Be careful when promoting free CPA offers

Well you were wrong on that one - affiliates have been named in the lawsuits by Google, Oprah (Harpo) and the AG of Illinois. There is nothing to suggest they will not be named in future actions by the FTC or AG's. Some of the worst examples of deceptive advertising come from affiliates (flogs,fake news sites, etc) albeit with the 'consent' of the merchant and/or network. Obviously such deceptive practices are going to come up on the radar of the FTC and Attorney Generals; so I am not sure why you seemed to think that affiliates would somehow be immune from legal action!?

But don't take my word for it - here is some advice from a lawyer:

"internet lawyers should advise advertiser clients that flogs may subject them to both civil and/or criminal liability under the federal advertising laws and FTC Rules, including the recently enacted Part 255 Guidelines. While truthful advertising, legitimate testimonials, and proper disclosure of material connections and other information, for example, can help to reduce the likelihood of liability for false advertising, understanding the intricacies of the law as well as the boundaries is now more critical than ever. Otherwise, it is very likely that advertisers may be subject to increased lawsuits as a result of flogs, deceptive advertisements, and false advertisements on the Internet."

"Ultimately, improper endorsements, whether from a celebrity or otherwise, unsubstantiated product claims, and other untruthful statements may lead to significant legal and financial exposure. "

False Advertisements and Flogs Ripe For Internet Lawyer Attention

Very good to know. I have seen a ton of these products

Amen to that. If you're pitching a $1 trial probiotic that rebills @ $67/month, when you know you can pick up something similar at the local food co-op for $8, that's a scam that's not going to last.
And forget about the FTC for a second, think about Visa's role in this. People getting rebilled unfairly hurts the perception of their product as it makes people hesitant to use their credit cards online. Visa and Mastercard have a huge incentive in policing the shadier companies operating continuity programs.

I believe there is some carry over liability to the affiliate, but its such a gray area. As was said above, just use your head.

If you are promoting an offer, you should be reasonably familiar with the offer. Check out the landing page, check out where the terms are...if you can't find them without squinting, not a good sign.

For some of the bigger advertisers, you can do searches online to see how many (if any) customer complaints there are.

The issue, is not the price of the item, its how deceptive the offer is. If the terms are almost impossible to find, thats deceptive. If its impossible to cancel your trial, thats deceptive.

Your gut feeling on an offer should be used in addition to any diligence you pursue

They are getting tougher but there is still a goldmine to make. Lots of people are still promoting trial offers effectively and making a boatload both whitehat and bluefart.

It will get harder but like most things in this industry...the creative thinkers will always find a way to rake in crazy cash.

Nonsense. It's called due diligence. If you are promoting something you should be aware of what you are promoting. You are responsible for what you market and it only takes 10 or 15 minutes to do some basic research. If you are going into business/partnership with someone (which is what affiliate marketing is a basic version of) then you have responsibilities too.
Just saying you "assumed" the network had done the due diligence or you "deemed an offer legitimate and trustworthy" (on what basis if you did no research?) is not a defence. We all know cpa networks accept offers from some shady characters - it seems you want all the monetary benefits of running a business without any of the responsibilities! Yes the cpa networks have a responsibility but you do too.

This is what you mainly have to worry about...how you are representing the offer. Are you as the marketer being deceptive before the visitor even gets to the offer page.

With that said, the extension of liability from affiliate, through CPA network to advertiser is still a very gray area.

Its something you always need to keep in mind and its why I suggest setting up some kind of limited liability corp if you are doing any significant numbers. And always use your gut feeling. If an offer seems sketchy, just dont advertise it and save yourself the sleepless nights!