Amazon has agreed to pay a massive $2.5 billion US ($3.48 billion CAD) after U.S. regulators accused the company of tricking people into signing up for Prime and then making it a nightmare to cancel.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) says Amazon misled millions of customers with confusing sign-up screens and “dark patterns” that pushed people toward Prime without their consent. Once enrolled, canceling Prime was made deliberately complicated, involving multiple screens and unclear options designed to frustrate users.

The settlement includes a $1 billion US fine, the largest ever tied to an FTC rule violation, along with $1.5 billion US in refunds to around 35 million customers. Internal Amazon documents revealed during the case showed that employees themselves knew the tactics were shad

See Full Page