Oracle has agreed to settle charges made by the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) that it cheated consumers about Java software updates.
The settlement requires Oracle to give Java users the tools and data they require to protect their computers.
The FTC said the company failed to notify customers when it released security updates for over 850 million US computers with Java Standard Edition.
Oracle has been accused of promising consumers that its updates would make the software safe and secure.
The updates have however reported to remove some of the problematic software but left behind older versions of Java which were vulnerable to being hacked.
In its complaint, the FTC alleged that Oracle was aware of the insufficiency of its update process.
The agency cited internal company documents which said the Java update mechanism is not aggressive enough or simply not working.
The proposed consent order requires Oracle to notify consumers during the update process if outdated versions are still on their computer, as well as list the risks it poses.
The company also has to post on social media and its website on the settlement and how consumers can remove old software versions.
