FTC settles with shady telemarketers

“Four deceptive telemarketing operations targeted by the Federal Trade Commission have agreed to abandon the illegal tactics they allegedly used to scam consumers – such as charging for products that were never ordered, making bogus claims about their products, and harassing consumers with unwanted phone calls – under settlements with the FTC announced today.

Defendants responsible for the four telemarketing operations, which were sued by the FTC last year as part of the largest telemarketing fraud sweep ever coordinated by the agency, have signed court orders barring them from these and other illegal practices. The law enforcement sweep, “Operation Tele-PHONEY,” included 13 FTC complaints against unscrupulous telemarketers who allegedly defrauded more than 500,000 consumers, resulting in losses of more than $100 million.”

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Bank and trade association aid phone scams

“The U.S. Bank National Association and National City Bank provide “essential banking services” to a payment processor that worked with fraudulent telemarketers “to raid the bank accounts of tens of thousands of consumers, many of them elderly,” according to a class action in Federal Court. ”

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Get a call that your auto warranty is expiring?

These calls maybe false.

“The FTC charged Voice Touch and Transcontinental Warranty with consumer fraud and deceptive telemarketing: making mass “robocalls” alleging that people’s auto warranties were about to expire, including to people on the Do Not Call list. The tactic made national news this week after a congressman received such a call.
     Voice Touch is charged with injuring consumers by misrepresenting material facts, violating the Telemarketing Sales Rule, ignoring Do Not Call Requests, ignoring the Do Not Call Registry, abandoning calls, failing to transmit caller ID, failing to make required oral disclosures, initiating unlawful prerecorded messages, and failing the pay the national registry fee.”

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