Perfection Fresh Australia has admitted to cartel conduct by fixing the prices of broccoli, cauliflower and iceberg lettuce sold to Aldi stores in New South Wales. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission says the company admitted the conduct on 11 occasions between 2019 and 2020. The company has agreed to pay a $12 million penalty, subject to Federal Court approval at a later date. Court action against three other suppliers and three individuals is continuing. A company spokesperson said it took full responsibility and has strengthened its compliance systems.
A New Mexico judge has ordered Meta to pay a $25 billion fine for violating consumer protection laws linked to the Cambridge Analytica scandal. The state had alleged the company misled users about how it handled their data. Meta says the ruling makes it nearly impossible to do business in the state and plans to appeal. Experts say the fine would give Meta only a mild sting, given the company is worth around $1.7 trillion. Legal pressure may grow as evidence becomes public and litigation shifts towards artificial intelligence.
A United States federal judge has ordered Meta to pay New Mexico $25 billion. A jury found the company guilty of nearly 44 million violations of state consumer protection laws. The penalty followed New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez declining to join an $18 billion multistate settlement Meta reached with other states earlier this year. Judge Francis J. Mathew said Meta repeatedly and wilfully misled users about data control, misuse and misinformation since 2010. Meta plans to appeal, arguing the penalty is unconstitutional.
AU Now app
Your suburb’s news, alerts and Shorts — in one app
Alerts, Shorts and your saved stories — free on Google Play.
A judge has ordered Meta to pay the US state of New Mexico $US25 billion after a jury found the company deceived users about privacy on Facebook. The judge said Facebook promised users they controlled their data, and that this was false. The jury found Meta liable for more than 43 million violations of state consumer protection laws. The case followed the harvesting of Facebook data by Cambridge Analytica during the 2016 election season. Meta says it will appeal, arguing the ruling would make it all but impossible to do business in the state.
Suncorp Bank customers face potential mortgage repayment increases following ANZ's acquisition. The bank notified borrowers that minimum repayments may rise by hundreds of dollars due to policy differences between the institutions. ANZ's approach to calculating repayments differs from Suncorp's, potentially impacting customers who have made advance payments. Suncorp CEO Malcolm Stedman assured most customers will see no change, but those with extra repayments could face higher minimum payments if no action is taken. Consumer advocates argue for stronger protections in the mortgage market to prevent such surprises.
The consumer watchdog is examining how artificial intelligence may be used to set different prices for different shoppers. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission told a parliamentary inquiry that personalised pricing becomes harmful when it is highly granular and targets vulnerable customers. The watchdog said giving different prices to groups is not currently against Australian consumer law. It also warned about shopping bots that may favour certain brands, and about AI tools helping scammers operate at scale. The commission is also taking Microsoft to court over alleged misleading pricing linked to its Copilot AI assistant.
New laws passed by Parliament will allow the Australian Communications and Media Authority to act faster against telecommunications providers that breach industry rules. Penalties have increased about 40 times, to more than $10 million in some cases, and can be based on the benefit gained from a breach or a provider's turnover. The law also creates a registration scheme for carriage service providers, allowing the regulator to stop providers it considers unsafe from operating. Minister for Communications Anika Wells said the changes will better protect customers, particularly those facing financial hardship or domestic, family and sexual violence.
Telecommunications companies face fines of more than $10 million for breaching industry codes, up from $250,000, under new federal laws. The changes to the Telecommunications Act also let the Australian Communications and Media Authority act swiftly against telcos found to have done the wrong thing. Fines will be based on the benefit gained from a breach or the offending telco's turnover. Communications Minister Anika Wells said the law sets clear rules for how telcos must support customers facing financial hardship or domestic, family and sexual violence.
Amazon Australia has removed a $48 LED ceiling light from sale after an industry body warned it about the product months earlier. Lighting Council Australia tested the light after buying it and found it kept burning after a glow-wire test and had exposed live wires. The council found seven in 10 of more than 130 lights tested failed safety standards, with nine in 10 Amazon products failing at least one check. Consumer group CHOICE says the sale of unsafe products is systemic, and the competition regulator says current laws generally do not cover online marketplaces.
Amazon is set to tell a parliamentary committee that Australia must act quickly to build home-grown artificial intelligence skills. The company suggested an AI stream in skilled visa pathways and tech literacy lessons from kindergarten. Its own analysis found fewer than one in five employers felt their workforces were ready to adopt AI. The Australian Strategic Policy Institute warned that AI gives individuals cyber-attack powers once held only by nations. The consumer watchdog will call for more protection against AI-driven surveillance pricing.
The Federal Trade Commission is reportedly investigating Anthropic and OpenAI over alleged consumer harms, according to an insider who spoke to Axios. The regulator has sent civil investigative demands seeking documents on recent safety incidents, internal security measures and marketing materials. The requests reportedly run to more than 50 pages. Any evidence gathered could support litigation if the regulator decides to sue. OpenAI already faces lawsuits alleging its chatbot caused harm, and eight states have also sued the company over alleged harms to children and users.
From 2027, New South Wales will require real estate agents to disclose when rental advertisement images have been digitally altered or generated using AI, where they could mislead prospective tenants. Agents are already using AI to brighten rooms, add furniture and, in some cases, create features that do not exist. The author argues that a generic label tells buyers something has changed but not what, and that disclosure alone does not make a misleading image acceptable. Victoria, Queensland and Tasmania rely on rules against misleading property advertising regardless of how images were made.
Customers of Lux Solar say they paid deposits for home battery systems that have still not been installed, some more than a year later. The company was removed from an industry consumer code in June over major failures, including continuing to take payments without showing it could deliver. Queensland's Office of Fair Trading confirmed it is investigating the firm. Lux Solar has previously been fined in Western Australia and New South Wales. The company did not respond to written questions from the ABC.
Complaints about phone and internet providers fell 6.5 per cent in 2025-26 to 53,834, according to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman. Claims for compensation rose sharply, with financial loss claims up 60.7 per cent. Mobile phone problems made up 46.2 per cent of complaints. The Ombudsman is calling for minimum reliability standards and baseline compensation. It also wants powers to handle complaints about digital platforms, where more than 1100 people sought help, a 70 per cent rise.
Used car dealership chain OzCar has collapsed into voluntary administration, closing four NSW dealerships and leaving 90 workers without jobs. The closures affect sites in Penrith, Cardiff and Gosford, along with the company's headquarters in Lansvale. The remaining 12 franchise dealerships in NSW, Queensland and Victoria will keep operating. The collapse follows a $50,000 fine from NSW Fair Trading, which also fined three directors $11,000 each over unfair sales practices. The regulator alleged OzCar pressured customers into contracts and sold poor-quality vehicles.
AU Now app
Your suburb’s news, alerts and Shorts — in one app
Alerts, Shorts and your saved stories — free on Google Play.
Brisbane resident Harry Harding and his housemate paid for a Carnival cruise booked through an overseas travel agent after finding a deal advertised on RedNote. About six days before departure, the booking disappeared and the agent largely stopped responding. Carnival told Harding it could not discuss the booking, because it had been paid for with another person's card. Another Brisbane passenger, Lucy Liu, reported that her discounted cruise was also cancelled before departure. Carnival urged travellers to book only directly or through accredited agents. Harding says the agent later refunded them after public pressure.
Insurer Hollard has been fined $2 million by the Federal Court for taking too long to process a home insurance claim. A house in regional Victoria became uninhabitable after a storm damaged its roof in October 2021. The corporate watchdog ASIC sued Hollard, alleging it breached its duty of utmost good faith. The court found delays in assessing damage, slow temporary accommodation and poor communication with the couple. Hollard has also been ordered to pay ASIC's legal costs, and the penalty goes to the Commonwealth of Australia.
