A U.S. district court has halted a phony job placement operation that allegedly stole money from job seekers by promising them full-time work, with benefits, that never materialized, the Federal Trade Commission announced today. The court shut down the job placement operation until a hearing on a preliminary injunction can be held, and froze its […]
Monthly Archives: August 2009
Commission Announces New Fees for Telemarketers Accessing the National Do Not Call Registry
The FTC has announced new fees starting on October 1, 2009, for telemarketers accessing phone numbers on the National Do Not Call Registry. All telemarketers making calls to consumers in the United States are required to download the numbers on the Do Not Call list to ensure they do not call consumers who have registered […]
Mortgage Lender Agrees to Settle FTC Charges; Prescreened Loan Offers Lacked Proper Opt-Out Notice
A home mortgage lender that sent prescreened offers of credit to consumers without properly informing them of their right to opt out of receiving such offers in the future has agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that it violated federal law. The settlement requires the company to pay a $20,000 civil penalty and bars […]
FTC Issues Final Breach Notification Rule for Electronic Health Information
The Federal Trade Commission has issued a final rule requiring certain Web-based businesses to notify consumers when the security of their electronic health information is breached. Congress directed the FTC to issue the rule as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The rule applies to both vendors of personal health records […]
Extra! Extra! FTC Announces Revised Schedule for Workshop: “From Town Criers to Bloggers: How Will Journalism Survive the Internet Age?”
The Federal Trade Commission today announced December 1 and 2, 2009, as the dates on which it will begin a series of workshops titled “From Town Criers to Bloggers: How Will Journalism Survive the Internet Age?” The workshops previously were scheduled to begin on September 15, 2009. The workshops will bring competition, consumer protection, and […]
FTC Seeks Comment on The Dow Chemical Company’s Petition to Divest Its Acrylic Acid and Latex Polymers Businesses to Arkema Inc.
The Federal Trade Commission is seeking public comment on a petition from The Dow Chemical Company (Dow) requesting approval to divest its acrylic acid and latex polymers businesses to Arkema Inc., pursuant to a March 2009 Commission consent order. The FTC order was issued to resolve competitive concerns raised by the merger of Dow with […]
FTC Releases Reports on Cigarette and Smokeless Tobacco Sales and Marketing Expenditures
The amount spent on cigarette advertising and promotion by the five largest cigarette companies in the United States declined from $13.11 billion in 2005 to $12.49 billion in 2006, according to a report released today by the Federal Trade Commission. The largest spending category – spending on price discounts – fell from $9.78 billion in […]
Judge Upholds FTC Staff Complaint Against Marketers of Bogus Cancer Cures
An Administrative Law Judge has upheld Federal Trade Commission staff charges against a company and its officer for making deceptive claims that shark cartilage and herbal formulations prevent, treat, and cure cancer, and heal the effects of chemotherapy and radiation. After an administrative trial, the judge ordered the marketers to stop making false and unsubstantiated […]
FTC Charges Companies with ‘Bamboo-zling’ Consumers with False Product Claims
The Federal Trade Commission has charged four sellers of clothing and other textile products with deceptively labeling and advertising these items as made of bamboo fiber, when they are made of rayon. The complaints also charge the companies with making false and unsubstantiated “green” claims that their clothing and textile products are manufactured using an […]
Two Companies Pay Civil Penalties to Settle FTC Charges; Failed to Give Required Notices to Fired Workers and Rejected Job Applicants
Two companies that fired workers and rejected job applicants based on background checks without informing them of their rights under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) have agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that they violated federal law. The settlements require the defendants to pay $77,000 in civil penalties and bar future FCRA violations. […]