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When spring finally comes, you may want to spruce up your outdoor space with new furniture, fences or even a deck. And chances are you’ll rely on advertising for solid information about the products you’re going to buy.

The Federal Trade Commission recently settled allegations that N.E.W. Plastics Corp. made deceptive environmental benefit claims for its plastic lumber products. According to the FTC, N.E.W. Plastics exaggerated how much recycled plastic it used in some products, and falsely claimed all its products could be recycled.

Thanks to a request by the Federal Trade Commission, a federal court has ordered a light bulb company to ante up $21 million for refunds to consumers who bought their LED bulbs. At issue were misleading and exaggerated claims by a company called Lights of America Inc.

You’ve heard it a million times: Don’t click on links in an email unless you know who sent it and what it is.

But sometimes the link in an email is just so darned convenient. For example, you ship a package to a friend, and then you get an email with a link to track the delivery. It’s safe to click that link, right?

Maybe not.

People share information about themselves every day by using store loyalty cards, internet search engines, social networking sites, and online coupons. Many people — like the character in this video — decide that the benefits of these services are worth sharing some personal information with businesses, ad networks, and others.

But what if you shared information simply by walking through your local mall with your phone? What if businesses used your phone’s Wi-Fi signal to track your movements through their stores? And what if they did it without your knowledge or okay?  The FTC plans to raise those questions in a seminar on Mobile Device Tracking on February 19, 2014. It’s the first event of our Spring Privacy Series.