FTC bans certain payments to stop scammers

Friday, July 01, 2016

To reduce con artists' access to consumers' cash the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has banned certain payment methods used by some telemarketers.

Under an amended FTC Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR) that went into effect earlier this month, it is illegal for telemarketers to ask consumers to pay for goods or services using:

• Cash-to-cash money transfers (such as at MoneyGram and Western Union)
• PIN numbers from cash reload cards (such as MoneyPak, Vanilla Reload, or Reloadit) packs; and  
• Unsigned checks called “remotely created checks” to withdraw money directly from consumers’ bank accounts.

If a telemarketer asks you for your bank account information, or pressures you to pay using one of these illegal methods hang up and file a complaint against them with the FTC. You can also lodge a complaint by phone in English or Spanish at call 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357).

It is usually impossible to get money back after being cheated over the phone. Also avoid revealing personal information such as credit card or bank account numbers, dates of birth, or Social Security numbers over the phone.