Regulation in advertising is the rules and enforcement governing advertising claims, set by each jurisdiction's own regulators, such as the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the UK Advertising Standards Authority (ASA).
The FTC states that under the Federal Trade Commission Act, advertising must be truthful and non-deceptive, advertisers must have evidence to back up their claims, and ads cannot be unfair. It treats an ad as deceptive when it contains or omits information likely to mislead consumers acting reasonably and that information is material, and it requires advertisers to have proof before an ad runs.
The FTC has jurisdiction over ads for most products and services, while Congress has given other agencies authority over advertising by airlines, banks, insurance companies, common carriers and sellers of securities and commodities. Remedies the FTC lists include 📝cease and desist orders, civil penalties, consumer redress and corrective advertising. Its rules on endorsements are covered in 📝FTC Disclosure.
In the United Kingdom, the ASA describes itself as the independent advertising regulator that makes sure ads across UK media follow the Advertising Codes, which its sister organisation, the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP), writes. The ASA acts on complaints, monitors ads, and requires ads it judges to break the rules to be withdrawn or amended. Under a co-regulation arrangement with the communications regulator Ofcom, the ASA regulates TV and radio advertising day to day, with Ofcom as its legal backstop on the broadcast side.