is refund check from ftc legit

The Federal Trade Commission Act authorizes this information collection for purposes of managing online comments. Memo from Chair Lina M. Khan to commission staff and commissioners regarding the vision and priorities for the FTC. It is your choice whether to submit a comment. . The FTC and its law enforcement partners announced actions against several income scams that conned people out of hundreds of millions of dollars by falsely telling them they could make a lot of money. We wont post comments that include vulgar messages, personal attacks by name, or offensive terms that target specific people or groups. I'd expect the SEC, FBI, CIA, and especially the FTC to have the most advanced tools to vet and locate rule breakers. Recipients who have questions about their refund should contact the refund administrator, Rust Consulting, at 866-730-8147 or by email at admin@AMGServicesRefund.com. The FTC is sending almost $25 million in refund checks to over 240,000 people who lost money as a result of a sweepstakes scam run by Next-Gen Inc. Next-Gen allegedly promised cash prizes to customers to participate in sweepstakes or "game of skill" contests. In these cases, we send an email from the FTC (subscribe@subscribe.ftc.gov) to payment recipients prior to payment. I didnt cash my check right away. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has announced that it is returning more than $172 million to consumers who . Last year, FTC cases returned $483 million to people who lost money to companies the FTC sued. A monster rises in a lab. Ifyou have any otherquestions, please call the refund administrator at1-800-591-4238. Youve probably heard: this holiday season, it might be harder to find the gifts youre looking for. , which focused on fairness and equity but also said, clearly, not to overpromise what your algorithm or AI-based tool can deliver. Opinions in comments that appear in this blog belong to the individuals who expressed them. Memo from Chair Lina M. Khan to commission staff and commissioners regarding the vision and priorities for the FTC. And remember that the FTC will never require you to pay fees in advance, or ask for sensitive information, like your bank account number. Have you heard about it? Find legal resources and guidance to understand your business responsibilities and comply with the law. Stephanie T. Nguyen, Chief Technology Officer, Competition and Consumer Protection Guidance Documents, You can findanswers tocommon questions about refund payments on, HSR threshold adjustments and reportability for 2023, A Century of Technological Evolution at the Federal Trade Commission, National Consumer Protection Week 2023 Begins Sunday, March 5, FTC at the 65th Annual Heard Museum Guild Indian Fair & Market - NCPW 2023, Getting In and Out of Free Trials, Auto-Renewals, and Negative Option Subscript, FTC Sends More Than $12 Million in Full Refunds to Victims of Online Billing Scam, Court Holds Terrason Spinks and Jet Processing Inc. For statistics about where refunds were sent, the dollar amounts refunded, and the number of people who benefited from FTC refund programs, visit our interactive dashboards. . Got questions about your refund? I went through your questions and our process conforms to them, we say that AI isn't magic, it is math. Fed-up with "Fluffy Marketing"! They do not belong to or represent views of the Federal Trade Commission. Youve probably heard: this holiday season, it might be harder to find the gifts youre looking for. We wont post comments that include personal information, like Social Security numbers, account numbers, home addresses, and email addresses. Estimate your payment amount And remember that the FTC will never ask you to pay money or give your account info to get a refund. If you believe you have been affected by an FTC case that is not listed at ftc.gov/refunds, you can file a complaint at reportfraud.ftc.gov. The agency is sending refund checks to two million people over the next two weeks. The FTC works to fulfill its mission in many ways, including bringing cases against companies who are being unfair or deceptive. In fact, they're a preferred payment method for large transactions, such as real estate purchases. And you cant say youre not responsible because that technology is a black box you cant understand or didnt know how to test. The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely. Learn more about your rights as a consumer and how to spot and avoid scams. The site is secure. Our mission is protecting consumers and competition by preventing anticompetitive, deceptive, and unfair business practices through law enforcement, advocacy, and education without unduly burdening legitimate business activity. BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA - The FTC is sending refund checks to more than 541,000 people who paid for repairs and technical services when they took their computers to Office Depot or Office Max. Your thoughts, ideas, and concerns are welcome, and we encourage comments. Know that you only need to provide your name and email address to create a PayPal account. The FTC and its law enforcement partners announced actions against several income scams that conned people out of hundreds of millions of dollars by falsely telling them they could make a lot of money. Use our visualizations to explore scam and fraud trends in your state based on reports from consumers like you. HSR threshold adjustments and reportability for 2023, A Century of Technological Evolution at the Federal Trade Commission, National Consumer Protection Week 2023 Begins Sunday, March 5, FTC at the 65th Annual Heard Museum Guild Indian Fair & Market - NCPW 2023, FTC Sends Nearly $5 Million in Refunds to People who Lost Money to Cramming Scheme, Company That Placed Crammed Charges on Consumers Phone Bills Settles FTC Contempt Charges, FTC Seeks Return of $52 Million Worth of Bogus Phone Bill Cramming Charges; Agency Charges Nation's Largest Third-Party Billing Company with Contempt, Crammers Settle FTC Charges (October 1999), FTC Enforcement Actions Continue to Target "Crammers". In these cases, we send an email from the FTC (subscribe@subscribe.ftc.gov) to payment recipients prior to payment. And all manner of robots serve or control us. But keep in mind, this is a moderated blog. Heres what you need to know about these calls. Free e-filing tools are available at, You must submit your request in writing by mail or email. If there is still money available in the settlement fund, we may be able to reissue your payment. Report that to us at, doTERRA distributors charged with making unfounded COVID-19 cure claims, Tenant screening practices: the FTC wants to learn more. Its usually for more than they owe you, and its sometimes for several thousand dollars. If you do, you must create a user name, or we will not post your comment. We don't edit comments to remove objectionable content, so please ensure that your comment contains none of the above. Whenever possible, the FTC uses the money it collects from defendants to provide refunds to injured consumers. Advertisers should take another look at our. If you have any other questions, please call the refund administrator at1-866-898-5106. Learn about getting and using credit, borrowing money, and managing debt. Yes, the FTC sometimes uses PayPal to distribute refunds. Please call for details. But the fact is that some products with AI claims might not even work as advertised in the first place. Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Over the last 5 years, more than 95% of the money collected for refunds has been returned to consumers. And what exactly is artificial intelligence anyway? An official website of the United States government. For more information about the FTCs refund process, see How the FTC Provides Refunds. For more information on how the FTC handles information that we collect, please read our privacy policy. Breathless media accounts dont help, but it starts with the companies that do the developing and selling. This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions. To protect your privacy and the privacy of other people, please do not include personal information. If you receive a 1099 tax form with your check, you should report the payment as income on your tax return. huge damage to the human race. The message says theres something wrong with Its Cyber Security Awareness month, so the tricks scammers use to steal our personal information are on our minds. Refund amounts will depend on how much the FTC is able to collect from the defendants and how many people lost money. A.I accelerate till the camer tell it the cars are all stopped. If you have questions about your AMG refund check, go to the FTC's AMG refunds page, or call the refunds administrator at 1-866-730-8174. They are often printed with the names and addresses of legitimate financial institutions. Use our visualizations to explore scam and fraud trends in your state based on reports from consumers like you. Liable for $280 Million in Consumer Harm Caused by the IWorks Scheme, IWorks Billing Scheme Ringleader Agrees to Settle FTC Charges, I Works Billing Scheme Defendant Agrees to Settle FTC Charges. Search the Legal Library instead. The company and phone number for each case are listed on the chart. If you were a little too jolly with your holiday spending, here are some tips to help you pay down your credit card debt. The .gov means its official. We don't edit comments to remove objectionable content, so please ensure that your comment contains none of the above. We enforce federal competition and consumer protection laws that prevent anticompetitive, deceptive, and unfair business practices. The FTC enforces consumer protection laws to stop illegal business practices and get refunds to people who lost money. Make smart shopping decisions, know your rights, and solve problems when you shop or donate to charity. Before labeling your product as AI-powered, note also that merely using an AI tool in the development process is not the same as a product having AI in it. DANGER, WILL ROBINSON, DANGER! You can't write software for this as sensor cant see behind the car in front , we can. They do not belong to or represent views of the Federal Trade Commission. The FTC reports how much money was returned to consumers, how much was spent on administrative costs, and how much was sent to the U.S. Treasury when there were leftover funds, each year and for every case, on the agencys Refunds Dashboard. You dont have to pay for an FTC refund, and you dont have to give any information to cash a refund check. The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely. to protect its customer data, falsely advertised that it protected sensitive customerdata with the same high-level safeguards used by financial institutions, and falsely claimed it provided 24/7/365 alerts as soon as it received any indication a customer's identity was being used. Choose "Office Depot" from the "Select a Case" box in the top right corner, then click on your state on the map. Yes, the FTC sometimes uses PayPal to distribute refunds. Once payments have been issued,PayPal sends an email telling recipients about their refund. If there is any money left in the settlement fund after the first distribution, the FTC may send a second round of payments. One of those scams was 8 Figure Dream Lifestyle, which touted a proven business model and told Scammers are calling people and using the names of two companies everyone knows, Apple and Amazon, to rip people off. Free e-filing tools are available at www.irs.gov/freefile. How can a TEMPORARY PAUSE be put on a technology that is being unleashed faster than high-tech firms can safely deploy / control it? If you get a check, please cash it within 90days. The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely. They always have a good story to explain why you cant keep all the money. But keep in mind, this is a moderated blog. Whether it's a refund scam promising to get your money back or a recovery scam claiming to get you the prize or products you were promised . Users can explore refund data, HSR threshold adjustments and reportability for 2023, A Century of Technological Evolution at the Federal Trade Commission, National Consumer Protection Week 2023 Begins Sunday, March 5, FTC at the 65th Annual Heard Museum Guild Indian Fair & Market - NCPW 2023. We work to advance government policies that protect consumers and promote competition. By that time, the scammer has any money you sent, and youre stuck paying the money back to the bank. Because there is still money in the fund, the FTC is sending another round of payments to people who previously cashed a check or accepted a PayPal payment and have a valid email address on file. Dont click on any links in emails that seem to be from the FTC or from PayPal. The site is secure. If you get a refund from the FTC, just deposit or cash the check within 60 days. If you get a call from someone who says theyre from the FTC but asks you for money or sensitive information, please tell the real FTC at ftc.gov/complaint. We review all comments before they are posted, and we wont post comments that dont comply with our commenting policy. Where can I learn more about how the FTC provides refunds? to remember what Forbidden Planet / Lost in Spaces Robby the Robot said . The Federal Trade Commission(FTC), working in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Justice, announced on Thursday (Sept. 27 .. Memo from Chair Lina M. Khan to commission staff and commissioners regarding the vision and priorities for the FTC. The FTC is sending refund checks to consumers who lost money as a result of Avant's lending practices. If you have any other questions, please call the refund administrator at1-866-898-5106. Call the refund administrator, Analytics, at 855-744-1802. . Before sharing sensitive information, make sure youre on a federal government site. Start small, then add on. The Federal Trade Commission Act authorizes this information collection for purposes of managing online comments. What to know when you're looking for a job or more education, or considering a money-making opportunity or investment. By that time, the scammer has any money you sent, and you're stuck paying the money back to the bank. Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. on the long-run . Payments are expected to be issued between October 2022 and January 2023. Some of us are actually doing AI/ML and it is a game changer, it just isn't going to be a panacea, just tools to make sense of data and make things quicker and easier. If you think youve been targeted by a fake check scam, report it to. The site is secure. Because the FTC recovered additional money from the defendants, the agency is sending a second round of payments. The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely. Your performance claims would be deceptive if they lack scientific support or if they apply only to certain types of users or under certain conditions. CI has also created a short video about how to protect yourself from scams, posted on IRS-CI's YouTube page. Does the product actually use AI at all? . The FTC is a federal government agency that gets its budget from Congress. This article rubbed me the wrong way when I first read it, I had to let it sit for 24 hours and think about it. Find the resources you need to understand how consumer protection law impacts your business. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure youre on a federal government site. but someone must be able to make distinctions and be able to tell it what is moral, what is not, what is a fact, what is not, what is intentional miss-information what is not what is humor / sarcasm what is not, etc. Most FTC cases do not require you to file a claim. The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure youre on a federal government site. We work to advance government policies that protect consumers and promote competition. Otherwise, do some research online. In an investigation, FTC technologists and others can look under the hood and analyze other materials to see if whats inside matches up with your claims. . A puppet becomes a boy. The FTC never requires you to pay fees or asks you for sensitive information, like your Social Security number or bank account information. Hold Billing Services, Ltd.; Avery Communications, Inc.; Veterans of America Association, Ltd.; et al. One of those scams was 8 Figure Dream Lifestyle, which touted a proven business model and told Scammers are calling people and using the names of two companies everyone knows, Apple and Amazon, to rip people off. Make smart shopping decisions, know your rights, and solve problems when you shop or donate to charity. Refund checks will expire on August 3, 2022 (90 days after being sent.) We may also use the agencys Consumer Sentinel Network database to find eligible recipients. Marketers should know that for FTC enforcement purposes false or unsubstantiated claims about a products efficacy are our bread and butter. Here is a list of gift cards that scammers often use with information to help report a scam. We wont post threats, defamatory statements, or suggestions or encouragement of illegal activity. For questions about your check or the refund process, call the administrator (Rust Consulting) at 1-866-730-8147, or email admin@AMGServicesRefund.com . Make smart shopping decisions, know your rights, and solve problems when you shop or donate to charity. If we do not have all the information we need to send refunds, we may request that consumers file a claim. Click on a case name to see more details about the refund program, including whether we sent checks or PayPal payments. The FTC reports how much money was returned to consumers, how much was spent on administrative costs, and how much was sent to the U.S. Treasury when there were leftover funds, each year and for every case, on the agencys, Most FTC cases do not require you to file a claim. If theres one constant among scammers, its that theyre always coming up with new schemes, like the Google Voice verification scam. To find out which recent FTC cases led to refunds, and who to contact with questions, check out ftc.gov/refunds. If the FTC contacts you about a refund, you'll find information about the case at ftc.gov/refunds .You can be sure the phone numbers and links on this page are legit. Can I speak to someone about my claim form or payment? Weve just heard, though, that scammers are trying to get into the act, using fake checks that look like the real one. AI hype is playing out today across many products, from toys to cars to chatbots and a lot of things in between. When the funds are made available in your account, the bank may say the check has cleared, but that doesnt mean its a good check. humans will need to be able to peer into what is now not transparent, the invisible gut. The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely. How do I file a claim? How do I know this FTC payment or claim form is legit? Anyone who does is scamming you. If someone claims to be from the FTC and asks for money, its a scam. In one version of the scam, you get a call and a recorded message that says its Amazon. Stephanie T. Nguyen, Chief Technology Officer, Competition and Consumer Protection Guidance Documents, Refund Programs: Frequently Asked Questions, I received a payment or claim form from the FTC. The .gov means its official. . Its an. Generally, the FTC does not issue 1099s or other tax documents to refund recipients. If something goes wrong maybe it fails or yields biased results you cant just blame a third-party developer of the technology. Right now its a hot one. I feel you folks (at the FTC) have the moral high-ground to put a TEMPORARY PAUSE on the premature unleashing of what some knowledgeable people predict ** could ** result in . Heres what you need to know about these calls. Your best bet: Dont rely on money from a check unless you know and trust the person youre dealing with. You can findanswers tocommon questions about refund payments onour FAQ page. They tell you to send some of the money back to them or to another person. An official website of the United States government. We review all comments before they are posted, and we wont post comments that dont comply with our commenting policy. The FTCs latest refund announcement involves checks totaling over $11 million going out to more than 11,000 people who paid E.M. Systems & Services, a company that falsely promised consumers with credit card debt that they would reduce their interest rates and save them thousands of dollars. FTC court orders typically require the defendants to provide a list of customers, along with their contact information, and how much they paid. We use this information to send refunds. To avoid these scammers: For more information, please read the FTCs article about phishing scams. Learn more about your rights as a consumer and how to spot and avoid scams. We work to advance government policies that protect consumers and promote competition. Earlier this month, the FTC sent over 10,000 checks totaling over $4 million to fully refund people for the amount they paid to Stark Law, a company that the FTC says collected payments for fake debt by threatening to sue or arrest people who didnt pay.