Subj : The FTC thinks Gmail is discriminating with partisan spam filters
To   : All
From : TechnologyDaily
Date : Mon Sep 01 2025 13:15:08

The FTC thinks Gmail is discriminating with partisan spam filters

Date:
Mon, 01 Sep 2025 12:02:00 +0000

Description:
The FTC has written a letter to Google CEO Sundar Pichai about alleged 
partisan spam filters.

FULL STORY
======================================================================The US 
FTC Chairman has written directly to Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai Andrew 
Ferguson accuses Gmail of having partisan spam filters Google said filters 
apply equally regardless of political ideology 

FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson has accused Google of partisan Gmail spam 
filtering which discriminates against certain political parties. 

In a letter to Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai dated August 28, 2025, Ferguson 
claimed Republican fundraising emails are being flagged as spam, while 
Democratic emails continue to be delivered successfully. 

Ferguson warned this could violate the FTC Acts prohibition of unfair or 
deceptive trade practices, suggesting that an investigation and possible 
enforcement could be on the cards. Gmail once again targeted over political 
email spam filtering 

My understanding from recent reporting is that Gmails spam filters routinely 
block messages from reaching consumers when those messages come from 
Republican senders but fail to block similar messages sent by Democrats, 
Ferguson summarizes. 

The complaint cites a New York Post article, which revealed that identical 
emails with WinRed (Republican) and ActBlue (Democratic) donation links were 
treated differently by Gmail. 

Google has already responded to these allegations previously, with company 
spokesperson Jos Castaeda said:  Email filter protections are in place to 
keep our users safe. 

The filters apply equally to all senders, regardless of political ideology. 

A consumers right to hear from candidates or parties, including solicitations 
for donations, is not diminished because that consumers political preferences 
may run counter to your companys or your employees political preferences, 
Ferguson wrote. 

This isnt the first time that Google has been accused of political bias in 
its Gmail spam filtering. In 2022, an RNC lawsuit claimed the company had 
unfairly filtered Republican emails, but the US District Court dismissed the 
case on the basis of a lack of evidence. RNC has since revived the case. 

 TechRadar Pro has asked Google for an updated commented in response to the 
FTCs August 2025 letter  any response will be posted here. You might also 
like Weve listed the best email providers around today Google hits back at 
claims Gmail inbox filters are biased Need to reach broader audiences? Try 
the best email marketing services



======================================================================
Link to news story:
https://www.techradar.com/pro/the-ftc-thinks-gmail-is-discriminating-with-part
isan-spam-filters


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