Federal Trade Commission press releases

FTC Takes Action Against Elite Events for Bypassing Ticket Purchase Limits in Violation of Better Online Ticket Sales Act

Proposed order settling FTC allegations will require company and its executives to pay $300,000 and ban them from using unlawful tactics to bypass ticket purchase limits Ticket broker Elite Events and its operators will pay $300,000 in civil penalties to resolve Federal Trade Commission allegations that the firm purchased millions of dollars’ worth of tickets to high-demand events by illegally circumventing measures designed to limit the number of tickets that can be purchased to a single event. View Press Release

FTC Returns Money to Consumers Harmed by Trend Deploy’s Deceptive Marketing

The Federal Trade Commission is sending more than $672,000 to consumers deceived by the operator of Trend Deploy, Frank Romero. The FTC is mailing 9,419 checks to affected consumers, who should cash their checks within 90 days, as indicated on the check. View Press Release

Student Loan Forgiveness Scammer Permanently Banned from Debt Relief Industry and Telemarketing

Dennise Merdjanian, an operator of a student loan debt forgiveness scheme, will be permanently banned from the debt relief industry and telemarketing under a proposed order resolving the Federal Trade Commission’s charges that she and other operators took more than $45.9 million from consumers as part of their illegal student loan debt relief operatio View Press Release

Founders of Celsius Network Ordered to Pay $16.5 Million to Resolve FTC Charges

Proposed orders also ban defendants from marketing or selling products or services that can be used to deposit or withdraw assets Alexander Mashinsky, the former CEO of cryptocurrency platform Celsius Network Inc. (Celsius), and his business partners, Shlomi Daniel Leon and Hanoch “Nuke” Goldstein, will pay a total of $16.5 million to resolve the Federal Trade Commission’s charges that they deceived users by falsely promising that deposits made to their cryptocurrency platform would be safe and always available. View Press Release

FTC Approves Final Order Against TruHeight for Deceptive and Unsubstantiated Advertising of Supplements for Kids and Teens

The Federal Trade Commission finalized an order with Vanilla Chip LLC—which does business as TruHeight—and its two principals requiring them to pay $750,000, while barring them from making false or unsupported health claims and using fake or incentivized consumer reviews. View Press Release

FTC Endorses Ohio Supreme Court Proposal to Weaken ABA’s Law School Accreditation Monopoly

The Federal Trade Commission lauded an Ohio Supreme Court proposal to lower the cost of legal representation by ending the American Bar Association’s explicit control over whether an Ohio bar applicant’s legal education is sufficient for practicing law in the state, undermining its monopoly. View Press Release

FTC Secures Major Settlement with Caremark, Resolving Antitrust Case Against Second Drug Middleman

Settlement will drive down patients’ out-of-pocket costs, increase transparency and ensure community pharmacies are treated fairly The Federal Trade Commission secured a settlement agreement with one of the nation’s largest pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) and its affiliated entities, marking yet another important victory in the Commission’s fight to lower healthcare costs for Americans. View Press Release

FTC Secures $12 Million in Penalties for Pre-Merger Reporting Act Violations

FTC alleges Edwards Lifesciences and Genesis structured JC Medical deal to avoid federal antitrust review The Federal Trade Commission secured $12 million in penalties to settle charges alleging that Edwards Lifesciences Corp. acquired medical device maker JC Medical from Genesis MedTech Group Limited without complying with the notification and waiting period requirements of the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act (HSR). View Press Release

RentGrow to Pay $2.25 Million to Settle FTC Allegations the Company Violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act and FTC Act

FTC alleges tenant screening company violated the FCRA’s requirements, including by reporting duplicate records and by failing to disclose sources of data RentGrow, a provider of consumer reports for tenant screening, will be required to pay $2.25 million to settle Federal Trade Commission allegations that the company violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), including by failing to use reasonable procedures to ensure the accuracy of its reports, and the FTC Act. View Press Release

FTC, States Secure Settlement with Deere & Company, Advancing Farmers’ Right to Repair

Settlement resolves FTC and states’ lawsuit alleging Deere unfairly restricted the ability of farmers and independent technicians to repair John Deere farm equipment The Federal Trade Commission, along with five states, secured an important settlement in an antitrust lawsuit against farm equipment manufacturer Deere & Company that will ensure farmers can enjoy the right to repair their own John Deere tractors and farm equipment. View Press Release

FTC Sends More Than $2.7 Million to Consumers Harmed by Handy Technologies

View Press Release

FTC Warns Companies Making Questionable ‘Made in the USA’ Claims

Warning letters sent to seven companies urge compliance with FTC’s Made in the USA Standard The Federal Trade Commission today issued warning letters to seven companies that appear to have misrepresented certain products as “Made in the USA,” and one company that appears to have misrepresented certain products as “Made in Texas,” despite indications that such products were imported, in whole or in significant part. View Press Release