A Smart Reporting Channel for Federal Trade Commission Informants

{"abilities":[],"action":"stack","className":"","columns":3,"controls":[],"exclude":[],"include":[{"custom.menu":"header-menu"}],"maximum":6,"property":"header","orders":["date","title","menu_order","post_type","post__in"]}

{"abilities":[],"action":"stack","className":"","columns":3,"controls":[],"exclude":[],"include":[{"custom.menu":"header-menu"}],"maximum":6,"property":"mobile","orders":["date","title","menu_order","post_type","post__in"]}

A Smart Reporting Channel for Federal Trade Commission Informants

By Arjun Hassard, Justino Mora, Julia Uhr, and Ritvik Vasudevan

Currently, the FTC processes all informant submissions regarding anticompetitive corporate behavior by email, which has several flaws — including inefficiency and privacy risks. This policy brief recommends that the FTC develop a smart reporting channel with open source software to modernize its informant tools. The proposed user interface would identify the category of violation, educate the informant, and expedite report processing and authentication. The underlying open source code would further guarantee the privacy and security of submissions and any subsequent communication.

This brief was completed as part of a project for the 2022 Tech Policy Primer, an Aspen Tech Policy Hub program to teach technology experts how to impact policy.

See the Project