Tag: deceptive/misleading conduct

The Federal Trade Commission is taking action against motocross and ATV parts maker Cycra and its officer, Chad James, for falsely claiming that the company’s products were manufactured in the U.S. The FTC’s proposed order would stop Cycra and James from making deceptive claims about products being “Made in USA” and require them to pay a monetary judgment. In June 2023, the Commission announced the finalized order. In May 2024, the FTC sent $180,000 in refunds to consumers in this case.

On Oct. 29, 2018, the Federal Trade Commission filed a complaint in federal court against Simple Health Plans LLC, Steven J. Dorfman, and five other entities, alleging that the defendants misled people to think they were buying comprehensive health insurance that would cover preexisting medical conditions, prescription drugs, primary and specialty care treatment, inpatient and emergency hospital care, surgical procedures, and medical and laboratory testing. On Nov. 1, 2019, the FTC filed an amended complaint adding Candida Girouard as an additional defendant.  

The Federal Trade Commission has stopped scammers who the agency says facilitated an operation to prey on students seeking debt relief. The agency charges that the defendants pretended to be affiliated with the U.S. Department of Education, used deceptive loan forgiveness promises, and falsely claimed they were offering relief under the “Biden Loan Forgiveness” plan to lure students and collect millions in illegal upfront fees. 

After the FTC filed a complaint seeking to end the deceptive practices, a federal court temporarily halted the operations and froze the assets of Apex Processing Center and its owners.

In February 2024, under proposed orders settling the FTC’s charges, several defendants in the case—including Express Enrollment LLC, Intercontinental Solutions LLC, Ivan Esquivel, and Robert Kissinger were permanently banned from the debt relief industry and were ordered to turn over their assets to the FTC. In April 2024, the ringleader of the scheme, Marco Manzi, was also banned from the industry and was ordered to turn over assets as part of a settlement with the FTC.

The Federal Trade Commission is taking action against DK Automation and its owners, Kevin David Hulse and David Shawn Arnett for using unfounded claims of big returns to entice consumers into moneymaking schemes involving Amazon business packages, business coaching, and cryptocurrency. The FTC’s complaint alleges that the defendants promised consumers that they could “generate passive income on autopilot” when the truth was that few consumers ever made money from these schemes.

A proposed court order would require the defendants to turn over $2.6 million to be used to refund consumers harmed by their deception, as well as requiring them to stop their deceptive earnings pitches and follow the law.

The Federal Trade Commission is sending $2.8 million in refunds to consumers who were harmed by DK Automation and its owners, Kevin David Hulse and David Shawn Arnett, who used unfounded claims of big returns to entice consumers into moneymaking schemes involving Amazon and Walmart business packages, business coaching, and cryptocurrency.

As a result of a lawsuit filed by the Federal Trade Commission and the Utah Division of Consumer Protection (DCP), the principals of a Utah-based real estate investment training company will pay $15 million and be banned from selling money-making opportunities under a court order they have agreed to. In addition, two of the primary real estate celebrities who endorsed the training have agreed to orders that require them to pay $1.7 million.

The Federal Trade Commission is sending more than $10 million in refunds to consumers who paid for a real estate investment training program that allegedly made empty promises about earning big profits “flipping” houses.