Incidents gathered from public reporting around the world. Each one links to the articles it came from. None of it is a finding that anyone broke the law.
Reports people file about their own experience are not shown here and never will be without their agreement. Tell us what happened to you.
44 incidents closest to “Revinate Marketing” · matched on meaning · public reporting
The AI system generated and targeted scam advertisements to users, causing potential financial harm.
1 source article · read the reporting →
Meta makes $$$ from deepfake AI scams… then fails to assist victims Independent Australia
1 source article · read the reporting →
Mary Louis and Monica Douglas filed a class action lawsuit in 2022 alleging that SafeRent Solutions' SafeRent Score product discriminated against rental applicants in Massachusetts who held public housing vouchers, violating fair housing and consumer protection laws. SafeRent denied wrongdoing. The court approved a settlement in November 2024, and payments were distributed to eligible class members in 2025 and 2026.
5 source articles · read the reporting →
Meta harvested user photographs and created biometric faceprints to enable a smart-glasses system that could identify strangers in public without consent.
1 source article · read the reporting →
A group of hotel guests allege that Caesars Entertainment, Hard Rock, Borgata, and MGM conspired to fix room rates using Cendyn's Rainmaker algorithm. The algorithm allegedly recommended prices based on competitively-sensitive information shared among the casinos. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit revived the lawsuit, allowing the claims to proceed. The case is pending.
2 source articles · read the reporting →
In February 2024, Meta's automated ad platform Advantage Plus began malfunctioning, causing advertisers' costs per impression to skyrocket and blowing through daily budgets without delivering sales. Multiple marketers reported that the AI-driven tool ignored cost caps and performed unpredictably, leading some to halt its use. Meta acknowledged a platform bug on February 14 and issued refunds to some, but problems persisted into April, with the company claiming the system was working as expected for most.
1 source article · read the reporting →
Australian Tours and Cruises used AI to generate travel articles for its Tasmania Tours website. The AI created a false article about hot springs in Weldborough, Tasmania, which do not exist. Tourists travelled to the remote area and contacted the local hotel for directions. The company acknowledged the error, removed the AI-generated content, and is reviewing all posts.
1 source article · read the reporting →
noyb filed a complaint against Ryanair with the Spanish Data Protection Authority (AEPD) on 27 July 2023. A customer who booked a Ryanair flight through online travel agency eDreams was required to undergo a facial recognition verification process or go to the check-in counter more than two hours before departure. The customer was charged a small fee for the verification. Ryanair outsources the facial recognition to GetID. noyb alleges that the process violates GDPR because consent is not valid and the purpose is to discourage bookings through third-party agents.
10 source articles · read the reporting →
Alex Rivlin used Google to find a cruise company's customer service number while booking a shuttle for a European holiday. Google's AI surfaced a number that connected him to a knowledgeable-sounding representative, to whom he gave his credit card details. The number was a scam, representing a new AI-enabled twist on a long-running travel fraud. The article warns readers about this evolving threat.
1 source article · read the reporting →
Ernie Smith, writer of the Tedium newsletter, received a DMCA copyright notice from 'Commonwealth Legal', a firm that appears to be entirely fabricated using AI-generated images and text. The notice demanded he add a backlink to the gadget review site Tech4Gods for a keyfob photo legitimately sourced from Unsplash. The scheme is designed to generate fake SEO gains through backlinks, and Smith did not receive any follow-up after the stated deadline.
1 source article · read the reporting →
Meta removed 28 AI-generated Instagram profiles, including one of a 'proud Black queer momma of two', after widespread social media outrage. Critics accused the company of 'digital blackface as a service'. Meta stated it will continue to push AI-generated content on its platforms.
5 source articles · read the reporting →
A Utah woman says she paid more than $400 for Prozenith supplements after seeing videos that appeared to show Oprah Winfrey endorsing them, but the product was mostly turmeric. The endorsements are alleged to be AI deepfakes, and Winfrey has said she has nothing to do with weight-loss pills. KSL TV contacted Prozenith but received no response; the woman was told she could return the product.
2 source articles · read the reporting →
Lionsgate parted ways with marketing consultant Eddie Egan after it was discovered that the trailer for Francis Ford Coppola's 'Megalopolis' contained fabricated negative quotes from famous film critics. The quotes, which were generated using AI, falsely attributed criticism to critics like Pauline Kael. The studio pulled the trailer and apologised for the error, acknowledging a failure in their vetting process.
1 source article · read the reporting →
Booking.com continues to display misleading scarcity messages on its hotel booking platform, claiming that only one room is left when in fact many more are available. Which? Travel found that five out of ten such claims were inaccurate, with one example showing 34 rooms still available at a London hotel. The Competition and Markets Authority had given Booking.com until 1 September 2019 to change its practices, but the platform has not fully complied. Booking.com says it has worked to implement the commitments agreed with the CMA.
10 source articles · read the reporting →
RealPage's YieldStar algorithm uses private competitor data to recommend rent increases for apartment units. Landlords adopt up to 90% of the suggestions, leading to higher rents for tenants. Critics allege the software may facilitate indirect price-fixing in violation of antitrust law. The company denies wrongdoing and says the software helps eliminate collusion.
10 source articles · read the reporting →
Stefanina’s Wentzville, a restaurant in Missouri, posted a warning on social media asking customers not to use Google AI to find their specials. The AI-generated overviews were providing inaccurate information about deals and menu items that did not exist, leading to angry customers yelling at employees. The restaurant stated it could not honour the fake specials and directed customers to its Facebook page or website instead. Google did not respond to requests for comment.
1 source article · read the reporting →
A Python framework called AkiraBot has spammed over 80,000 websites since September 2024, targeting small and medium-sized businesses. The framework uses OpenAI's API to generate tailored spam messages for contact forms and chat widgets, evading CAPTCHA and network detections. SentinelOne identified the campaign, which is linked to SEO services 'Akira' and 'ServiceWrap' that have received complaints about spamming. The campaign is expected to continue evolving.
4 source articles · read the reporting →
Renée DiResta and Josh Goldstein of the Stanford Internet Observatory discovered over 1,000 LinkedIn accounts using AI-generated profile images to send sales pitches, bypassing LinkedIn's message limits. The fake accounts, which appeared to be real people, were used for corporate spamming rather than political disinformation. LinkedIn investigated and removed the violating accounts, stating that all profiles must represent real people.
4 source articles · read the reporting →
A class action lawsuit alleges that UDR, Inc. used RealPage's YieldStar algorithmic pricing software to set rental rates and occupancy levels for its San Diego properties, in violation of a local ordinance. The suit claims the software relied on nonpublic competitor data, contributing to inflated rents and making housing less affordable. The lawsuit, filed in July 2026, seeks to represent all affected tenants. UDR has previously acknowledged using YieldStar as one tool among others in its decision-making.
1 source article · read the reporting →
The Federal Court of Australia has dismissed Trivago's appeal against a ruling that the online travel company breached Australian consumer law. The court found that Trivago's website used an algorithm that gave prominence to hotels paying higher fees, so the most prominent offers were not always the cheapest for consumers. Consumers may therefore have paid more for rooms, and hotels lost direct bookings. The case returns to the Federal Court for consideration of penalties and other orders sought by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.
10 source articles · read the reporting →
Meta filed a legal action against Voyager Labs, alleging that the company used fake accounts and proprietary software to scrape user data from Facebook and Instagram. The scraping collected profile information, posts, friends lists, photos and comments. Meta disabled Voyager's accounts and sought a permanent injunction. The case was settled in December 2024, with Voyager agreeing to a permanent injunction and monetary payment.
10 source articles · read the reporting →
Portland Metro, an elected regional government in Oregon, ended its pilot project with movement data company Replica after a disagreement about data sharing. Portland Metro requested raw, disaggregated data, which Replica refused to provide, citing user privacy concerns. The partnership was terminated without payment.
10 source articles · read the reporting →
During the 2021 CCTV 3·15 Gala, it was revealed that Kohler, BMW, and MaxMara stores had installed facial recognition cameras from vendors such as Wandianzhang and Youluoke. These cameras captured customers' facial data without their knowledge or consent, and the data was used to track customer visits and inform sales strategies. The systems were deployed in thousands of stores across China, collecting over 100 million facial records. The companies did not inform customers or obtain consent, violating Chinese privacy laws.
10 source articles · read the reporting →
The US Federal Trade Commission has charged Sitejabber, an AI-enabled review platform, with deceiving consumers by publishing ratings and reviews submitted at the point of purchase, before buyers had received or experienced the products. The FTC alleges this artificially inflated average ratings and review counts for its clients. Sitejabber has agreed to a proposed consent order prohibiting it from making such misrepresentations in the future.
10 source articles · read the reporting →
