For Release
FTC Joins FCC in Renewing Memorandum of Understanding to Promote Cross-Border Law Enforcement Efforts to Combat Spam, Scams, and Illegal Telemarketing
Agencies are partnering with the Unsolicited Communications Enforcement Network
Tags:
The Federal Trade Commission has joined the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in signing a renewed memorandum of understanding (MOU) between public authorities who are members of the Unsolicited Communications Enforcement Network (UCENet). The MOU aims to promote cross-border collaboration to combat unsolicited communications, including email and text spam, scams, and illegal telemarketing.
“The FTC is committed to using all of its tools to fight robocalls and other unsolicited communications that try to prey on consumers,” said FTC Chair Lina M. Khan. “This scourge does not respect borders, and our recommitment to this MOU underscores the importance of international communication and cooperation to combat this problem.”
Given the success of the collaboration under the original document, UCENet members agreed to renew and make evergreen the MOU, a non-binding instrument which the FTC and its partners signed in 2016. The 2016 MOU was aimed at facilitating information sharing, capacity building, and enforcement assistance among the partners. For the past seven years, it also has facilitated communication about emerging threats and complaint trends related to spam, scams, and illegal telemarketing.
The UCENET MOU is part of the FTC’s continuing to work to fight harms that can arise from unwanted messages. Unsolicited communications in the form of illegal and spoofed robocalls, text messages, and emails are often the source of scams that harm millions of consumers in the United States each year. The revised MOU also has been signed by UCENet partners in Canada, Australia, South Korea, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom.
The FTC’s work in this area includes its recent Operation Stop Scam Calls initiative, which united federal and state law enforcement partners from across the United States in their fight against illegal telemarketing operations and the companies that facilitate their scams via lead generation and telecommunications services.
The effort also targeted Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) service providers who facilitate illegal robocalls every year, which often originate overseas. The collaboration, information-sharing, and intelligence-sharing by UCENet MOU signatories serves to strengthen, enhance, and complement the work of the FTC and other domestic agencies fighting the scourge of unwanted and illegal telemarketing calls.
The lead staffer on this matter was Kristina Mulligan in the Commission’s Office of International Affairs.
The Federal Trade Commission works with counterpart agencies to promote sound antitrust, consumer protection, and data privacy enforcement and policy. Like the FTC on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and subscribe to press releases and the FTC International Monthly for the latest FTC news and resources.
Press Release Reference
Contact Information
Media Contact
Office of Public Affairs
____________________________________________________________________________
Consumer Alert
Children’s Health Insurance Program: Spot the scam
By
Marissa Hopkins
Intern, Division of Consumer & Business Education, FTC
Image
Finding and keeping health insurance for your family can be stressful and expensive. During the pandemic, your state’s Medicaid Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) might have helped — but with the end of the pandemic, states may be reaching out to update your family Medicaid enrollments. Except scammers might try to get to you first. So how can you spot them?
First, while the process to renew may differ from state to state, nobody legit will ask for your personal information over the phone or demand that you pay to renew. Medicaid won’t. CHIP won’t. But scammers will.
So, to protect you and your family from scams:
- Remember that CHIP won’t charge you to renew or enroll. CHIP may reach out to you by email, phone, or text messages to renew your coverage — but they won’t ask you to pay. They also won’t ask for your personal financial information, like your bank account or credit card number.
- Don’t click on links in text or email messages, even if it looks like the message is from your state’s Medicaid agency. That’s a scam. Go to Medicaid.gov to find your state’s Medicaid agency. Then contact that agency to get more information.
- Start at HealthCare.gov to compare insurance plans, coverage, and eligibility. The site requires information about your monthly income and age to give you a quote. If anyone or any site asks for your financial information, like your bank account or credit card number, to get a quote, that’s a scam.
- Know that medical discount plans are not medical insurance. Scammers often pitch medical discount plans by convincing people they’re the same as insurance — but they’re not. They often just take your money for very little in return.
If you spot a CHIP scam, report it to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
Search Terms
Topics
Scams
Related Items
