UK regulators plan to clamp down on celebrities who endorse products on Twitter without disclosing that they are being paid to do so.
The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has warned that the “deceptive” advertising practice of backhanded Twitter endorsements needs to stop, the BBC reported.
UK celebrities including actress Liz Hurley, musician Lily Allen, and singer-songwriter Peter Andre all have commercial relationships with brands they have tweeted about in the past.
But representatives for the personalities would not admit to their clients being paid to tweet The Australian said.
US trade officials already insist that celebrities with Twitter endorsement deals add a disclosure such as “ad” or “spon” to indicate their relationship, but the UK's laws on social media advertising are currently more ambiguous.