Scammers want to gain your trust. That’s why they keep pretending to work for government agencies, including the Federal Trade Commission. They might use the names of real FTC employees, but the stories they tell are a bunch of lies. Scammers have a long list of tall tales they tell. They might say you won …
As a result of a Federal Trade Commission lawsuit, Publishers Clearing House (PCH) has agreed to a proposed court order that will require it to pay $18.5 million to consumers who spent money and wasted their time, and make substantial changes to how it conducts business online. In a complaint against PCH, the FTC charges that the company …
Publishers Clearing House to Pay 18 Million Settlement for Misleading Consumers Read More »
The Federal Trade Commission is sending payments totaling more than $3.3 million to consumers who were harmed by Arete Financial Group, a student loan debt relief operation that tricked consumers into making illegal upfront payments by pretending to be affiliated with the U.S. Department of Education and falsely promising student loan debt relief. In reality, …
As a result of a lawsuit filed by the Federal Trade Commission and the Utah Division of Consumer Protection (DCP), the principals of a Utah-based real estate investment training company will pay $15 million and be banned from selling money-making opportunities under a court order they have agreed to. In addition, two of the primary real …
The “IRS” is on the phone. They’re saying you owe back taxes and need to pay immediately using cryptocurrency, or you’ll be arrested. You reach for your wallet but then think — WAIT — is this really the IRS? Or is it someone impersonating the IRS? According to the latest FTC data, impersonation scams were the top reported …
When it comes to telemarketing and extended auto warranties, what you’re promised on the phone…may not be what you get. Today, the FTC announced a settlement in its case against American Vehicle Protection — who it charged last year with running a telemarketing extended auto warranty scheme that cheated people out of more than $6 million. According to the …
Unwanted Calls Regarding Extended Auto Warranties? Read More »
Did you get a message from a friend on social media about a US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) grant opportunity? Or from someone saying they were an HHS employee? Well…they weren’t who they said they were. They were a scammer. This new twist on the age-old government grant scam often goes like this: someone reaches …
HHS didn’t reach out about free grant money. It’s a scam Read More »
Robocalls aren’t just a pain to get, they’re often pushing scams for things like fake auto warranties and debt relief. But scammy robocallers can’t do it alone. That’s why the FTC is taking action against Stratics Networks, a company that supplied the technology for telemarketers to make tens of millions of robocalls. But that’s not all — …
Most of the time, if you send money to a scammer with a wire transfer, you don’t get money back. But if you paid a scammer through MoneyGram and filed a refund claim with Gilardi & Co., watch your mailbox. Refund checks worth over $115 million are on the way to almost 39,000 people whose …
$115 million goes to MoneyGram users who paid scammers Read More »
The Federal Trade Commission is sending payments totaling more than $973,000 to 17,064 people who lost money after NutraClick LLC automatically enrolled them in unwanted membership programs for supplements and beauty products and misled consumers about when they had to cancel trial memberships to avoid monthly charges. The FTC will begin sending payments today by …
