"Unfair and deceptive trade practice"

A group of privacy and consumer organizations plans to file an amended complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regarding concerns they have that Microsoft Corp.'s collection of personal information from users of its services constitutes "unfair and deceptive trade practice." The group, which is more than a dozen organizations strong and includes the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC), Junkbusters, and the Center for Media Education, among others, first filed a formal complaint with the FTC on July 26. At that time they alleged that Microsoft's Windows XP operating system, scheduled to ship on Oct. 25, steers users to sign up for Microsoft's Passport authentication system. The group maintains that is an unfair and deceptive practice. The organizations plan to amend that complaint with more information on Wednesday. The group is calling on the FTC to open an investigation, and has also called for an injunction preventing Microsoft from shipping Windows XP until regulators conclude that investigation. Last Friday reports indicated that Microsoft was trying to settle the privacy issues surrounding Passport by requiring merchants to support privacy technology and gather less personal information.