Hundreds arrested in global marketing scams

Tue. May. 23 2006, CTV.ca News Staff

 

An investigation into mass-marketing fraud scams that victimized an estimated 2.8 million people in the United States alone has netted more than 560 arrests across three continents, American authorities said Tuesday.

The U.S. Justice Department revealed the schemes were carried out through telemarketing, mass mailings and the Internet.

Losses exceeded $1 billion US in scams that included bogus lotteries, deceptive spam, sweepstakes fraud, and invitations to pour money into nonexistent investments, the department said.

Officials said elderly people were often targets of the fraud because they are perceived to be more vulnerable and willing to believe the phony offers.

The 14-month probe, which has been christened Operation Global Con, has resulted in 139 arrests in the United States, and another 426 in Canada, Costa Rica, the Netherlands, and Spain, since March 1 of this year.

Sixty-one people have been convicted in the United States to date.

"During the Operation Global Con, the (Federal Trade Commission) filed 21 federal court cases against 143 defendants and halted multi-national mass-marketing scams that cost American consumers more than $150 milllion," FTC chairman Deborah Platt Majoras said at a news conference Tuesday.

In one case, the FTC obtained a $13.9 million judgment against scammers who used telemarketing boiler rooms in Venezuela and Guatemala to trick Spanish-speaking Americans into pay advance fees that ranged from 149 to 299 for non-existent credit cards.

The court permanently banned the defendants from marketing any credit products to consumers, she said.

"Increasingly the key to successfully prosecuting these cross-border frauds is a co-ordination among law enforcers and the FTC participates in whatever capacity is needed," Majoras said.

In another example, the FTC stopped a Toronto-based operation that may have taken as much as $1 million a month from American businesses for directory listings that they neither wanted nor needed, she said.

U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez thanked his counterparts and police forces abroad for their "co-operation as we fight for consumers everywhere."

Gonzalez expressed his gratitude to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the Costa Rica attorney general's office, the Costa Rica Judicial Investigation Organization, the Amsterdam police, the Dutch public prosecutor, the Competition Bureau of Industry Canada, Phone Busters (the Canadian Anti-Fraud Call Centre), as well as six joint U.S.-Canadian task forces across Canada.

From:   http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20060523/intl_fraud_arrests_060523/20060523?hub=TopStories

 

Spam is a major problem that takes up valuable time and increases costs for consumers, business and governments.

Don't try, don't buy and don't reply to spam. Just delete it. It's a great way to prevent receiving more spam in the future.
 

Watch Out for Secret Shoppers Scam

January 12, 2006 -- Consumers have lost up to $2600 to Canadian firm.

The Better Business Bureau is alerting consumers to a Canadian company that is targeting residents in Alabama and other states as part of a "secret shoppers" scam.

The company, Secret Shoppers, seeks workers through advertisements.  Consumers responding to the company's advertisement have reported receiving a package, which includes a check that has ranged in the amounts of $974 to $2600.

The consumer is instructed to submit a probationary assignment and then take the money to Wal-Mart and through MoneyGram, send funds to a made up name in a Canadian City.  The consumer is then to fill out a worksheet indicating their experience with delivery through MoneyGram.

The BBB warns to use extreme caution if a company provides you with a check to cover the costs of any administration fees, taxes, etc. and asks you to cash the check and wire the money to their representative.

While your bank may find initially that the check appears legitimate, the BBB said experience shows that weeks later, after the funds have been transferred to the consumer, the check is found to be fraudulent or written on a stolen account and the consumer is left owing the money back to the bank.

if you have been contacted by this firm, please contact the BBB in your area.  If you have sent this firm a money transfer, contact PhoneBusters in Canada at (888) 495-8501.

The company has been reported to do business under other names, some of which are duplicates of legitimate businesses operating in the United States.  Those names include Beach Hepburn, Fifth Third Bank Co., Fifth Third Bank Kentucky Inc., Landmark Bank, Plant World and Secret Shoppers Canada Inc.

Competition Bureau shuts down Internet-based job scams

OTTAWA, February 22, 2006 - The Competition Bureau has successfully shut down two Edmonton-based Internet scams promoting resumé distribution services. Matthew Hovila, of Edmonton, Alberta, and Strategic Ecomm Inc. admitted to contraventions of the Competition Act and have agreed to pay a $100,000 administrative monetary penalty, as part of a consent agreement filed today with the Competition Tribunal.

The settlement with Matthew Hovila and Strategic Ecomm Inc. addresses the Bureau’s concerns of false and misleading representations, phoney testimonials and exaggerated ordinary selling price claims with regard to the resumé distribution services promoted on two commercial Web sites.

According to the Bureau’s investigation, consumers registered on www.oilcareer.com   or www.governmentaljobs.com   hoping to find employment in the oil and gas industry or a government position in the United States. Consumers who contacted the Bureau complained that they did not receive job offers and were unable to get a refund from the company. The Bureau received complaints from around the world, including Canada, the United States and Australia. While the majority paid $397 (U.S.), some reportedly paid as much as $1,197 (U.S.) to the Edmonton-based company.

“Consumers can be vulnerable, particularly when looking for work, and can fall prey to those offering supposedly legitimate employment services,�?said Raymond Pierce, Deputy Commissioner. “The Bureau is committed to applying the Competition Act to the online marketplace and pursuing scams on the Internet to ensure continuing consumer confidence in buying on-line.�?/FONT>

Matthew Hovila and Strategic Ecomm Inc. made misrepresentions regarding the number of companies to which resumés were forwarded, their relationships with potential employers, and the effectiveness of their services. Further they misrepresented the validity of a “money-back risk-free guarantee�?and their endorsement by an on-line third-party watchdog. Matthew Hovila and Strategic Ecomm Inc. also provided phoney customer testimonials and misled customers to believe their services were “on sale�?for a time limited special price.

Under the consent agreement, Strategic Ecomm Inc. and Matthew Hovila, have agreed, among other things, to:

• admit to having committed reviewable conduct under the Competition Act;
• pay an administrative monetary penalty of $100,000;
• publish corrective notices; and
• discontinue the offending conduct on the www.oilcareer.com and www.governmentaljobs.com Web sites.

This investigation was conducted with the assistance of the Alberta Partnership Against Cross-Border Fraud, a law enforcement partnership established to combat cross-border fraud. Its membership consists of the Alberta Government Services, RCMP “K�?Division, the Calgary Police Service, the Edmonton Police Service, the United States Federal Trade Commission, the United States Postal Inspection Service and the Competition Bureau.

Consumers who suspect they have been the victim of deceptive business practices on the Internet or who want information on the application of the Competition Act should contact the Bureau’s Information Centre at 1-800-348-5358, or visit the Web site at   www.competitionbureau.gc.ca .

The Competition Bureau is an independent law enforcement agency that promotes and maintains fair competition so that all Canadians can benefit from competitive prices, product choice and quality service. It oversees the application of the Competition Act, the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act, the Textile Labelling Act and the Precious Metals Marking Act.

http://www.phonebusters.com/english/index.html

More on these topics :

Prepared Remarks of Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales
on Arrests in “Operation Global Con,�?International Initiative Targeting Mass-Marketing Fraud
May 23, 2006

May 23, 2006
Hundreds Arrested In “Operation Global Con,�?International Initiative Targeted Mass-Marketing Fraud

More than 565 people in North and South America and Europe have been arrested as part of “Operation Global Con�?�?the largest and most far-reaching multinational enforcement operation ever directed at mass-marketing fraud schemes, the Department of Justice announced today.  

The ongoing action began on March 1, 2005, and involved unprecedented coordination by law enforcement agencies at the national and international levels. “Operation Global Con�?targeted mass-marketing schemes that were international in scope and impact, were conducted by criminal groups, and generated significant proceeds. The schemes were carried out through various methods, such as telemarketing, the Internet and mass mailings. The wide variety of schemes uncovered during the operation included so-called �?19" advance-fee schemes; foreign currency trading; bogus lottery, prize and sweepstakes schemes; offers of nonexistent investments; bogus offers of “pre-approved�?credit cards or credit-card protection; and tax fraud schemes. The 96 separate U.S. investigations in this operation led to the discovery of more than 2.8 million victims, who suffered losses totaling more than $1 billion.

“Mass-marketing fraudsters think they can use modern technology to operate from anywhere in the world with impunity,�?said Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales. “The virtual task forces that we have built with Canada, Costa Rica and the Netherlands provide a new model for us to bring these international con artists to justice.�?/FONT>

http://www.usdoj.gov/            Several more articles available on this site