Tag: Human Resources

In July 2024, the FTC announced that online career-training company, Career Step, LLC has been ordered to pay $43.5 million in debt cancellation and cash to resolve charges brought by the Federal Trade Commission that alleged the company lured consumers, specifically servicemembers and their families, with deceptive ads that falsely touted inflated employment outcomes, job placement, and partnerships with prominent companies.

Career Step will pay $27.8 million in debt cancellation and $15.7 million in cash that will be used to provide redress to consumers who were harmed by its deceptive advertising.

The Federal Trade Commission has sued online dating service Match Group, Inc. (Match), the owner of Match.com, Tinder, OKCupid, PlentyOfFish, and other dating sites, alleging that the company used fake love interest advertisements to trick hundreds of thousands of consumers into purchasing paid subscriptions on Match.com. The agency also alleges that Match has unfairly exposed consumers to the risk of fraud and engaged in other allegedly deceptive and unfair practices. For instance, the FTC alleges Match offered false promises of “guarantees,” failed to provide services to consumers who unsuccessfully disputed charges, and made it difficult for users to cancel their subscriptions.

In July 2017, the FTC obtained court orders against this Maryland-based office supply operation charged with tricking small businesses, non-profit organizations, and other consumers into paying for overpriced office and cleaning supplies they never ordered. The stipulated orders setting the FTC’s complaint barred the company and its principals from telemarketing office and cleaning supplies. It also imposed a financial judgment against them, resulting in the Commission sending  refund checks totaling more than $11.6 million to small businesses and other organizations in August 2019.