Today the FTC lodged a contempt charge against scammy no-credit-needed electronics seller BlueHippo, saying that the company hasn’t honored its prior agreement to stop scamming customers. BlueHippo agreed to pay back $3.5 million nearly two years ago to reimburse customers who never received the computers they pre-paid for, but the FTC says since then the company has sucked another $15 million out of customers.
ftc
Sweepstake Scammers Impersonate FTC
By 11.4.09
Fraudsters frequently pretend to be from official or official-sounding organizations and companies to perpetuate their scams, but one group has kicked the chutzpah level up to a whole new level.
40 States Ask FTC To Crack Down On Debt Relief Companies
By 10.28.09
Attorneys general in 40 states just asked the FTC to step up the fight against debt relief companies that mislead and overcharge consumers, like Credit Solutions of America (CSA), reports Consumer Affairs.
MoneyGram Agrees To Pay $18 Million Back To Fraud Victims
By 10.20.09
MoneyGram International announced today that it would pay $18 million to the FTC to settle charges it allowed wire fraud to happen between 2004 and 2008. MoneyGram’s press release notes that they disagree with the FTC’s view of the matter, but $18 million is a hell of a lot of money to pay if you don’t think you were in the wrong. The press release from the FTC, on the other hand, provides plenty of detail illustrating MoneyGram’s negligence, as well as the criminal behavior of some of its employees who were in on the frauds.
FTC Wants Your Input On How To Improve AnnualCreditReport.com
By 10.12.09
The problem with annualcreditreport.com—other than its name—is that getting your reports from the site is a little like dealing with GoDaddy: you have to deal with upsells and side-sells at every step. You can indeed get your free credit reports from the site, but you’ll also have to keep turning down other offers from the three participating bureaus. Hell, there are even ads (sorry, “sponsor” links) on the home page, the one place where you’d hope for the least consumer confusion.
Diet Ads No Longer Able To Use "Results Not Typical" To Get Away With BS-ing You
By 10.6.09
We were taking a look at the new FTC guidelines governing endorsements and testimonials when we noticed something interesting. Advertisers will no longer be able to get away with showing only amazing results from consumer testimonials and presenting them as typical. Under the old rule, they could exclusively show spectacular results if they added the phrase “results not typical.” This is no longer the case, according to the FTC. Now, if they use such testimonials, they will also have to disclose the results that consumers can reasonably expect.
FTC Says Bloggers Can't Hide Endorsement Deals
By 10.5.09
For the first time since 1980, the FTC has updated its rules about endorsements and testimonials, and they’ve added blogging to the books. Now bloggers who don’t disclose that they’ve been somehow compensated—either with cash or with free services or products—can be fined up to $11,000.
Robocalls Banned!
By 8.28.09
Today the FTC banned pretty much all telemarketing-based robocalls starting Tuesday, September 1st, 2009. At that point, “violators will face penalties up to $16,000 per call,” notes the Los Angeles Times.
How Can I Tell When A Product Is Being Greenwashed?
By 8.27.09
Sure, some people want to buy environmentally friendly products, and that’s great. The problem is that marketers understand these impulses well, and want to take advantage of them without always offering products that live up to the claims. What to do? ShopSmart has some answers.
FTC Launches First Wave Of Smackdown On Scammy Loan Consultants
By 7.16.09
Yesterday, as part of “Operation Loan Lies,” the FTC and 19 states filed 189 lawsuits, cease-and-desist orders, and other legal actions to shut down loan modification consultants who prey on desperate homeowners. The scammers offer to help solve foreclosure problems for a hefty fee; instead, they fail to modify the loan at all while collecting payments for their services, sometimes even encouraging homeowners to stop communicating with their lenders completely or to send payments to the consultants instead of the bank.
$500,000 In Consumer Refunds From Rite Aid After False Cold Remedy Advertising Suit
By 7.14.09
Remember the class-action lawsuit against the makers of cold-and-flu-preventing magic potion Airborne? Airborne claimed that it could prevent or shorten colds and flus, without any actual scientific evidence to back those claims up.
Is The NRA Trying To Trick Its Members Into Paying For This DVD?
By 7.7.09
Arthur, a member of the NRA, received a promotional DVD out of the blue about six months ago. As we’ve discussed before and as Arthur points out, if you’re sent something that you never ordered, you don’t have to pay for it, return it, or acknowledge it. The NRA said as much in their letter to Arthur.
Marketers Announce They Will Bring More Transparency To Personal Data Collection By 2010
By 7.3.09
Several major advertising trade groups announced yesterday that starting in 2010, they will implement a new set of self-imposed guidelines on how they collect and use your personal info, in an attempt to prevent the government from handing down federal regulations.
FTC Brings The Thunder Down On Shysters
By 7.2.09
The Federal Trade Commission and Justice Department are going all Batman on scam artists who bilk unemployed people by offering phone jobs and money-making schemes with Operation Short Change, a crackdown that involves dozens of cases in at least 13 states, USA Today reports:.
New Law Would Let FTC Stop ISPs From Capping Broadband Usage
By 6.19.09
We’ve looked at Time Warner Cable’s unnecessary, overly greedy attempts to slap meters on broadband usage before, and it’s clear to everyone but TWC that metering Internet is bad policy, but now Congressman Eric Massa (D-NY) is setting out to make the practice illegal.
Meet The People Behind The Car Warranty Robocallers
By 6.15.09
We know how much you just loooove those car warranty robocallers, so we couldn’t pass up an opportunity to introduce you to the folks the FTC says is behind the robot army.
FTC Wants Bloggers To Reveal When They're Being Compensated To Promote A Product
By 6.11.09
You know what’s worse than not having a big bag of M&Ms on your desk to enjoy while you work? Having to read a blogvertisement disguised as editorial content! Hold on, I have to eat some more M&Ms. Good gravy these are delicious. Did you know M&M’s cure malaria? It’s true! Anyway, the FTC says bloggers should reveal when they’re being compensated in some way to promote a product, and I agree.
