Can't sweep this under the rug
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently announced that Publishers Clearing House (PCH), the company widely known for its direct marketing and sweepstakes promotions, has agreed to pay $18.5 million to harmed consumers to settle an FTC enforcement action. Citing its complaint against PCH, the FTC said that the company used “dark patterns” to mislead consumers about how to enter the company’s sweepstakes drawings and made them believe that a purchase was necessary to win or to increase the odds of winning. The FTC also charged that the company added surprise shipping and handling fees to the cost of products; misrepresented that ordering is “risk free” (even though consumers seeking refunds were required to return products at their own expense); sent deceptive marketing emails (how's this for a misleading subject line: “W-19 Notice – Step 3 of 3 INCOMPLETE”); and misrepresented its policies on selling users’ personal data. The FTC noted that many affected consumers are older and lower-income. The FTC will be sending checks to 281,724 consumers who ordered a product from Publishers Clearing House after receiving and clicking on one of the emails that the FTC alleged were deceptive. For questions about a refund payment, the FTC's press release includes contact information for the refund administrator. Details about who is eligible are available here. Wonder what Ed McMahon would think of all this.
Lacking intelligence
Here's one clear example of how an investment opportunity in new technology can leave consumers high and dry: Your money gets invested, yet there's no new tech to speak of. In an April indictment, the U.S. Attorney's office charged the former CEO and founder of Nate, Inc. (“nate”) with defrauding investors of more $40 million through false and misleading statements about nate’s use of proprietary AI technology. The indictment explains that Albert Saniger marketed nate as a universal shopping cart app that allows users to "skip the checkout" on retail websites by reducing the checkout process to a "single tap." If a shopper found a pair of sneakers on an e-commerce site, for example, the shopper would simply need to click "buy" on the nate app and AI would then take care of choosing the correct size, completing billing and shipping information, and confirming the purchase. However, the reality was that although purchases did, in fact, get processed, it was not by the AI technology that supposedly made nate "scalable and profitable." Instead, the U.S. attorney charges, nate relied heavily on—wait for it—low-cost, overseas human laborers that manually processed the transactions. Saniger never successfully developed or deployed functional AI, and left investors with total losses. Although Saniger solicited investments from venture capital firms rather than individuals, this scheme serves as a good reminder to brush up on ways to spot and avoid investment scams.
Delinquent news junkies
Land of opportunism. In a recent blog post, the cybersecurity firm Check Point reported that cyber criminals exploited Pope Francis's death to launch global scams. These types of schemes are part of a broader pattern known as “cyber threat opportunism,” the firm explained, where attackers exploit high-interest global events to spread malware or misinformation. The threats typically begin with disinformation campaigns on social media that aim to capture the public's attention and prompt users to search for more information or to click on embedded links. This can lead users to fraudulent websites set up to steal information or money. Following the Pope's death, Check Point found a malicious link hidden in a website serving up potential fake news. Clicking on the link, Check Point said, redirected visitors to a fake Google page promoting a gift card scam. Check Point's blog post also explained that malware on some fraudulent sites can collect information that can later be used as part of targeted phishing campaigns. Take a look at the post to learn how cyber criminals also pay to position malicious sites among legitimate search results, a threat known as "search engine optimization poisoning." And don't miss Check Point's detailed list of tips for avoiding these types of scams.
Tariff-ying news. Hardly a day goes by without a new headline related to trade tariffs. As you might imagine, news about tariffs is not going unnoticed by fraudsters. According to KOMO News, the Better Business Bureau (BBB) is alerting consumers and businesses to be vigilant as scammers exploit confusion surrounding tariffs. KOMO News explains that the scams involve phishing emails and texts that appear to originate from official government accounts (or even freight companies) claiming that consumers or small business owners owe immediate payment for "tariff fees." The story also explains that scammers' tactics can be particularly confusing for newer business owners, who may be unfamiliar with tariff responsibilities. Among the tactics that small businesses should watch out for are fake notices about new fees, shipping delays or customs changes. The news piece includes some commonsense practical advice from Cameron Nakashima, media engagement and digital campaigns manager with the BBB: "When it comes to any unsolicited offer, unsolicited request... be cautious. Don’t click the link they send you. And be careful about sharing any of your personal information until you can verify the business’s legitimacy." Thanks for the reminder!
Tips
Unsupportable scoundrels. We've been warned about tech support scams for years, and have often heard about perpetrators of the fraud being based overseas. Well, a couple of crooks turned up locally, reminding us to always be wary of this seemingly evergreen scam. Citing the Prince George’s County Police Department (PGPD), the DC-area's WJLA ABC 7 reported that two men were arrested, in two separate cases, accused of scamming victims out of large amounts of money. In the first case, the scam began with (you guessed it) a computer pop-up alert urging victims to contact Apple security. After calling the number provided, ABC 7 explained, the victims spoke with several other scammers who posed as Apple security agents and even as an FTC representative. Victims were persuaded to deposit their money into a Bitcoin ATM, and also to buy gold that would be picked up by the perpetrators at the victim’s home. It was during one of these pickups that the suspect in the first case was arrested, after victims lost nearly $700,000. The second case was similar, ABC 7 explained, and also started with a computer pop-up screen. The second suspect was arrested when he attempted to pick up $40,000 from the victim. According to ABC 7, police are reminding the public to never give money, gold, gift cards or other valuables to strangers, “even if they are posing as representatives from legitimate businesses, banking institutions or government agencies." Another good commonsense tip in the story is for consumers worried about security issues on their computer to reach out directly to the company managing their software or to their bank. Great tips!
You don't need a 'job' this bad. Amazon recently alerted consumers about a 90% increase in customer-reported Amazon impersonation employment schemes during the first quarter of 2025. Three warning signs of the scam, Amazon explained, are (1) an initial unsolicited job offer via unofficial channels (such as text messages) and the promise of an unrealistic compensation package; (2) being asked to create accounts on suspicious third-party platforms; and (3) a demand for upfront payments by cryptocurrency or gift cards (also referred to as "verification cards" by some scammers), or a request for sensitive personal information. Amazon offered several tips for avoiding this type of fraud, including: verifying the legitimacy of any supposed Amazon job opportunity at this page, where the company lists all of its available jobs; going directly to Amazon’s website when seeking help with Amazon; and not clicking on links with misspellings or repeated characters. Amazon reminded customers that it will never ask them to share their password or their account sign-in One-Time Password (OTP), and it will never ask a customer to verify sensitive personal information over the phone. Customers are encouraged to report suspicious communications through Amazon’s self-reporting tool or by contacting Amazon customer service directly. If you're looking for work, we'd suggest telling these scammers to take their job and shove it, and instead head over to CareerOneStop to find local resources for career exploration, training and employment.
Discount diss. The FBI is warning consumers about an emerging "discount medical insurance" scam that involves misleading or fraudulent offers for medical insurance. Scammers target people who are looking for more affordable healthcare options, the FBI explains, and use tactics including high-pressure sales pitches and false claims of being legitimate medical insurance providers. A typical discount medical insurance scam begins with unsolicited contact via calls, texts or emails offering special deals or discounted medical insurance. The FBI alert provides several examples of consumers left with unexpected medical expenses due to lack of coverage. To protect yourself, the FBI offers several consumer recommendations: Make sure any medical plan offer is from a reputable source and that the company is licensed in your state; verify that current providers accept the insurance plan you are considering; understand exactly what is being offered before committing to anything; review any policy documents received (not getting policy documents could be a sign of fraud); and don't pay for anything upfront. Do your own research, the FBI adds, repeating the ever-popular advice, "If the plan seems too good to be true, it probably is."
Tolled you once, tolled you twice. This week, CNN reported on a new Google update to its scam text detection technology for Android phones. The Google Messages app update will help spot "unpaid toll" hoaxes and will display a "likely scam" alert when triggered. Citing Google’s Android ecosystem president, Sameer Samat, the CNN story explained that fraudsters are adopting more sophisticated tactics, such as hiding or rotating URLs to make them harder to detect and borrowing language from legitimate sources. The messaging app update will also spot potentially fraudulent texts related to crypto, technical support and gift cards, on top of the other common scams it already monitored, for schemes like fake job offers and bogus package theft alerts, CNN explained. The news story also includes information about what software security companies McAfee and Bitdefender are doing to crack down on scam texts. Despair not iPhone users, you can find tips for stopping scam texts here.
Keeping youth on guard. This week we saw headlines about the arrest of four individuals in a “sextortion” scam that resulted in a 17-year-old California teenager's suicide. The perpetrators were arrested in the Ivory Coast (from where they can't be extradited) and allegedly targeted thousands of victims across the U.S., Canada and Europe. The teenager who took his life in 2022 believed he was communicating with a woman when he exchanged nude photos. He ended his life when he was unable to pay the money demanded by the sextortionists. Several sources, including the FBI, indicate that sextortion cases are on the rise. A recent article posted on the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus website cites government statistics indicating that between October 2021 and March 2023, at least 20 suicides occurred. It also mentions that most sextortion victims are young males. How can teens protect themselves, you ask? The FBI website offers a detailed webpage that includes information specifically to help teens understand what sextortion is, how to stay safe, and how to get help if targeted by a sextortionist. One valuable FBI message for teens: You are not the one in trouble. The FBI page also has advice for guardians about how to talk to kids about sextortion. Why not spend some valuable time checking out the links in this segment and then spreading the word—online and in the real world.
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