On November 5, 2024, the FTC announced that it had filed suit against a California-based online cash advance provider for allegedly deceptive and misleading advertisements and representations, in violation of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. § 45(a), and the Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act (“ROSCA”), 15 U.S.C. § 8403.z According to…
On November 4, 2024, the FTC announced that it had filed suit against a Georgia-based debt collector for engaging in allegedly deceptive and abusive debt collection practices, in violation of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. § 45(a), the FDCPA, 15 U.S.C. §§ 1692-1692p, and its associated Regulation F, 12 C.F.R. Part 1006, and the Gramm-Leach-Bliley…
On August 14, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced a final rule banning fake reviews and testimonials. The rule follows a notice and comment process that began in November 2022, and covers a wide range of consumer reviews and testimonials including “consumer ratings regardless of whether they include any…
On August 5, 2024, the FTC announced it had filed a proposed settlement with a credit repair company to settle allegations regarding the company’s alleged pyramid scheme. The FTC alleges “that the [defendant company] preyed on consumers with low credit scores by luring them in with the false promise of an…
On July 22, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission announced that the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida had granted its motion for a temporary restraining order against a debt relief company that allegedly targeted Spanish-speaking consumers in Puerto Rico, among others. The FTC has alleged that the company “pretended to…
On June 28, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) filed its first federal case under the newly implemented Impersonation Rule, effective as of April 1, 2024. The case alleged that various student loan debt relief companies and their owners operated as a common enterprise and, after falsely claiming affiliation with…
On April 25, 2024, the FTC announced that it filed a suit against a Washington-based third-party bill payment company and two of its chief executives for engaging in allegedly deceptive and misleading practices in violation of Section 5(a) of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. § 45(a), Section 521 of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLB Act), 15 U.S.C. 23 § 6821, and…
On March 18, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that it entered into proposed orders with two fintech firms, resolving allegations of misconduct tied to the firms’ involvement in federal COVID-19 Paycheck Protection Programs (PPP). Specifically, the proposed orders resolve allegations that the firms violated Section 5(a) of the FTC Act,…
On February 2, 2024, the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California issued an order permanently banning several companies and their owners from the telemarketing and debt relief businesses and requiring them to pay approximately $19 million in restitution and civil money penalties. This order came as a…
On January 31, the Federal Trade Commission announced that a federal court in Illinois entered final orders against a telemarketing company and its owners as part of a judgment against an allegedly illegal telemarketing scheme. In the lawsuit, the FTC accused the defendants of making millions of illegal, unsolicited calls to people who were…
On January 24, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission announced that it had reached a settlement with an online cash advance provider and its co-founders resolving claims that the company violated the FTC Act, the Restore Online Shopper’s Confidence Act (ROSCA), and the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA), by engaging in allegedly deceptive marketing tactics and…
On January 2, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced it had reached a settlement with a California-based lead generator resolving allegations that the company facilitated illegal telemarketing calls. This lead generator owned the domain to several websites and sold thousands of leads to third parties for telemarketing purposes. The…
On November 2, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that it had reached a settlement with a New York based personal finance application over claims that the app violated the Federal Trade Commission Act (FTCA), 15 U.S.C. §§ 45(a), 53(b), 57b, and Section 5 of the Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act…
On October 24, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that it had filed a complaint against a Wisconsin-based auto dealership alleging “unfair or deceptive acts or practices in or affecting commerce” in violation of FTC Act,15 U.S.C. § 45(a), and violations of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) and Regulation B, which prohibit…
On October 12, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced that they filed a joint complaint and obtained a $15 million settlement against a parent credit reporting agency and one of its subsidiaries for alleged violations of the Fair Credit Report Act (FCRA) with respect to tenant…
On October 18, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) announced that that they had filed a complaint and entered into a stipulated order with a for-profit college and its parent company. Under the consent order, the college will cancel $3.4 million in student debt, resolving allegations that it made false claims about post-graduation job placements and…
On July 6, 2023, the FTC announced that it had entered into a consent order with a Florida-based vehicle extended warranty provider and its principal under which both agreed to cease all operations and any further involvement with extended automobile warranty sales as a result of what the FTC alleged were deceptive marketing…
On May 30, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that it had finalized a consent order with one of the nation’s largest credit and debit card providers in an administrative action regarding alleged violations of the Electronic Funds Transfer Act (EFTA), as amended, 15 U.S.C. § 1693o-2, and its implementing regulation,…
On May 8, 2023 the FTC announced that it filed complaints against two loan forgiveness and debt relief companies on April 24, 2023 alleging that they falsely claimed to be affiliated with the Department of Education. The companies allegedly told students that certain fee payments would count toward repayment programs and student…
On September 1, 2022, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that it reached a settlement with a personal finance company to resolve allegations that it engaged in deceptive acts or practices in violation of Section 5(a) of the Federal Trade Commission Act (FTCA), 15 U.S.C. § 45(a). According to the FTC, the personal…