FTC

EDITOR’S NOTE: Our definition of “fraud creep” — and suggestions on the context in which the term should be applied — appears lower in this story. First, some background . . . Investigators now are counting victims of massive, web-based fraud schemes tens of thousands at a time. Such scams pose both budgetary and logistical […]

A company that called itself “Nonprofit Management LLC” and did business as “Tested Green” sold bogus environmental certifications and ramped up the deception by implying it was independently endorsed by the National Green Business Association and the National Association of Government Contractors, the FTC said. Not only were the environmental certifications bogus, the purported endorsements […]

A federal judge in California has halted a marketing scheme in which the symbols and language of government and the names of bogus government agencies with “official sounding names” were used to trick consumers into believing they’d won a sweepstakes, the FTC said. Twelve defendants have been charged in the alleged scheme, which charged consumers […]

UPDATED 2:31 P.M. ET (U.S.A.) The chief science officer of POMWonderful LLC knew as early as May 2007 that a company-funded, placebo-controlled study showed that there was  “no significant difference” between consumption of pomegranate juice and a control beverage after 18 months in reducing arterial plaque and the risk of heart disease but continued to […]

UPDATED 11:44 A.M. EDT (U.S.A.) So, you want to tell customers that your products cure diseases ranging from cancer to Parkinson’s and multiple sclerosis? And when critics and investigators and lawyers begin to ask tough questions, you want to deflect? And when a federal judge orders you to pay $48.2 million for making deceptive claims, […]

An evidence exhibit filed by the FTC in federal court in San Francisco shows screen shots of claims made online by Wellness Support Network Inc. The agency now has sued the California company, alleging deceptive trade practices and false advertising in the marketing of  products purported to treat and prevent diabetes. Included in the 25-page […]

So, you want to plant the seed that your business “opportunity” is backed by a famous company or that the company approves of your use of its trade name in a domain name you registered? Eight defendants in a fraud case filed by the FTC have been hit with a judgment of $29.5 million in a […]

A Florida man who operated a long-distance billing scam from the West Palm Beach County Jail has been sentenced to 262 months in federal prison. Willoughby Farr, 46, used three Palm Beach companies to pull off the “cramming” scam in which consumers were billed for calls they did not make, prosecutors said. He also faces […]

A Hawaii man and his company were hit with sanctions totaling $6.2 million in a case that alleged they targeted people with hearing impairments in a Forex Ponzi scheme. Both the SEC and the CFTC filed actions against Marvin Cooper and his Honolulu-based firm, Billion Coupons Inc. (BCI). The CFTC announced the judgment against Cooper […]

BULLETIN: (UPDATED 11:27 A.M. EDT (U.S.A.) The Federal Trade Commission has lowered the boom on Clean Credit Report Services Inc. of Florida and three individuals associated with the firm. In a settlement from a case brought in October 2008, the FTC has obtained a judgment of $14.4 million. The defendants must surrender their assets, including […]

UPDATED 4:56 P.M. EDT (U.S.A.) Calling the operations of Arizona-based Central Coast Nutraceuticals Inc. (CCN) and affiliated companies a “$30 million” scam in 2009 alone, the Federal Trade Commission has obtained a court-ordered asset freeze in an acai-berry fraud case. Charged along with CCN were Graham D. Gibson, Michael A. McKenzy and four companies that […]