Internet Lab

Overview
To keep pace with rapidly changing Internet-related technology, the Federal Trade Commission established an Internet Lab in 1999. Equipped with state-of-the-art personal computers, the Lab provided a resource for ongoing efforts to educate the Commission about new media and to search for fraud and deception in a secure environment. It provided the necessary equipment and software to capture websites and preserve them as evidence for presentation in court.

The Lab also provided the latest tools for FTC staff to track how technology is changing the way commercial information is transmitted to consumers. Unlike advertising in traditional media, advertising in electronic media may vary in content and appearance depending on the appliance and Web browser used by the consumer. Commission staff could analyze these developments as they attempted to ensure that traditional consumer protection principles were applied in this ever-changing medium.