Wonder what “blatantly illegal conduct” looks like? Court opinion about how a defendant harmed small businesses offers insights lfair February 15, 2024 | 11:48AM Wonder what “blatantly illegal conduct” looks like? Court opinion about how a defendant harmed small businesses offers insights By Lesley Fair Small businesses are the engines that drive the American economy and capital is the fuel that propels them forward. So when fast-talking operators target small businesses with deceptive or unfair tactics, the FTC takes action. Following a January 2024 jury trial, a federal court entered a ju ..read more

From the FTC: Another 10 spine-tingling Halloween tales of deception lfair October 30, 2023 | 12:31PM From the FTC: Another 10 spine-tingling Halloween tales of deception By Lesley Fair We’re ba-aack. Last year we offered our Top 10 “Nightmare on Main Street” consumer protection horror movies. Just in time for Halloween, the FTC Multiplex has reopened with ten more scary screens of deceptive practices. Polter-priced. Ask consumers what scares them and they’re likely to answer zombie invasions and junk fees – not necessarily in that order. People are fed up with hidden and bogus charges that ..read more

FTC settlement suggests Lurn didn’t learn from Penalty Offense Notice about money-making claims lfair September 27, 2023 | 2:15AM FTC settlement suggests Lurn didn’t learn from Penalty Offense Notice about money-making claims By Lesley Fair The people behind online business coaching outfit Lurn promised that consumers could become “Stay-At-Home Millionaires.” But according to the FTC, Lurn, Inc., CEO Anik Singal, Tyrone Cohen, and David Kettner are now Stay-At-Home Defendants in an FTC law enforcement action challenging their deceptive money-making representations. What’s more, the complain ..read more

File online comments about FTC’s proposal to ban junk fees lfair November 13, 2023 | 11:33AM File online comments about FTC’s proposal to ban junk fees By Lesley Fair Junk fees – those hidden and bogus charges that have found their way into a wide variety of transactions – are on consumers’ minds. Based on what they’ve told us, junk fees are on their last nerve, too. After receiving more than 12,000 comments about how those fees impact consumer spending and affect honest businesses, the FTC announced on October 11, 2023, a proposed Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees. As we mentioned then, we ..read more

Job scammers go even lower in the way they “hire” lfair August 3, 2023 | 1:23AM Job scammers go even lower in the way they “hire” By Lesley Fair You’ve heard about scammers impersonating government agencies, global retailers, and even members of your family. The latest variation on the scheme targets business professionals, luring them in with what appear to be attractive job offers from well-known companies. You’ll be amazed at how low these bottom-feeding fraudsters will go to make those bogus “dream jobs” seem legit. Will you and your personnel pros lend a hand by warning others about th ..read more

Set phasers to false: FTC challenges crypto company Voyager’s bogus “FDIC insured” claim lfair October 11, 2023 | 9:44PM Set phasers to false: FTC challenges crypto company Voyager’s bogus “FDIC insured” claim By Lesley Fair In the TV show Star Trek: Voyager, Captain Janeway and crew headed to Delta Quadrant to take on wrongdoers that injured people by wielding a pernicious energy wave. In a twist on the story, the FTC has announced a proposed settlement with a cryptocurrency outfit called Voyager that injured people by wielding false claims that their accounts were “FDIC insured.” The ..read more

Zero cheers for Sollers College’s alleged deceptive practices lfair October 18, 2023 | 10:22AM Zero cheers for Sollers College’s alleged deceptive practices By Lesley Fair Gimme an F! Gimme an A! Gimme an L! Gimme an S! Gimme an E! What’s that spell? “False,” of course, which – along with deceptive and unsubstantiated – is how the FTC describes claims made by Sollers Education, also doing business as Sollers College. The complaint alleges the defendants lured prospective students in with inflated job placement rates and misleading representations about employment partnerships with big ..read more

Eviction fiction? $15 million FTC-CFPB settlement with Trans Union and tenant screening subsidiary underscores importance of FCRA’s “maximum possible accuracy” requirement lfair October 11, 2023 | 3:05PM Eviction fiction? $15 million FTC-CFPB settlement with Trans Union and tenant screening subsidiary underscores importance of FCRA’s “maximum possible accuracy” requirement By Lesley Fair Section 607(b) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act requires consumer reporting agencies to follow reasonable procedures to assure maximum possible accuracy of consumer report information concerning the person ..read more

FTC and endorsements: Final revised guides, a proposed new rule, and an updated staff publication lfair June 30, 2023 | 10:17AM FTC and endorsements: Final revised guides, a proposed new rule, and an updated staff publication By Lesley Fair Companies that use deceptive endorsements and reviews inflict an injurious double whammy. They harm consumers with misleading tactics that subvert their choices at check-out. And they take business away from honest competitors that work hard to comply with the law. For decades, the FTC has challenged those illegal practices and will continue that fight ..read more

Advertising without proper proof can prove costly under new Notice of Penalty Offenses lfair April 13, 2023 | 2:58AM Advertising without proper proof can prove costly under new Notice of Penalty Offenses By Lesley Fair To borrow a phrase the Supreme Court coined in a different context, if there is a “fixed star” in the consumer protection constellation, it’s the advertising substantiation doctrine. In place for decades and explained in a 1984 Policy Statement, the underlying legal requirement is clear: companies must have a reasonable basis to support their advertising claims before those c ..read more