July 2024

If a company selling car service contracts had tons of exceptions and exclusions to their coverage, would you want to know? Probably. But the FTC says CarShield left that part out.

Military families move regularly, sometimes every two to three years. So you may find yourself checking out new digs as you plan a move to another duty station. That’s when you could run into a rental scam, which can be hard to spot, but here are some clues.

More than 25,000 people are getting a refund check from the FTC as a result of its settlement with the house flipping scheme Zurixx, LLC. [TCP1] If you’re one of them, please cash the check as soon as possible.

The FTC says online healthcare career-training company Career Step targeted people — including military servicemembers and spouses — with false advertisements and other illegal tactics. Learn what the $43.5 million settlement means for some current and former students.

Getting an urgent call from what sounds like your utility company might make you think: Did I forget to pay my bill? The caller says there’s a way to avoid shutoff and fees: they’ll send you a barcode by text or email so you can pay at a local retailer like Walgreens, CVS, or Walmart. Don’t. It’s all a lie. Wondering how to know it’s not a real utility company calling?

There’s lots of news lately about a new immigration process for spouses and stepchildren of U.S. citizens. If you’ve been paying attention, the scammers have too. They might call, email, or send text messages claiming to have special access. Or say they can help you apply now, for a fee of course. But those are lies. Here’s how to find out if you’ll be eligible and avoid immigration scams.

Most people can probably agree that there are few things more frustrating than airline delays or cancellations that leave you stranded at the airport. Whether the issues are the result of an unprecedented event like the Crowdstrike glitch that grounded thousands of flights worldwide, or more common disturbances like weather delays, desperate travelers often turn to social media for help from the airlines. Opportunistic scammers know this, and they’re lurking behind fake accounts trying to steal travelers’ information.

You might be a spouse who’s PCS’d to a new location or a servicemember getting ready to retire — and you’re probably eyeing new career possibilities. You know where to look for a job, but do you know how to recognize the signs of a job scam?

When sellers of edible cannabis products use packaging that mimics popular kids’ cereals, snacks, and candy, the FTC and FDA take notice — and action. Edible cannabis — like cereal, gummies, cookies, candies, and chips — have cannabis that’s derived from marijuana or hemp. Some of these foods have Delta-8 THC, which is a part of cannabis that causes psychoactive and intoxicating effects. After accidentally eating edibles with THC, many kids have gotten sick and even been hospitalized.

Investment scammers claim you’ll get big returns investing in a hot new money-making “opportunity” — maybe something like cryptocurrency. Some scammers say you’ll likely make a lot of money if you follow their proven system or method. But will you?

Lots of scams start online, but sometimes the scammer parks right next to you at the bank or outside a store. People are reporting millions of dollars lost in a scam that targets active-duty military and plays on their desire to help. In this con, scammers approach servicemembers to ask for help because they lost their debit card and need to pay for something like a hotel room or groceries. They want you to transfer them money using your phone, but it's a scam.

Did you get a message on social from an “artist” asking to pay you for permission to paint your photo? It’s a scam. They don’t want to pay you — they want to take your money.

Scammers will say just about anything — in any language — to separate you from your hard-earned money. And when it comes to student loan forgiveness, they’ll target Spanish speakers with false promises of debt relief help.

If you live in the path of Hurricane Beryl as it moved through Texas, recovering is your number one priority right now. Unfortunately, scammers take advantage of situations like these to strike. Here's some information to help you spot and avoid the scams as you do your best to recover.

NGL, an anonymous messaging app popular with teens, is banned from marketing to kids under 18 and must pay $4.5 million dollars to give money back to customers it deceived.

Do you need to apply for or renew your passport? If you search online, the top results might show official-looking websites that say they can renew or get you a passport. Some of these websites are private companies that charge you for services that are free on the U.S. Department of State website…while others are scammers trying to take your money and personal information.

When you’re looking for gig work, pay is likely a big — or the biggest — factor you think about. But what if a company promises you’ll make a certain amount, and then ends up paying you less?