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The FTC is mailing 52,099 checks to consumers who lost money to a pyramid scheme that pretended to be a legitimate multi-level marketing program selling opportunities to operate online digital music...
In a victory for the Federal Trade Commission, a federal appeals court has upheld a district court ruling that BurnLounge, a multi-level marketing business, and several associated individuals...
An operator who used deceptive earnings promises to recruit consumers for a multi-level marketing operation that was a pyramid scheme has agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that the...
On June 6, 2007, the FTC filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California against BurnLounge, Inc. The complaint charges that BurnLounge sold opportunities to...
Consumers speak many languages and unfortunately scammers are conversant in all of them. That’s why the FTC has reinforced its fraud fighting capabilities by collecting scam reports in multiple...
There are prime numbers, irrational numbers, and Fibonacci’s numbers – but from a consumer protection perspective, no number is quite as sobering as the dollar amount that people reported losing to...
It’s for sure you’ve seen ads like this online and in social media. They use a litany of iffy claims to advertise equally questionable products: “drop the pounds” diet pills, IQ-boosting brain...
We often talk about homes, cars, and education as the largest purchases people will ever make. But for many consumers, the cost of buying a franchise is the financial commitment of a lifetime. Some...
Let’s call it The Recliner Interval – the time it takes for an obscure niche product to start running prime time TV commercials. It’s a made-up metric, of course, but a few hours in front of the TV...
Money-making claims have been around for as long as there’s been money. They show up in promotions for gig work, multilevel marketing, “be your own boss” seminars, and work-from-home offers. But when...
We’ll leave it to the economists to crunch the employment numbers. We’re just happy to see more Help Wanted signs in the windows of Main Street retailers. That’s good news for Americans affected by...
Dear Multi-Level Marketer. Stop it. Stop all promotions that push your products by claiming they prevent or treat COVID-19. Stop all misleading or unsubstantiated promotions that push your business...
The FTC is not the pen pal you want if you operate a multi-level marketing company but aren’t closely monitoring your distributors. In its latest round of warning letters, the FTC warns ten MLM...
Certificates of Existence, Status, or Good Standing – sounds like an existential crisis, right? Instead of a philosophical commentary on the meaning of life, the certificates in question refer to...