Tag: FTC
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BULLETIN: FTC Says Rent-To-Own Companies Used Software To Spy On Customers In Their Own Homes And At WiFi Spots; Agency’s Complaints Introduce Specter of Private Big Brother
BULLETIN: In announcing deeply troubling allegations today, the FTC said that seven rent-to-own companies and a software firm spied on customers who leased computers. The customers were spied on in their own homes and at WiFi spots, the FTC alleged. Although the companies agreed to settle the FTC’s charges, the allegations alone introduce the specter…
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BULLETIN: SEC Suspends Trading In 379 Penny Stocks; Initiative Dubbed ‘Operation Shell-Expel’ Leads To Unprecedented Number Of Shutdowns
BULLETIN: In an unprecedented move, the SEC today announced that it had suspended trading in 379 penny stocks, saying the companies were delinquent in filings and ripe for hijacking and scams involving reverse mergers and pump-and-dump schemes. “The trading suspension marks the most companies ever suspended in a single day by the agency as it…
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On Zeek Rewards, Cheerleaders, Currency And Exclamation Points
Owing to time constraints, the PP Blog hasn’t written much about Zeek Rewards, an MLM “program” married to a penny-auction site known as “Zeekler.” For simplicity, we’ll refer to both arms as “Zeek.” The structure of Zeek and precisely what it does are just plain baffling. Even so, it appears to have a legion of…
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BULLETIN: Now, A Web-Based ‘Auto Loan Modification’ Scam, FTC Alleges; California Firms Accused Of Targeting Car Borrowers Facing Repossession And Putting Them Deeper In The Hole
BULLETIN: The Federal Trade Commission has gone to federal court in the Eastern District of California, alleging that several individuals and companies were running separate, web-based scams in which borrowers were told they could avoid vehicle repossessions by paying upfront fees to the accused scammers and not making payments on their car loans. The scams…
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ANNOUNCEMENT/ALERT: While Conducting Research On Major FTC Case That Included Elements Of Alleged Web Harassment, PP Blog’s Browser Was Subjected To ‘Mass Injection’ Attack
ANNOUNCEMENT/ALERT: UPDATED 6:10 P.M. EDT (U.S.A.) The PP Blog is publishing this post in an abundance of caution. Based on a security alert the Blog received this afternoon, it may be best to steer clear of the website circled in the graphic above and described below. On Jan. 4, 2012, the Blog reported that the…
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BULLETIN: KABOOM! FTC Gains Asset Freezes Against Mortgage-Relief Scammers Trading On Image Of President Obama And Masquerading As ‘Law Firm,’ Agency Says
BULLETIN: A federal judge in the Central District of California has approved asset freezes and appointed a receiver in a case in which the FTC alleged several companies and a scammer-in-chief were running two mortgage-relief fraud schemes. The scam, the FTC said, traded on an image of President Obama and used at least three .org…
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BULLETIN: BurnLounge MLM Operators, Top Promoters Ordered To Pay Nearly $17 Million In FTC Pyramid-Scheme Case
BULLETIN: A federal judge in California has ordered the operators and top promoters of the BurnLounge MLM scam to pay nearly $17 million. The FTC brought the BurnLounge pyramid-scheme case in 2007, saying the program “primarily provided payments to participants for recruiting of new participants, not on the retail sale of products or services.” In…
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URGENT >> BULLETIN >> MOVING: FTC Gains Spectacular Judgment Of $359 Million In Alleged Cross-Border Fraud Involving Continuity Billing; Case Features Elements Similar To Allegations Against Jeremy Johnson
URGENT >> BULLETIN >> MOVING: In a case that featured elements similar to the allegations against U.S.-based Internet Marketer Jeremy Johnson, the FTC has gained a $359 million consent judgment against alleged Canadian scammer Jesse Willms and other defendants. The agency sued Willms in May 2011, about six months after it sued Johnson. Wiilms now…