It was revealed in a Friday announcement by the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) that mobile device maker HTC has agreed to settle a complaint filed by the commission over the company's alleged failure to take "reasonable steps" for fixing a security flaw in the software that runs on its smartphones and tablets.

In its complaint against HTC, the FTC had alleged that the company had failed to provide adequate security training to its engineering staff, and had also not used "well-known and commonly accepted secure coding practices."

With HTC having been accused of leaving sensitive user data vulnerable to malicious programs, because of inadequately securing its smartphones and tablets, the FTC said in its settlement-related announcement that, with a settlement having been worked out, the company has already commenced the roll out of the fixes for security flaws to its devices in the US.

According to the FTC, the settlement requires HTC to not only fix the handsets which were left vulnerable to the security risks, but also to come up with an effective security program which will address future security issues on its devices. In addition, the settlement also prohibits HTC from false or misleading statements about its security.

Meanwhile, without admitting or denying any wrongdoing as part of the settlement, HTC said in a statement: "Privacy and security are important, and we are committed to improving practices that help safeguard our customers' devices and data."