1 Notable ExampleRed Bull paid a 13 million dollar settlement in 2015 to resolve consumer class actions claiming its 'gives you wings' slogan falsely asserted unsubstantiated performance-enhancing benefits 3 Jurisdiction VariationThe United Kingdom relies on the Advertising Standards Authority, a non-statutory self-regulatory body that cannot interpret or enforce legislation, unlike the United States' court-based FTC Act and Lanham Act enforcement 4 Classification
Offense Grade Connections
Has Offense Grade
Entity-backed identity for the offense-grade enum value this offense already carries, resolved to a crime concept by an explicit value-to-entity map (phase 3 bucket conversion, docs\design_entity_backed_browse_buckets_20260928.md). The offense-grade fact itself stays on the offense unchanged.
In the Other Atlases
- Also in Geography Atlas: Europe, found in there.
- Also in Geography Atlas: North America, found in there.
Sources
1. 15 U.S. Code Section 1125 (Cornell Law School Legal Information Institute)
subsection (a)(1)(B)
in commercial advertising or promotion, misrepresents the nature, characteristics, qualities, or geographic origin of his or her or another person's goods, services, or commercial activities
subsection (a)(1)
any person who believes that he or she is or is likely to be damaged by such act
View the Source2. 15 U.S. Code Section 1117 (Cornell Law School Legal Information Institute)
subsection (a)Quote, subsection (a)
the plaintiff shall be entitled, subject to the provisions of sections 1111 and 1114 of this title, and subject to the principles of equity, to recover (1) defendant's profits, (2) any damages sustained by the plaintiff, and (3) the costs of the action.
3. Red Bull, Wikipedia
Litigation sectionQuote, Litigation section
Red Bull entered into a US$13 million settlement to resolve two consumer class action lawsuits in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.
4. Advertising Standards Authority (United Kingdom), Wikipedia
History sectionQuote, History section
The ASA is a non-statutory organisation and so cannot interpret or enforce legislation.
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