On July 29, 2026, the Federal Trade Commission, together with the Attorneys General of California and Utah, filed suit against Hims & Hers in the United States District Court for…
On July 29, 2026, the Federal Trade Commission, together with the Attorneys General of California and Utah, filed suit against Hims & Hers in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. The complaint alleges that the telehealth provider deployed tracking pixels from Meta, Snap, Microsoft, Pinterest, Reddit, and X in a manner that disclosed users' sensitive health information to third parties, notwithstanding company representations that its service was private and secure. The joint action underscores an increasingly coordinated federal-state approach to consumer health data privacy and signals heightened enforcement risk for any business that handles such information or relies on third-party tracking technologies.
The regulators' theory extends beyond privacy. According to the complaint, Hims & Hers also engaged in deceptive billing and cancellation practices, including locking consumers into prescription plans before any provider consultation had occurred and processing refill charges earlier than customers would reasonably expect. These allegations reinforce the FTC's and state regulators' sustained focus on so-called negative option marketing and subscription-trap conduct, particularly where enrollment, renewal, and cancellation friction combine with sensitive product categories such as prescription medications.
For companies that collect or infer consumer health data, or that deploy online tracking technologies more broadly, the action is a timely prompt to reassess compliance postures. Businesses should audit privacy disclosures and consent mechanisms to confirm that representations regarding data handling accurately reflect actual practices, including vendor pixel deployments and downstream data-sharing configurations. A close review of contracts and technical settings with advertising and analytics partners is warranted, particularly where pixels may transmit URLs, form fields, or event data that could reveal health conditions or treatment interests.
Subscription-based businesses should likewise revisit enrollment, billing, and cancellation flows to ensure clear and conspicuous disclosure of material terms, informed consent before charges, and straightforward cancellation. Timing of recurring or refill charges should align with reasonable consumer expectations. Together, these measures can help mitigate exposure under Section 5 of the FTC Act and state unfair and deceptive acts and practices statutes.
This alert is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Clients facing specific facts or regulatory inquiries should seek tailored counsel.