Fashion faux pas
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is sending payments totaling nearly $2.4 million to consumers who bought products from California-based "fast fashion" retailer Fashion Nova, which the FTC alleged blocked negative reviews of its products from being posted on its website. When the FTC brought the case in 2022, it was the agency's first case involving a company’s efforts to conceal negative customer reviews. The agency alleged that Fashion Nova, which primarily sold its products online, misrepresented that the product reviews on its website reflected the views of all purchasers who submitted reviews, when in fact it suppressed reviews with ratings lower than four stars out of five. According to the FTC's complaint, Fashion Nova used a third-party online product review management interface to automatically post four- and five-star reviews to its website and hold lower-starred reviews for the company’s approval. But from late 2015 until November 2019, Fashion Nova never approved or posted the hundreds of thousands of lower-starred, more negative reviews. Consumers who have questions about the forthcoming payments should contact the refund administrator at the contact number included in the agency's most recent press release. In other good news, in the years since the settlement was first reached, the FTC announced a final rule to combat fake reviews and testimonials by prohibiting their sale or purchase and allowing the agency to seek civil penalties against knowing violators. Among several prohibitions in the 2024 rule, businesses cannot misrepresent that the reviews on their website include all or most of the reviews received if, in fact, the company is not displaying low-rating or negative reviews.
EBT is not for thee (dear crook)
The U.S. Attorney's Office announced the arrest in Los Angeles of five men who were allegedly using information from “skimmed” electronic benefit transfer (EBT) cards to “clone” counterfeit cards and steal funds from low-income consumers. During an operation earlier this month, some 70 law enforcement officers monitored ATM locations across the Los Angeles area to identify individuals who were making multiple cash withdrawals with cards encoded with information that had been stolen from benefit cards issued by the state's department of social services. Authorities made arrests after determining that the suspects making the ATM withdrawals were not entitled to the funds. In a statement, Acting United States Attorney Joseph T. McNally said that the fraudulent activity "contributed to significant financial losses, undermining an essential lifeline for struggling families," and that his office, in close collaboration with law enforcement counterparts, "will continue to root out this criminal conduct and protect our most vulnerable citizens from further exploitation.” The five defendants arrested this month allegedly stole as much as $25,480, although the problem is much bigger than that sum suggests. According to the U.S. Attorney’s press release, the California Department of Social Services detected more than $126.8 million stolen from EBT cards in 2024. Here's to lots more crooks getting caught in 2025.
One gut punch after another
Scammers at the ready. A Los Angeles Times article reposted on Yahoo News told the story of a near-retirement age couple, Judy and Stefan Zweig, who lost everything in the January Palisades fire and then became targets of identity thieves. When Stefan visited the local Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) disaster recovery center to complete a FEMA registration using his Social Security number, birth date and address, he learned that someone had already completed a registration using his information but with a different phone number and email address. Judy told The Times that "It just felt like a gut punch." The article describes the steps the couple took to report the identity theft to FEMA, the Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Justice, including with the help of their own daughter, who is an attorney. But there appears to be no quick fix. The Times explained that when the couple tried to register again, Judy was told they'd have to wait until the case was resolved. FEMA spokesperson Brandi Richard Thompson told The Times that FEMA has 30 days to review cases like the Zweigs’, where there's already an application on file for their address, whether for fraud or any other reason. Check out the LA Times piece for insight from a local professor and attorney about the rising levels of identity theft and the difficulty in tracking down and prosecuting the perpetrators.
Fraudsters like to network. Within a few days of the Los Angeles fires, The San Francisco Standard reported on another type of disaster scam that consumers should be wary of regardless of where they live or the type of disaster they might experience in their region. The news story explained that con artists were flooding LinkedIn with attempts to swindle disaster victims out of cash, and that it appeared that at least some people were believing fraudsters’ promises of “support.” The Standard said that in a typical LinkedIn con, "fraudsters try to draw victims off the platform and into WhatsApp chats, then convince them to fork over cryptocurrency in exchange for 'consulting services' to help boost their GoFundMe campaigns." The Standard explains how the news organization "went down the rabbit hole," setting “bait” posts on LinkedIn, and speaking by phone and text with nearly a dozen scammers. The main goal of the scammers, The Standard explained, was to convince their targets that their GoFundMe campaigns (for whatever cause) were doing poorly and that they could do much better if they agreed to pay hundreds of dollars to improve their poor fundraising progress. The news piece includes screenshots of WhatsApp chats with actual scammers. Community educators might want to use the images, and The Standard's descriptions of phone calls with scammers, in scam prevention workshops. Check them out here.
Tips
No fun in the sun. The Las Vegas Sun recently reported that the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) Immigration Clinic is warning consumers about fraudsters who are impersonating immigration officers and trying to obtain bank account or other personal information. The story cites clinic director Michael Kagan as saying that immigrants can be “very vulnerable because of fear," and that the reports received by the clinic have "some telltale signs" of scams and not of actual ICE operations. The Sun explains that the UNLV's Immigration Clinic advised people not to disclose financial information to anyone purporting to be an immigration agent. “ICE officers will not ask for access to assets, including cash, nor for information about bank accounts,” the clinic is cited as saying. In addition, the clinic advises those encountering an immigration officer to remain silent—it protects against scammers and protects immigration rights, The Sun article explained. Good to know on both counts. Spread the word.
Only prize is jail time. A California man, Fabrisio Arias, was sentenced earlier this month to 41 months in prison for his part in an international scam that tricked seniors into paying thousands of dollars in "fees" and "taxes" to receive supposed sweepstakes prize winnings. According to the U.S. Attorney, Arias was a member of an international conspiracy that defrauded older adults in the U.S. and laundered large sums of money. Coconspirators in Costa Rica would call their targets in the U.S. using spoofed numbers and pretended to be with Internal Revenue Service or the Federal Trade Commission. They convinced consumers to send payments in the form of a cashier’s check, blank money order or cash to Arias, who was supposedly a government accountant. Arias, in turn, would transfer most of the ill-gotten gains to the foreign coconspirators. Consumers who made payments were contacted again and asked for even more money. Of course, the sweepstakes prize did not exist. The harm brought onto many older adults was severe. The U.S. Attorney describes one consumer who ended up needing to get a reverse mortgage; another had to obtain money from a family member’s college fund; and another had to return to work after retirement. Several victims lost their life savings, including a victim whose entire 401(k) retirement account was drained. If you think you’ve been contacted by a scammer, the U.S Attorney says, report it quickly to the FBI at IC3.gov. The faster you report it, the more likely they can stop the transaction and recover your money. Consumers can also receive assistance in reporting elder fraud by calling the National Elder Fraud Hotline at 833-FRAUD-11, or by going to the Department of Justice’s Elder Justice Initiative website for more information: www.justice.gov/elderjustice.
Heads up at the ATM. Central California's FOX 26 News provided a good reminder for all of us to exercise caution when using ATMs or fuel pumps. The Madera County Sheriff's Office issued a warning to the community after it received multiple reports of fraudulent activity linked to ATMs in Oakhurst, California, FOX 26 explained. According to the Sheriff's Community Safety Message, the investigation revealed that most of the victims had used ATM machines at a particular bank branch in Oakhurst. Deputies found that two branch ATM machines had illegal skimmers attached to them. The Sheriff's Office encouraged extra vigilance when using any kind of "automated financial machine," such as an ATM or fuel pump. Among the things to watch for are signs of tampering with the machines; loose or damaged parts around the card reader or cash/receipt dispenser; missing emblems or mismatched colors; small cameras (as seen in a provided photo link); and other oddities. When in doubt, the Sheriff's Office says, complete your transaction at the register or counter inside the business you are visiting. Consumers who encounter this type of scheme should report it to police.
No pal of yours, or mine. Last week, Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday issued an advisory to Pennsylvanians to be on the lookout for a trending cyber scam that involves the scammer sending “invoices” through PayPal. Whether you're from the Keystone State or not, lean in: As part of the ruse, the AG's office explains, scammers use PayPal to send requests for payment to a target’s email inbox, sometimes repeatedly, making the matter appear urgent. The messages attached to the requests often contain a toll-free number and a directive to call. If a consumer calls the number, the scammer will try to obtain personal information. The AG's office recommends that consumers take two steps: First, check the email address. If the email is not from “service@paypal.com,” ignore it. Second, check the request. Even if the invoice appears to be coming from a legitimate address, if you do not recognize the payment being requested, it is always safest to ignore it. In addition, the AG advises consumers who receive concerning invoices from PayPal to contact PayPal customer service at PayPal.com. Filing complaints with the AG's office can also help protect the public from similar scams.
Teaming up against scammers. In recognition—and celebration—of National Consumer Protection Week 2025, happening next month, we've planned a webinar that is sure to offer many takeaways, tips and best practices for protecting our communities against fraud. Our "Collaborating for Consumers: Working together to stop scams" webinar will take a close look at how community-based organizations, consumer advocacy groups and private industry, along with government and law enforcement agencies, can work together to protect consumers and derail fraudsters' latest shenanigans. Webinar panelists will include subject matter experts from AARP, the FTC, and Amazon’s customer protection and enforcement team. Mark your calendars for the Tuesday, March 4, 90-minute virtual event (happening at 10:00 a.m. PT / 11:00 a.m. MT / 12:00 p.m. CT / 1:00 p.m. ET) and register here.
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