November 2023

This time of year, you’re probably buying lots of things online. Gifts, decorations, food! But what if something you’ve ordered shows up different than advertised? Or damaged? Or never comes at all? If so, you’re not alone.

Trouble making car payments? Worried about repossession? Unexpected life events, like a job loss or drop in income, may affect your ability to pay your bills, including car payments. If you’re worried that you won’t be able to make your next car payment, take action as soon as possible. If you get behind on your payments, your lender could repossess your car — sometimes without warning. Read on to learn what to do.

Giving Tuesday is a terrific time to support your favorite cause or charity. Here’s how to avoid charity scams and make your donations count.

Say you’re interested in learning about your family’s ancestry or your likelihood of developing certain genetically related health conditions. You compare reviews online and order a DNA testing kit. But can you trust the marketing claims and reviews you find? The law, the FTC, and the State of California say you should be able to.

Starting November 20, every U.S. household can again place an order to receive four more free COVID-19 rapid tests delivered directly to their home.

Voice cloning technologies can generate a near-perfect voice clone based on a short audio clip or snippet of someone’s voice. The technology has potential to help people—for example, people who've lost their ability to speak, offering them a powerful and valuable means of communication. But, in the wrong hands, voice cloning technologies can do harm.

You may have heard us say when you’re shopping online, check things out before checkout. The same advice applies to giveaways on social media sites like Facebook and Instagram. Here’s why: One in four people who reported losing money to fraud since 2021 said it started on social media. Scammers make it hard to tell what’s real and what’s fake. Want to avoid scams on your feed? Slow your scroll and keep reading to find out how.

Found a job listing to telework as a Spanish translator or a data entry clerk with great benefits and pay? Scammers are impersonating real employers on legitimate platforms like ZipRecruiter and Indeed. When you respond, they might even schedule interviews and send you paperwork that looks legit. But it’s all a scam to get your information and steal your money or your identity. Here’s how to know you’re dealing with a scam.

You're online and see a chance to try a new skin cream for free. You might think: why not? Well, for starters, that free trial might not be free at all.

Scammers call or email, pretending to be from the VA or your home loan servicer. They claim if you pay them an upfront fee, they can get you a loan modification or refinancing to avoid foreclosure, so you can keep your home. But that’s illegal. Do you know your rights when it comes to getting relief for your mortgage debt?

Scammers speak your language. That's why the FTC now takes reports in multiple languages. To report in Mandarin, Tagalog, Vietnamese, French, Arabic, Korean, Russian, Portuguese, Polish, and many other languages, call the FTC at (877) 382-4357. Press 3 to speak to an interpreter. To report identity theft, call (877) 438-4338 and choose the option for your preferred language. Lines are open between 9am-5pm Eastern.

As we approach Veterans Day, we thank our veterans for their service and sacrifice. But not everyone has a vet’s best interests in mind. Whether you left the service decades ago or you’re planning your transition to civilian life, scammers will try to get you to send money or share personal information. Scammers also want to get their hands on the valuable benefits you earned through military service. What are some ways to know you’re dealing with a scammer?

Paying a monthly membership fee to get instant cash advances of up to $250, with no hidden fees might sound like a great idea. But what if most people who enroll don’t get anything close to $250, get stuck with a hard-to-cancel membership, and are charged hidden fees? That’s deceptive, according to an FTC lawsuit and settlement with Bridge It, Inc. — a personal finance app also known as Brigit.