Let’s talk about scams that target Latinos
By
Rosario Méndez
Division of Consumer and Business Education, FTC
September 14, 2022
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Tomorrow begins Hispanic Heritage Month — a time to honor all that Latinos and their culture bring to this country. At the FTC, we celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month by providing tools and information that can help Latinos avoid scams and frauds. These resources are at consumer.ftc.gov and in Spanish at consumidor.ftc.gov.
For the next four weeks, we’ll highlight consumer fraud topics impacting the Latino community and point out the FTC’s free resources. And we’ll focus on specific advice on how to spot and avoid scams. This week, we’re starting with money-making opportunity scams. We know that scammers will target anyone searching for a job or a business opportunity, but we have also seen money-making schemes that targeted or disproportionately affected Latino communities.
For example, the FTC has sued and shut down several operations that specifically targeted Latinos with empty promises of making lots of money by selling products from home. The fotonovela Fatima Says No to an Income Scam is based on a money-making scheme the FTC shut down — and it illustrates how to avoid these scams.
If you’re considering a money-making opportunity:
- Search online. Look up the company’s name, email address, and phone number, plus the words “scam,” “review,” or complaint.”
- Talk to someone you trust. Describe the offer or the job to them. What do they think?
- Avoid any company that tries to pressure you. In fact, stop communicatingwith anyone who uses high-pressure sales tactics, tells you to act now, or discourages you from checking out the company.
- Never pay someone up front — especially if they promise you a job that pays a lot. Honest employers, including the federal government, will never ask you to pay to get a job. Anyone who does is a scammer.
If you spot a scam, report it to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov or in Spanish at ReporteFraude.ftc.gov.
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FTC says Roomster posted fake reviews and misled customers about listings
By
Kira Krown
Consumer Education Specialist
August 30, 2022
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When searching for a place to live — or a person to live with — honest and trustworthy information is vital. And reviews about platforms that can supposedly help you in your search should be, well, honest and trustworthy too. But according to the FTC and six states suing Roomster and its owners, the room and roommate finder platform posted reviews and other information that was neither.
The lawsuit announced today alleges Roomster posted fake positive reviews and made deceptive claims about its listings being real, available, and verified — to convince people to use its platform. The FTC and states also announced an action against “AppWinn” operator Jonathan Martinez, who the complaint alleges supplied thousands of the fake reviews to Roomster.
When a company has a lot of fake, glowing reviews online, they can dilute real ones that describe customers’ actual experiences. This can make it tough for people to make informed decisions about which products or services to buy and use. Here, Roomster’s customers — mostly students, people with lower incomes, and those living in areas with little affordable housing — have ended up paying millions of dollars for information on rentals that often didn’t even exist.
So if you’re looking at online reviews for housing or anything else:
- Think about the source of the reviews you’re reading. What do you know about the reviewers that makes them trustworthy?
- Compare reviews from a variety of well-known sources, not just one site. Start with websites recognized for having credible and impartial reviews.
- Search online for the company name along with terms like “complaint,” “scam,” or “fraud” to see what issues others might have had.
If a company makes false or misleading claims, report it to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
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For Release
FTC Proposes New Rule to Combat Government and Business Impersonation Scams
Proposed Action Would Give Agency Stronger Tools to Fight Scammers, Return Money to Consumers Harmed by Impersonators
September 15, 2022
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The Federal Trade Commission has proposed a rule to fight government and business impersonation scams—a perennial scourge that has cost consumers hundreds of millions of dollars over the past five years. The proposed rule would codify the well-understood principle that impersonation scams violate the FTC Act, as do those who provide impersonators with the means to harm consumers. The proposed rule would allow the Commission to recover money from, or seek civil penalties against, scammers who harm consumers in violation of the rule.
“The proposed rule will expand the Commission’s toolkit to combat the significant harm caused by government and business impersonation frauds,” said Samuel Levine, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “We look forward to comments from the public on our efforts to deter fraud, hold impersonators accountable, and secure redress for consumers.”
Fraud reports to the FTC about government and business impersonation scams rose sharply at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. The FTC received more than 2.5 million reports of these scams from consumers nationwide from the beginning of 2017 through the middle of 2022, and those consumers reported losing more than $2 billion to these scams.
Government and business impersonators can take many forms, posing as, for example, a lottery official, a government official or employee, or a representative from a well-known business or charity. Impersonators may also use implicit representations, such as misleading domain names and URLs and “spoofed” contact information, to create an overall net impression of legitimacy. These scammers are fishing for information they can use to commit identity theft or seek monetary payment, often requesting funds via wire transfer, gift cards, or increasingly cryptocurrency.
The proposed rule announced today follows an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking published by the Commission last December. In response to that notice, the FTC received more than 160 public comments, none of which opposed proceeding with the rulemaking process. Comments came from members of the public as well as a bipartisan coalition of 49 state attorneys general and multiple companies and industry organizations.
In the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking announced today, the Commission is seeking comment on proposed measures that would fight government and business impersonation scams by declaring various tactics used by scammers unlawful. These include posing as a government or business by name or by implication. For example, the proposed rule would ban scammers from:
- Using government seals or business logos when communicating with consumers by mail or online.
- Spoofing government and business emails and web addresses, including spoofing “.gov” email addresses or using lookalike email addresses or websites that rely on misspellings of a company’s name.
- Falsely implying government or business affiliation by using terms that are known to be affiliated with a government agency or business (e.g., stating “I’m calling from the Clerk’s Office” to falsely imply affiliation with a court of law).
The proposed rule would also apply to those who provide “means or instrumentalities” for those committing a government or business impersonation scam, such as a supplier who manufactures a fake government credential used by scammers. In addition, the proposed rule would include non-profit organizations in its definition of businesses, so that it would apply to scammers that impersonate charities.
The proposed rule would allow the FTC to seek important relief for consumers across a broad array of government and business impersonation cases. This is especially important following the Supreme Court’s ruling in AMG Capital Management LLC v. FTC, which significantly limited the agency’s ability to return to consumers money that was taken in a scam.
The notice includes questions for public comment to inform the Commission’s decision-making on the proposal. These include questions about provisions in the proposed rule and whether other provisions should or should not be included in the rule. After the Commission reviews the comments received, it will decide whether to take the necessary next steps toward issuance of a final rule.
The Commission vote to approve the Federal Register notice announcing the notice was 5-0. The notice will be published in the Federal Register soon. Instructions for filing comments appear in the notice. Comments must be received within 60 days of the publication of the notice.
The Federal Trade Commission works to promote competition and protect and educate consumers. Learn more about consumer topics at consumer.ftc.gov, or report fraud, scams, and bad business practices at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. Follow the FTC on social media, read consumer alerts and the business blog, and sign up to get the latest FTC news and alerts.
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For Release
Federal Trade Commission Returns More Than $415,000 To Consumers Harmed by Deceptive Car Dealer Tate’s Auto
September 15, 2022
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- Consumer Protection
- Bureau of Consumer Protection
- Cars
- Finance
- deceptive/misleading conduct
- consumer refunds
- Credit and Finance
- Credit and Loans
The Federal Trade Commission is sending payments totaling more than $415,000 to 3,508 consumers who financed a car or truck at a Tate’s Auto dealership after January 1, 2013, and later had the vehicle repossessed. Tate’s Auto, which operated dealerships in Arizona and New Mexico, allegedly deceived consumers about payment information and falsified information on consumers’ financing applications.
Eligible consumers will receive a check in the mail, unless they specifically requested a PayPal payment. Recipients should cash checks within 90 days or redeem PayPal payments within 30 days. Consumers who have questions about their refund should call the refund administrator, JND Legal Administration, at 888-964-0009. The Commission never requires people to pay money or provide account information to get a refund.
The FTC sued Tate’s Auto in 2018 for inflating consumers’ income on financing applications to third-party lenders, as well as deceiving consumers about the lease or financing terms of the vehicles they were buying. Many of Tate’s customers were citizens of the Navajo Nation, and Tate’s Auto frequently ran radio and print ads in Navajo media. The FTC settled with the auto dealerships in August 2020 and ultimately reached a settlement with the individual defendant in July 2021 that required the defendant to pay money for consumer redress. The FTC wishes to acknowledge the valuable assistance of the Navajo Nation Human Rights Commission during the investigation of this case.
The Commission’s interactive dashboards for refund data
provide a state-by-state breakdown of refunds in FTC cases. In 2021, Commission actions led to more than $472 million in refunds to consumers across the country, but these refunds were the result of cases resolved before the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2021 that the Commission lacks authority under Section 13(b) to seek monetary relief in federal court going forward. Because of that ruling, the Commission no longer has its strongest tool to return money to consumers, and it will become harder to provide refunds to consumers harmed by deceptive and unfair conduct going forward. The Commission has urged Congress to restore the Commission’s ability to get money back for consumers.
The Federal Trade Commission works to promote competition and protect and educate consumers. Learn more about consumer topics at consumer.ftc.gov, or report fraud, scams, and bad business practices at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. Follow the FTC on social media, read consumer alerts and the business blog, and sign up to get the latest FTC news and alerts.
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FTC Brings Together Advisory Group to Combat Scams Against Older Adults
By
Cristina Miranda
Consumer Education Specialist, FTC
September 12, 2022
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Keeping older adults safe from fraud and scams is a top priority for the FTC. That commitment is reflected in the agency’s long history of law enforcement actions against scammers and our robust outreach and education programs. Now, as part of the Stop Senior Scams Act, the FTC is bringing together an Advisory Group of federal agency partners, consumer advocates, and industry representatives to focus on ways we can better identify and stop scams that affect older adults.
The FTC’s most recent report on protecting older consumers tells us that adults aged 60 and over are substantially less likely to report losing money to fraud than younger people. But when they do report losing money to frauds — like online shopping scams, tech support scams, or romance scams — they are losing thousands of dollars. (For more on this data, visit ftc.gov/exploredata.)
That’s why the work of the Advisory Group is so important. Through the formation of smaller committees, the Advisory Group will focus on four main areas: 1) expanding consumer education efforts; 2) improving industry training on scam prevention; 3) identifying innovative or high-tech methods to detect and stop scams; and 4) developing research on consumer or employee engagement to reduce fraud. Together, members of the Advisory Group will identify gaps and highlight best practices for fighting frauds and scams affecting older adults. And, they’ll seek out key stakeholders to contribute to the work of each committee.
If you’re interested in learning more about the Advisory Group’s work, mark your calendar for September 29th at 2:30 pm ET. The first meeting will be livestreamed from ftc.gov.
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Concerned about deceptive ads and sales of autos? Last call for comments
By
Karen Hobbs
Assistant Director, Division of Consumer & Business Education
September 6, 2022
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The FTC is working to address deceptive advertising and unlawful add-on sales in the auto industry by considering changes to the law that would give the agency better tools to protect consumers and honest dealerships. Want to help? Don’t wait! Submit a comment on the rulemaking and make your voice heard.
The FTC’s proposal would ban so-called junk fees and bait-and-switch tactics, and other practices affecting car buyers and honest dealerships. The deadline for comments is September 12, 2022.
You can submit your comment online or by mail:
- Online — follow the link to the rulemaking notice and click on the “comment” button.
- By mail — send your comment to: Federal Trade Commission, Office of the Secretary, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite CC-5610 (Annex C), Washington, DC 20580.
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Concerned about deceptive ads and sales of autos? Last call for comments
By
Karen Hobbs
Assistant Director, Division of Consumer & Business Education
September 6, 2022
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The FTC is working to address deceptive advertising and unlawful add-on sales in the auto industry by considering changes to the law that would give the agency better tools to protect consumers and honest dealerships. Want to help? Don’t wait! Submit a comment on the rulemaking and make your voice heard.
The FTC’s proposal would ban so-called junk fees and bait-and-switch tactics, and other practices affecting car buyers and honest dealerships. The deadline for comments is September 12, 2022.
You can submit your comment online or by mail:
- Online — follow the link to the rulemaking notice and click on the “comment” button.
- By mail — send your comment to: Federal Trade Commission, Office of the Secretary, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite CC-5610 (Annex C), Washington, DC 20580.
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