MASSDEVICE ON CALL — The mobile app market could be a "medium for mischief" for some software writers who are making false claims and relying on shabby research to sell software, according to Federal Trade Commission attorney James Prunty.
The FTC has pursued lawsuits against some health-app-makers, including 2 who claimed they could turn a smartphones into an acne treatment product.
The FTC and the FDA has been in conversations about how best to oversee health-related apps and whether to pursue lawsuits against more companies making false claims about the potential health benefits of their mobile software products, which claim to relief pain, stress and other conditions, the Washington Post reported.
“Virtually any app that claims it will cure someone of a disease, condition or mental health condition is bogus,” health technology expert John Grohol told the newspaper. “Developers are just preying on people’s vulnerabilities.”
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