Announced Action for May 3, 2002

In accordance with the reporting provisions of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, the Commission has submitted its second annual report to Congress on the number and disposition of enforcement actions taken pursuant to Section 521 of the Act. Since submission of the first report, the FTC has filed complaints against three defendants allegedly engaged in, or soliciting others to engage in, "pretexting" - obtaining a consumer's financial information from financial institutions under false pretenses. In final settlement of each case, the Commission negotiated stipulated final judgments and orders barring future violations and requiring disgorgement of ill-gotten gains. The vote to approve release of the report was 5-0. (FTC File No. P014806, staff contact is Jeffery S. Davidson, 202-326-3315 or Christopher Keller, 202-326-3159; see related release issued January 31, 2001.)

Copies of the documents mentioned in this release are available from the FTC's Web site at http://www.ftc.gov and also from the FTC's Consumer Response Center, Room 130, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20580. Call toll-free: 1-877-FTC-HELP.