FTC rules and guidelines to protect businesses and consumers and help maintain the credibility of the Internet as an advertising medium

Worst practices, software and gimmicks to avoid.

Details CommercialAlert's 2001 complaint of deceptive advertising in search results, and the FTC's ruling from 2002.

Reviews efforts to create standards for SEO industry and search engine marketing professionals.

Guide to avoiding being spammed and sending e-mail without spamming.

Documents how the FTC stopped a scheme to mislead consumers to porn sites via search engines. First time a government agency asserted regulatory authority over search engine listings.

The AMA's code of ethics for marketing on the Internet.

James Grimmelmann looks at the SearchKing vs. Google case. Includes links to earlier coverage and other related resources.

Originally created for an SEO contest, this FAQ answers a wide range of questions about search engine optimization with a focus on the ethics of various SEO techniques.

Effort to discourage companies from using across-the-screen 'rich media' advertisements.

Reviews major search engines to see if disclosures of paid content are clear and conspicuous.

Examines the issues surrounding SEO standards of conduct.

Talks about the difficulties in getting listed in a search engine and search engine ethics implications.

Offers a guide to search engine spam that allows search engine marketers to objectively evaluate actions to see whether those actions equate to spamming a search engine. Aims to provide the basis of an industry standard.

UK Act of Parliament that covers misleading advertising on the Internet.

Describes the action of cloaking and explains why you should not do it.