Consumer Alert
You now have permanent access to free weekly credit reports
By
Colleen Tressler
Division of Consumer and Business Education
March 16, 2021
The three national credit reporting agencies — Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion — have permanently extended a program that lets you check your credit report at each of the agencies once a week for free.
Visit AnnualCreditReport.com to request free copies of your credit reports. Other sites may charge you or be fraudulent sites set up to steal your personal information.
By law, everyone is entitled to one free credit report every twelve months from each of the three credit reporting agencies. In 2020, soon after the COVID-19 pandemic upended the finances of millions of people, the three agencies announced they would temporarily make free reports available every week. The program was extended twice and is now permanent.
Why check your credit report? Your report shows things like how many credit cards and loans you have, whether you pay your bills on time, and whether any debts have been turned over to collections. Creditors, insurers, some employers, and other businesses use it to decide if they want to do business with you — and the terms they’ll offer you.
Mistakes, like accounts or bankruptcies that aren’t yours, can hurt your credit, increase how much you’ll have to pay to borrow money, and even derail your chances of getting a loan, insurance, a rental home, or a job. Mistakes can result from errors by businesses that report credit information to credit reporting agencies. They also can be a sign of identity theft. The sooner you spot a mistake, the sooner you can dispute the error or — if it results from identity theft — report it at IdentityTheft.gov.
To learn more about why your credit matters, read Understanding Your Credit.
Updated October 13, 2023 to reflect the permanent extension of free weekly credit reports. Updated September 23, 2022 to reflect the extension of weekly free credit reports through December 2023. Updated May 2, 2022 to reflect the extension of weekly free credit reports through December 2022.
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Consumer Alert
Job scam targeting influencers
By
Larissa Bungo
Senior Attorney
October 17, 2023
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Did you get a message from a “brand ambassador manager” for a national company wanting to pay you to promote their products online? It could be a scam…but how will you know?
If you’re an influencer or have lots of social media followers, scammers might target you with fake job offers aimed at getting your personal and financial information.
Here’s what it looks like: a supposed recruiter contacts you out of the blue, claiming to be affiliated with a brand you recognize. The job offer sounds great — they say they’ll send you free products to promote online and pay you big money to show and tag their products in your social media posts. All you have to do, they say, is accept the offer and give them your personal and banking information so they can pay you. They want to sign you up before you can ask any questions. But that’s a scam to get your information and steal from you.
So how can you spot a job scam like this one?
- Never give out your personal or financial information without doing some research first. Look up the name of the company along with words like “scam,” “review,” or “complaint.” The results may include the experiences of others who’ve lost money.
- Contact the company directly to confirm the offer. Use a phone number or contact method you know to be legitimate — not the contact info or website the so-called recruiter gave you. If you can’t confirm the offer is real, walk away.
- Spot the red flags. Is your recruiter using a personal account, email, or number not affiliated with the company they claim to represent? That’s a sign you could be dealing with a scammer.
Lean how to spot, avoid, and recover from job scams. Report fraud at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
Topics
Money-Making Opportunities and Investments
Scams
Money-Making Opportunity Scams
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For Release
FTC Issues Annual Report to Congress on Agency’s Actions to Protect Older Adults
Adults 60 and older report losses of $1.6 billion in 2022 to scams, investment scams are top reported by dollars lost
October 18, 2023
Tags:
The Federal Trade Commission has issued its latest report to Congress on protecting older adults, which highlights key trends based on fraud reports by older adults, and the FTC’s multi-pronged efforts to combat the problem through law enforcement actions, rulemaking, and outreach and education programs.
In addition, the report calls on Congress to update the FTC Act in response to the Supreme Court’s 2021 ruling in the AMG Capital Management case, which severely limited the FTC’s ability to recover money that older adults and other consumers lose to scammers.
“We do all we can to protect older adults and shut down the scams targeting them,” said Samuel Levine, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “But we still need Congress to restore our authority to get money back from the scammers and into consumers’ pockets.”
The report, Protecting Older Consumers, 2022-2023, A Report of the Federal Trade Commission, finds that older adults reported losing more than $1.6 billion to fraud in 2022.
Because the vast majority of frauds are not reported, this figure represents only a fraction of the overall cost of fraud to older consumers, which the FTC estimates to be as high as $48 billion. The report also finds that in 2022, older adults reported significantly higher losses to investment scams, business impersonation scams and government impersonation scams than they did in 2021:
- Investment scams: $404 million reported lost, up 175% from 2021.
- Business impersonation scams: $271 million reported lost, up 78% from 2021.
- Tech support scams: $159 million reported lost, up 117% from 2021.
As in prior years, the analysis of fraud reports received by the FTC in 2022 showed that adults aged 60 and over were substantially less likely to report losing money to fraud than adults aged 18-59. When they did report losing money, though, they tended to report losing substantially more than younger adults. Consumers 80 and older reported losing a median of $1,750 to fraud, while those in their seventies reported a median loss of $1,000, with both numbers increasing over 2021.
The analysis included in the report to Congress also found that adults 60 and older were more than six times as likely as adults aged 18 to 59 to report losing money to a tech support scam. Older adults were more than twice as likely to report a loss to a prize, lottery or sweepstakes scam, and 73 percent more likely to report losing money to a friend or family impersonation scam.
The report’s analysis shows that older adults filed the largest number of reports about online frauds—where consumers were first exposed to the fraud via social media, the web, or online ads. The largest median losses, however, were reported by older adults on fraud that started with a phone call. The impact of scams where older adults were contacted on social media also increased; the median reported loss from this type of scam jumped from $460 in 2021 to $800 in 2022.
The report focuses on key actions the FTC has taken to protect older consumers, particularly in light of the Supreme Court’s AMG Capital decision. In 2022, the Commission issued a notice of proposed rulemaking on government and business impersonation, which is aimed at curbing a form of fraud that has resulted in tremendous losses for older consumers. A new rule would offer additional tools for the FTC to seek refunds for consumers harmed by these scams.
In addition, the report notes a number of enforcement actions that had a particular impact on older consumers, including cases against Publishers Clearing House for using dark patterns to mislead consumers into thinking that making a purchase would increase their chances of winning the company’s sweepstakes drawing; a company that placed more than a billion calls to consumers, including hundreds of robocalls and calls to consumers on the National Do-Not-Call Registry; a bogus credit card relief scheme; a timeshare exit scam; a company making false health claims about COVID prevention; and current and former major distributors for the multi-level marketing company doTERRA for making baseless claims about COVID treatments. The report highlights a number of ongoing law enforcement partnerships in which the FTC works with other federal agencies, along with state and local authorities, to take actions to protect older consumers.
Finally, the report details the FTC’s outreach and education efforts through such programs as the Pass it On campaign, which focuses on providing fraud prevention resources to older adults so they can help protect their communities by sharing the information and materials with family and friends. It also details the FTC’s ongoing efforts to implement the Stop Senior Scams Act of 2022.
The Commission vote authorizing the report to Congress was 3-0.
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.
Contact Information
Contact for Consumers
FTC Consumer Response Center
Media Contact
Office of Public Affairs
___________________________________________________________________________________
For Release
FTC Issues Annual Report to Congress on Agency’s Actions to Protect Older Adults
Adults 60 and older report losses of $1.6 billion in 2022 to scams, investment scams are top reported by dollars lost
October 18, 2023
Tags:
The Federal Trade Commission has issued its latest report to Congress on protecting older adults, which highlights key trends based on fraud reports by older adults, and the FTC’s multi-pronged efforts to combat the problem through law enforcement actions, rulemaking, and outreach and education programs.
In addition, the report calls on Congress to update the FTC Act in response to the Supreme Court’s 2021 ruling in the AMG Capital Management case, which severely limited the FTC’s ability to recover money that older adults and other consumers lose to scammers.
“We do all we can to protect older adults and shut down the scams targeting them,” said Samuel Levine, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “But we still need Congress to restore our authority to get money back from the scammers and into consumers’ pockets.”
The report, Protecting Older Consumers, 2022-2023, A Report of the Federal Trade Commission, finds that older adults reported losing more than $1.6 billion to fraud in 2022.
Because the vast majority of frauds are not reported, this figure represents only a fraction of the overall cost of fraud to older consumers, which the FTC estimates to be as high as $48 billion. The report also finds that in 2022, older adults reported significantly higher losses to investment scams, business impersonation scams and government impersonation scams than they did in 2021:
- Investment scams: $404 million reported lost, up 175% from 2021.
- Business impersonation scams: $271 million reported lost, up 78% from 2021.
- Tech support scams: $159 million reported lost, up 117% from 2021.
As in prior years, the analysis of fraud reports received by the FTC in 2022 showed that adults aged 60 and over were substantially less likely to report losing money to fraud than adults aged 18-59. When they did report losing money, though, they tended to report losing substantially more than younger adults. Consumers 80 and older reported losing a median of $1,750 to fraud, while those in their seventies reported a median loss of $1,000, with both numbers increasing over 2021.
The analysis included in the report to Congress also found that adults 60 and older were more than six times as likely as adults aged 18 to 59 to report losing money to a tech support scam. Older adults were more than twice as likely to report a loss to a prize, lottery or sweepstakes scam, and 73 percent more likely to report losing money to a friend or family impersonation scam.
The report’s analysis shows that older adults filed the largest number of reports about online frauds—where consumers were first exposed to the fraud via social media, the web, or online ads. The largest median losses, however, were reported by older adults on fraud that started with a phone call. The impact of scams where older adults were contacted on social media also increased; the median reported loss from this type of scam jumped from $460 in 2021 to $800 in 2022.
The report focuses on key actions the FTC has taken to protect older consumers, particularly in light of the Supreme Court’s AMG Capital decision. In 2022, the Commission issued a notice of proposed rulemaking on government and business impersonation, which is aimed at curbing a form of fraud that has resulted in tremendous losses for older consumers. A new rule would offer additional tools for the FTC to seek refunds for consumers harmed by these scams.
In addition, the report notes a number of enforcement actions that had a particular impact on older consumers, including cases against Publishers Clearing House for using dark patterns to mislead consumers into thinking that making a purchase would increase their chances of winning the company’s sweepstakes drawing; a company that placed more than a billion calls to consumers, including hundreds of robocalls and calls to consumers on the National Do-Not-Call Registry; a bogus credit card relief scheme; a timeshare exit scam; a company making false health claims about COVID prevention; and current and former major distributors for the multi-level marketing company doTERRA for making baseless claims about COVID treatments. The report highlights a number of ongoing law enforcement partnerships in which the FTC works with other federal agencies, along with state and local authorities, to take actions to protect older consumers.
Finally, the report details the FTC’s outreach and education efforts through such programs as the Pass it On campaign, which focuses on providing fraud prevention resources to older adults so they can help protect their communities by sharing the information and materials with family and friends. It also details the FTC’s ongoing efforts to implement the Stop Senior Scams Act of 2022.
The Commission vote authorizing the report to Congress was 3-0.
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.
Contact Information
Contact for Consumers
FTC Consumer Response Center
Media Contact
Office of Public Affairs
___________________________________________________________________________________-
Consumer Alert
Fighting fraud against older adults
By
Bridget Small
Consumer Education Specialist
October 18, 2023
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Protecting older adults is one of the FTC’s top priorities, and a new report to Congress tells how the agency tackled fraud, scams, and other issues affecting older adults over the last year. It’s been a busy year at the FTC, so what are some of the highlights?
One of the cases with the biggest impact on older adults was the FTC’s case against Publishers Clearing House (PCH), charging that the company used “dark patterns” to mislead people about how to enter sweepstakes drawings, making them think they had to buy something to win (or increase their chances of winning). A court required PCH to turn over $18.5 million to the FTC to use for customer refunds.
While younger people were still more likely to report losing money to fraud than older people, reports to the FTC showed that, during 2022, older adults:
- reported losing more than $1.6 billion to fraud, compared to about $1 billion the year before.
- reported losing big to investment scams: $404 million in reported losses, with reports often describing fake cryptocurrency investment opportunities that targeted people on social media.
- reported losing more to business impersonation scams (especially scammers pretending to be Amazon) and romance scams than the previous year.
- were more than six times more likely than younger adults to report losing money to a tech support scam.
To help older adults spot, avoid, and report scams, the FTC keeps collaborating with community groups, law enforcement, financial institutions, aging and consumer professionals, and hundreds of others to share fraud prevention material. This year, partner organizations ordered 2.1 million pieces of information from the Pass It On campaign in English and Spanish. You’ll find campaign material in Spanish at ¡Pásalo!.
To learn more, check out this year’s report. And if you spot a fraud or scam, tell the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
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Business Blog
Zero cheers for Sollers College’s alleged deceptive practices
By
Lesley Fair
October 18, 2023
Gimme an F!
Gimme an A!
Gimme an L!
Gimme an S!
Gimme an E!
What’s that spell? “False,” of course, which – along with deceptive and unsubstantiated – is how the FTC describes claims made by Sollers Education, also doing business as Sollers College. The complaint alleges the defendants lured prospective students in with inflated job placement rates and misleading representations about employment partnerships with big-name businesses. What’s more, the defendants encouraged some students pay their tuition by giving Sollers a cut of their future salary – “income share agreements” the FTC says violated the Holder Rule. Under the terms of the proposed settlement, the defendants will cancel $3.4 million in student debt and change their marketing practices going forward.
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Sollers College is a for-profit school that offers courses online and at a New Jersey campus. Charging tuition ranging from $4,000 to $27,000 for short-term programs that last a few weeks or a few months, Sollers advertises certifications in fields like IT and life sciences. A centerpiece of Sollers’ marketing efforts are claims on its website and in promotions on YouTube, Instagram, and other social media emphasizing graduates’ supposed success in finding employment quickly. For example, one ad touted that “90% of our students are placed within 3 months of graduation.” Elsewhere, Sollers said, “We record an 82% placement rate within three months of graduation.” Sollers also sent emails to prospective students, claiming to have a “near perfect” success rate in placing graduates in jobs.
And it wasn’t just any old job. Sollers claimed that its partnerships with leading companies like Pfizer, Weill Cornell Medicine, and Infosys resulted in jobs for Sollers’ graduates with those businesses. The “Testimonials” and “Success Stories” pages on Sollers’ site featured the logos of more than 20 companies that Sollers described as “Our Employer Partners.”
That’s what Sollers told prospective students, but the FTC says the defendants’ actual “report card” tells a different story. According to the complaint, the defendants had “no reasonable basis for their 80%, 82%, 90%, or ‘near perfect’ job placement claims, much less that they are able to do so within 3 months of graduation.” So where do those figures come from? The FTC alleges that “Defendants inflate the number of students they claim to ‘place’ by including anyone who does not communicate with Sollers after graduating.” In fact, Sollers’ own data suggest that the current job placement rate for its Life Sciences graduates is as low as 52%.
What about those “partnerships” with the “industry-leading corporations” whose names or logos appeared on Sollers’ site? According to the FTC, many of those businesses “have no partnership with the school whatsoever, much less one that results in Sollers graduates getting jobs at those companies.” For example, in May 2022, Weill Cornell Medicine sent Sollers a cease-and-desist letter demanding the removal of its name and logo from the site because the claim it was an “employer partner” or “corporate partner” was “false and misleading.” Staffing company Aerotek sent a similar letter demanding that Sollers remove its name and logo.
But those aren’t the only illegalities Sollers allegedly inflicted on students. Sollers encouraged some students to enter into “income share agreements” (ISAs) that require students to cover the cost of tuition by paying the school a share of their future income – generally 10%-20% for two years. You’ll want to read the complaint for details, but the gist of the agreements is that the cost of tuition was converted into a debt obligation that students had to repay. Depending on the terms of their specific ISA and possible loan payment deferments, some Sollers graduates found themselves paying for as long as six years. Sollers made the failure to pay particularly costly for students, reserving the right to collect a lump-sum payment – generally around $45,000 plus fees and collection costs.
The complaint alleges that “approximately 90% of students who entered into ISAs with Sollers are either actively in repayment or defaulted on their agreements and now owe Sollers a fixed amount.” The FTC says Sollers has responded by turning over accounts of many defaulting graduates to third-party debt collectors.
A closer look at many of Sollers’ ISAs reveal that they failed to include mandatory notices required by the FTC’s Holder Rule to protect consumers. Under the Rule, consumer credit contracts must include this notice informing consumers of their right to assert claims and defenses about the seller’s misconduct – for example, that the seller made deceptive representations – against any holder of the contract:
NOTICE
ANY HOLDER OF THIS CONSUMER CREDIT CONTRACT IS SUBJECT TO ALL CLAIMS AND DEFENSES WHICH THE DEBTOR COULD ASSERT AGAINST THE SELLER OF GOODS OR SERVICES OBTAINED PURSUANT HERETO OR WITH THE PROCEEDS HEREOF. RECOVERY HEREUNDER BY THE DEBTOR SHALL NOT EXCEED AMOUNTS PAID BY THE DEBTOR HEREUNDER.
By omitting that key consumer protection requirement, the defendants violated the Holder Rule, alleges the FTC.
In addition to prohibiting misrepresentations about any educational product or service, the proposed settlement will cancel all of Sollers’ income share agreements. Under the order, Sollers also must stop collecting debts from students on ISAs it currently holds, buy back ISAs it sold to third parties, ask credit bureaus to delete the debt from consumers’ credit reports, and directly notify the consumers who will receive the $3.4 million in debt forgiveness. Sollers also can’t deny consumers access to diplomas or transcripts based on any debt forgiven by the proposed order.
If you’re familiar with cases the FTC has brought against other for-profit educational companies, the proposed order provisions about deceptive job placement rates and employer partnerships should look familiar. But the case also offers a key compliance message with implications far beyond that sector: If your company is considering a “new” type of financing product, carefully consider your obligations under long-standing consumer protection laws and rules.
Tags:
- Consumer Protection
- Bureau of Consumer Protection
- Advertising and Marketing
- Advertising and Marketing Basics
- Credit and Finance
- Credit and Loans
- Debt
- Debt Collection
Leave a comment
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For Release
Sollers College to Cancel $3.4 Million in Student Debt to Resolve Charges It Used Deceptive Ads to Lure Prospective Students into Illegal Contracts
FTC, New Jersey say that the for-profit school attracted consumers by falsely touting relationships with prominent employers and inflating job placement rates
October 18, 2023
Tags:
- Consumer Protection
- Bureau of Consumer Protection
- Education
- deceptive/misleading conduct
- Advertising and Marketing
- Credit and Finance
Sollers College and its parent company, Sollers Inc., have been ordered to cancel $3.4 million in student debt to resolve separate charges brought by the Federal Trade Commission and the state of New Jersey that said the companies lured prospective students to enroll by falsely touting their job-placement rates and that their relationships with prominent companies would lead to jobs after students graduate.
The for-profit school also had an illegal twist to the “income share agreements” it encouraged students to take out to pay for the school, according to the FTC’s complaint. Income-share agreements require students to pay the school a percentage of their future income in exchange for covering their tuition.
“Not only did Sollers College use deceptive advertisements to attract students, it trapped them in multi-year income share agreements that broke the law by leaving out important borrower rights,” said Samuel Levine, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “Today’s order cancels all income-share agreements issued by the school. Companies that skirt long‑standing consumer protection laws when offering new financing products should be on notice that the FTC takes these violations seriously.”
According to the FTC’s complaint, Sollers, and its parent company, used their website, social media, and email campaigns to falsely advertise their partnerships with prominent employers in the fields of information technology, clinical research, and drug safety. Sollers falsely claimed that its partnerships with prominent employers, such as Pfizer, Weill Cornell Medicine, and Infosys, resulted in jobs for its graduates at those companies. In reality, many of the businesses featured on Sollers’ website had no partnership with the school at all.
The complaint states that, since at least 2018, Sollers advertised that the vast majority of Sollers graduates are placed in jobs. For example, the company advertised, “90% of our students are placed within 3 months of graduation,” on its website. In reality, the job placement rate for Sollers graduates is substantially lower than the 80 percent, 82 percent, 90 percent or “near perfect” rates featured prominently on its website and in its advertising campaigns. For example, the school’s own data suggests that the current job-placement rate for graduates of its Life Sciences programs remains as low as 52 percent.
In addition, the complaint notes that Sollers encouraged students to pay for their education using income-share agreements. Under the specific terms of Sollers’s contracts, students agreed to pay Sollers a fixed percentage of their future income on a monthly basis, typically for two years. Between August 2018 and April 2021, the school entered into 392 illegal agreements, none of which included certain disclosures mandated by law. Specifically, the agreements failed to include the Holder Rule notice, which protects consumers who enter certain loans or credit contracts by preserving their right to assert claims and defenses, even if the loans or contracts are assigned to a third party. Sollers later sold a portion of the agreements to third parties.
Under the stipulated order, the for-profit is prohibited from falsely advertising any educational product or service. The order also prohibits the company from denying access to diplomas or transcripts based on any debt forgiven by the proposed order.
Specifically, Sollers must:
- stop collecting debts from students on any income-share agreements it currently holds;
- re-purchase any income share agreements it sold to third parties to stop collection efforts on those agreements;
- request that consumer reporting agencies delete the debt from consumers’ credit reports;
- and provide written notification to consumers who are receiving debt forgiveness under the proposed order.
The Commission vote authorizing the staff to file the complaint and stipulated final order was 3-0. The complaint and stipulated final order will be filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.
The staff attorneys on this matter are Wendy Miller and Paul Mezan of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection.
NOTE: The Commission files a complaint when it has “reason to believe” that the named defendants are violating or are about to violate the law and it appears to the Commission that a proceeding is in the public interest. Stipulated final orders have the force of law when approved and signed by the District Court judge.
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.
Contact Information
Contact for Consumers
FTC Consumer Resource Center
Media Contact
Office of Public Affairs
___________________________________________________________________________
Consumer Alert
Some colleges recruit but don’t tell the truth
By
Ari Lazarus
Consumer Education Specialist, FTC
October 18, 2023
When a college or university claims it has relationships with well-known employers, those promises may convince people to attend — even if those promises aren’t true. That’s exactly what happened with Sollers College, according to an FTC lawsuit. Read on for advice on how to spot these schools — and avoid them.
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The FTC says Sollers College recruited students with promises of high (90%) placement rates within months of graduation, and said they were partnered with well-known companies. In reality, the school’s job placement rate for some programs was as low as 52%, and many of the businesses listed had no relationship with the school at all. The FTC also says, these claims weren’t only meant to get folks in the door — they were a way to encourage students to feel confident in signing up for Income Share Agreements (ISAs) — a method of tuition financing that Sollers profited from.
As part of the settlement, Sollers College has canceled all ISAs issued by the school, resulting in $3.4 million in debt relief for students. If you went to Sollers College and had an ISA that was canceled, there is nothing you need to do to “enroll” and you don’t need to pay for this cancelation – anyone who claims you do is a scammer. For more information about the canceled ISAs, go to ftc.gov/sollers.
If you’re looking at colleges, ask questions and do your own research – and don’t rely on the statements in those glossy brochures. Go to the Department of Education’s College Scorecard to find important information about schools, like what percentage of students graduate, how much debt students have, and whether students are able to repay their loans.Leave a comment…CONT…
