As you have likely heard by now Adobe, the software company, is facing yet another scandal.

A simple search for “Adobe” on Google or YouTube will bring about a long list of negative articles and videos showcasing the many failures of this firm.

The FTC, an American regulatory organization, has charged Adobe with deceiving consumers about early termination fees and inhibited cancelation of services.

They are now saying that company executives hid those fees behind multiple layers in contracts, in small print, and charged as much as half a years worth of subscription charges  as an early cancelation fee.

AI is the new camera,

this headline was another recent blunder by Adobe staff.

It was such an unfortunate expression considering the vast majority of Adobe users are photographers and filmmakers whose livelihoods  are being threatened by the rise of generative AI.

Changes in the terms of service for the software have suggested that Adobe intends to use the personal photos and other media that users have stored on their cloud accounts to train its new Firefly AI software.

This betrayal and theft of data has enlarged the outcry by customers and pundits of the industry.

Before that, in 2013, Adobe was hacked and at least 38 million creditcard numbers were released. It was found during the investigation that Adobe had used the same encryption password for all of the accounts.

Then there were the kickbacks to federal employees, 3 million (USD) to employees to get them to choose Adobe software for their computer systems.

The more recent scandals have shaken the confidence of common users of the software and has led to a mass drive to cancel and calls for a boycott.

Despite the online shame, Adobe’s stock price has not seen great losses and shareholders continue support the embattled company. Since it’s early IPO at 17 cents (USD) to today’s 533 dollars per share, investors remain confident.

It likely will not end with this action by the FTC. Consumer led lawsuits are on the way. Although those rarely lead to a beneficial return for affected users.

If you have suffered a loss or feel you have cheated or defrauded by Adobe your best bet in my opinion would be to send a demand letter.

You can find guides for demand letters on YouTube. Demand letters are often used to extract funds from nefarious robo-callers.

There are sure to be more scandals on the horizon unless the administration of the firm see’s a restructuring or a change of the guard.

As time will tell, bad actors make for bad leaders.

---

Do you use Adobe software? What do you think about this current scandal.

Do you plan on switching or sticking with Adobe? Drop me a comment.