CSGO Lotto owners settled the FTC's first influencer enforcement

CSGO Lotto was an online gambling service where Counter-Strike: Global Offensive players wagered virtual items, or 'skins'. Its owners were the YouTube stars Trevor 'TmarTn' Martin and Thomas 'Syndicate' Cassell — but their millions of followers were not told that. From late 2015, the pair posted videos and tweets promoting the site as enthusiastic players, hiding that they jointly owned the company.

In September 2017, the Federal Trade Commission announced a settlement with Martin, Cassell and CSGOLotto Inc. — the agency's first-ever enforcement action against individual social media influencers. The FTC alleged the pair deceptively endorsed their own site without disclosing ownership, and paid other well-known influencers between $2,500 and $55,000 to promote it without requiring disclosure — and that paid promoters were barred from saying anything negative. Cassell's promotional videos alone had been viewed more than 5.7 million times.

Under the settlement, the two must clearly disclose any material connection when endorsing products, and may not misrepresent endorsers as independent users; each violation can draw a civil penalty of up to $40,654. The FTC also sent warning letters to 21 influencers. The action put every creator on notice: undisclosed paid promotion is deceptive advertising, whether the money comes from a brand or from yourself.