“The caller asked for my bank account information. I cannot remember everything he said. I just thought that I needed to confirm my account information in order to avoid losing my Medicare benefits.” – Juanita Tortella, 77, Amarillo, Texas The Federal Trade Commission today, in cooperation with more than 30 international, federal, state, and local […]
Monthly Archives: May 2008
FTC Seeks Public Comments on a Model Order to Obtain Data for Study of the Effect of Credit-Based Insurance Scores on Consumers of Homeowners Insurance
The Federal Trade Commission has approved a resolution authorizing the use of compulsory process pursuant to Section 6(b) of the FTC Act and Section 215 of the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA). The Commission will use this resolution to issue orders that will require certain insurance companies to produce information for a study […]
U.S. Court of Appeals Affirms FTC Decision That Texas Doctors Group Engaged in Illegal, Anticompetitive Price-Fixing
In a unanimous opinion issued on May 14, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed a 2005 Federal Trade Commission decision that found certain activities of North Texas Specialty Physicians (NTSP) violated Section 5 of the FTC Act. In particular, NTSP, a group of independent competing physicians based in Forth Worth, was […]
FTC, Partners to Announce Operation Tele-PHONEY Law Enforcement Sweep
The Federal Trade Commission, together with more than 30 law enforcement partners from the United States and Canada, will announce the results of ‘Operation Tele-PHONEY’ at a joint press conference at FTC Headquarters in Washington, DC, on Tuesday, May 20, 2008 at 10:30 a.m. The sweep includes a range of cases targeting telemarketing fraud such […]
Defendants Agree to $26 Million Judgment to Settle FTC Charges for Deceiving Merchants in Debt/Credit Card Processing Scheme
The marketers of a debit and credit card processing services operation have agreed to judgments of more than $26 million to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that they deceived small businesses throughout the country. According to the FTC, the defendants’ operation falsely promised that it would save merchants hundreds to thousands of dollars a year […]
FTC to Host Conference on Consumer Information and the Mortgage Market
The Federal Trade Commission’s Bureau of Economics will host a conference on May 29 to highlight and assess the role of consumer information in the current mortgage crisis from an economic perspective. Experts on real estate economics, information economics, consumer behavior, and consumer information policy will examine how consumer information and information regulation affect consumer […]
FTC Testifies Before Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on the Agency’s FY 2009 Budget Request
Federal Trade Commission Chairman William E. Kovacic and Commissioner Jon Leibowitz today testified before the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee’s Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government Committee on Appropriations on the FTC’s behalf, requesting $256.2 million and 1,102 full-time equivalents (FTE) to accomplish the agency’s competition and consumer protection missions in fiscal year (FY) 2009. […]
FTC and Virginia AG File Complaint in Federal Court Seeking to Block Inova Health System Foundations Acquisition of Prince William Health System
The Federal Trade Commission and the Commonwealth of Virginia filed a complaint in federal court yesterday seeking a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction to stop Inova Health System Foundation’s (Inova) proposed acquisition of Prince William Health System (PWHS) pending a full administrative trial on the merits. The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court […]
Pair Ordered to Pay $49 Million for Cross-Border Telemarketing Fraud
At the request of the Federal Trade Commission, a federal judge has ordered two persons to pay more than $49 million for their role in a Canada-based scheme that duped American businesses into paying for business directories and listings they did not order. Bernard Fromstein and Judy Provencher are the remaining defendants in the Datacom […]
FTC Approves New Rule Provision Under The CAN-SPAM Act
The Federal Trade Commission has approved four new rule provisions under the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act of 2003 (CAN-SPAM or the Act). The provisions are intended to clarify the Act’s requirements. The provisions and the Commission’s Statement of Basis and Purpose (SBP) will be published in the Federal Register shortly. […]