Dec 5, 2018 | Consumer Protection, Employment & Technology Archive
Breach of Marriott’s Starwood Guest Reservation Database Exposed Personal Information of Up to 500 Million People
On December 4, 2018, the FTC advised that Marriott International said that a breach of its Starwood guest reservation database exposed the personal information of up to 500 million people.
According to Marriott, the hackers accessed people’s names, addresses, phone numbers, e-mail addresses, passport numbers, dates of birth, gender, Starwood loyalty program account information, and reservation information. For some, they also stole payment card numbers and expiration dates. Marriott says the payment card numbers were encrypted, but it does not yet know if the hackers also stole the information needed to decrypt them.
Marriott Data Breach Began in 2014 – Individuals Who Made a Reservation at a Starwood Property On or Before September 18, 2018 Could Be Affected
The hotel chain, according to the FTC, says the breach began in 2014 and anyone who made a reservation at a Starwood property on or before September 10, 2018 could be affected. Starwood brands include W Hotels, St. Regis, Sheraton Hotels & Resorts, Westin Hotels & Resorts, Le Méridien Hotels & Resorts, and other hotel and timeshare properties.
Marriott Sets Up Information Website and Call Center to Answer Questions of Affected Customers
Marriott set up an informational website, https://answers.kroll.com, and a call center, (877) 273-9481, to answer questions. It says affected customers also can sign up for a year of free services that will monitor websites that criminals use to share people’s personal information. Marriott says the service will alert customers if their information shows up on the websites, and will also include fraud loss reimbursement and other services.
FTC Recommends Individuals Take Advantage of Free Monitoring Service and Take Additional Steps
The FTC advises that if your information was exposed, take advantage of the free monitoring service, and consider taking these additional steps:
- Check your credit reports for free from Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion by visiting annualcreditreport.com. Accounts or activity that you don’t recognize could signal identity theft. Visit IdentityTheft.gov to find out what to do.
- Carefully Review your payment card statements. Look for credit or debit card charges you don’t recognize. If you find fraudulent charges, contact your credit card company or bank right away, report the fraud, and request a new payment card number.
- Place a fraud alert on your credit files. A fraud alert warns creditors that you may be an identity theft victim and that they should verify that anyone seeking credit in your name really is you. A fraud alert is free and lasts a year.
- Consider placing a free credit freeze on your credit reports. A credit freeze makes it harder for someone to open a new account in your name, but won’t stop a thief from making charges to your existing accounts.
Marriott, according to the FTC, says it will send some customers e-mail messages with a link to its informational website. Often, phishing scammers try to take advantage of situations like this. Phishing scammers pose as legitimate companies and send e-mails with links to fake websites to try to trick people into sharing their personal information. Marriott says its e-mail will neither have any attachments nor request any information. Consumer should be aware that the safest course of action, according to the FTC, is to access the informational website by typing in the address https://answers.kroll.com.
To learn more about protecting yourself after a data breach, visit IdentityTheft.gov/databreach. For more information about steps to take after a data breach, please see:
Source: FTC.gov
Nov 28, 2018 | Consumer Protection, Employment & Technology Archive
On November 28, 2018, the Federal Trade Commission announced that it is mailing 1,251 checks totaling more than $647,000 to non-profit organizations, churches, schools, small businesses, and volunteers that were tricked into buying office supply products at higher prices or in larger quantities than they had agreed upon.
According to the FTC, in December 2015, the FTC charged the operators of Liberty Supply Company, an office supply scheme, with bilking millions of dollars from consumers by misrepresenting prices and quantities, and then demanding payment or forcing consumers to pay hefty shipping and restocking fees to return the unwanted or overpriced products.
In March 2017, the operators settled with the FTC and a federal court granted an order permanently banning the defendants from telemarketing and from misrepresenting any product or service in the future.
The average refund amount is $517.76. The FTC advises that recipients should deposit or cash checks by January 27, 2019, as indicated on the check. The FTC never requires people to pay money or provide account information to cash a refund check. To learn more about the case, contact the FTC’s refund administrator at 1-877-435-4069.
Source: FTC.gov
Nov 20, 2018 | Consumer Protection, Employment & Technology Archive
Kehoe Law Firm, P.C. is making consumers aware that a class action lawsuit was filed against Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. (“Wells Fargo”) on November 19, 2018 in United States District Court, Northern District of California, San Francisco Division, “for damages and other equitable and legal remedies from [Wells Fargo’s alleged] violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.” Allegedly, “Wells Fargo has repeatedly called Plaintiff[‘s] . . . cellular phone concerning a mortgage loan that does not belong to [Plaintiff]. Wells Fargo used an automatic telephone dialing system . . . and an artificial or prerecorded voice to make these calls.”
The class action complaint alleges that the Plaintiff
. . . has never had a customer or borrower relationship with Wells Fargo and has never consented to receive calls from Wells Fargo. Plaintiff informed Wells Fargo that it has the wrong number when it called [Plaintiff], and [Plaintiff] has asked Wells Fargo to stop calling her. Wells Fargo, nevertheless, continues to make calls to her without her consent.
Additionally, according to the complaint, the calls to Plaintiff’s cellular telephone occurred “repeatedly over the course of the past two years,” “pertain to a mortgage loan,” and “were intended for a man whom Plaintiff does not know and has never met.” The “Plaintiff did not provide her cellular telephone number to Wells Fargo and never provided express consent for Wells Fargo to call her about someone else’s mortgage or any other subject matter.”
The class action complaint defined the class as follows:
Each person within the United States who, on or after March 1, 2016, (1) received a non-emergency call to his or her cellular telephone; (2) from Wells Fargo; (3) through the use of an ATDS [Automatic Telephone Dialing System] and/or an artificial or prerecorded voice; (4) in connection with an existing or prospective Wells Fargo mortgage loan product; and (5) who did not have an existing customer relationship at the time of the calls or had a past relationship but had expressly withdrawn consent to be contacted by such means.
Do You Believe You Are a Victim of Illegal Robocalls, Text Messages, “Junk” Faxes or Telemarketing Sales Calls?
If you have received illegal robocalls, text messages, “junk” faxes or telemarketing sales calls, you may be able to recover at least $500 for each illegal call, text or fax you received and, possibly, as much as $1,500 for each illegal call, text message or facsimile that was made either willfully or knowingly in violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.
To help evaluate your potential legal claims under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, please complete KLF’s confidential Robocall Questionnaire or, if you prefer to speak with an attorney, please complete the form above on the right, e-mail [email protected] or contact Michael Yarnoff, Esq., [email protected], (215) 792-6676, Ext. 804, for a free, no-obligation evaluation of your potential legal rights.
Nov 14, 2018 | Consumer Protection, Employment & Technology Archive
Kehoe Law Firm, P.C. is making consumers aware that on November 12, 2018, a class action lawsuit was filed against AIG Direct Insurance Services, Inc. (“AIG Direct Insurance”) and other defendants, as of yet unknown, in United States District Court, Eastern District of California, “. . . seeking damages and any other available legal or equitable remedies resulting from the illegal actions of [AIG Direct Insurance] . . . in negligently, knowingly, and/or willfully contacting Plaintiff on Plaintiff’s cellular telephone in violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, 47. U.S.C. § 227 et seq. (“TCPA”) and related regulations, thereby invading Plaintiff’s privacy and causing him to incur unnecessary and unwanted expenses.”
According to the class action complaint, AIG Direct Insurance began contacting the Plaintiff in approximately July 2018 on the Plaintiff’s cellular telephone “in an attempt to solicit Plaintiff to purchase Defendant’s services.” AIG Direct Insurance “contacted or attempted to contact Plaintiff from telephone number (858) 309-3000, confirmed to belong to [AIG Direct Insurance].” Further, AIG Direct Insurance, allegedly, “placed multiple calls soliciting its business to Plaintiff on his cellular telephone” without having a prior relationship with Plaintiff or his “prior express consent.”
Do You Believe You Are a Victim of Illegal Robocalls, Text Messages, “Junk” Faxes or Telemarketing Sales Calls?
If you have received illegal robocalls, text messages, “junk” faxes or telemarketing sales calls, you may be able to recover at least $500 for each illegal call, text or fax you received and, possibly, as much as $1,500 for each illegal call, text message or facsimile that was made either willfully or knowingly in violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.
To help evaluate your potential legal claims under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, please complete KLF’s confidential Robocall Questionnaire or, if you prefer to speak with an attorney, please complete the form above on the right, e-mail [email protected] or contact Michael Yarnoff, Esq., [email protected], (215) 792-6676, Ext. 804, for a free, no-obligation evaluation of your potential legal rights.
Nov 6, 2018 | Consumer Protection, Employment & Technology Archive
On November 2, 2018, the Federal Trade Commission reported that at the request of the FTC, a federal judge temporarily shut down a Florida-based operation that, allegedly, collected more than $100 million by preying on Americans in search of health insurance, selling worthless plans that left tens of thousands of people uninsured. According to the FTC, many of these consumers have incurred substantial medical expenses and have been left with thousands of dollars in unpaid medical bills.
A federal court temporarily halted the operation pending resolution of the case, and the FTC is seeking to permanently stop the defendants’ practices and return money to consumers.
In a complaint filed in federal court against Simple Health Plans LLC, the company’s owner, Steven J. Dorfman, and five other entities, the FTC alleged that the defendants misled people to think they were buying comprehensive health insurance that would cover preexisting medical conditions, prescription drugs, primary and specialty care treatment, inpatient and emergency hospital care, surgical procedures, and medical and laboratory testing.
According to the FTC, consumers who enrolled reported paying as much as $500 per month for what was actually a medical discount program or extremely limited benefit program that did not deliver the promised benefits and effectively left consumers uninsured, the FTC alleged.
According to the FTC’s complaint, the defendants behind Simple Health lured consumers through a network of deceptive lead generation websites that claimed to provide information about comprehensive health insurance. On the websites, the defendants falsely held themselves out as experts on and providers of government-sponsored health insurance policies, such as those offered under Medicare and the Affordable Care Act. In many cases, the sites also misleadingly featured the logos of the AARP or well-known insurance carriers, such as Blue Cross Blue Shield plans, when in fact the defendants were not affiliated with such entities.
For example, one of the websites, www.trumpcarequotes.com, deceptively claimed to offer “Health Insurance for Smart People” from “the Nation’s Leading Carriers” at “Low Affordable Premiums” with “Prescription Drug Coverage.” Another Simple Health website, www.simplemedicareplans.com, promoted “Medicare Health Plans for Your Needs and Budget.”
According to the FTC’s complaint, consumers who submitted their contact information to one of the defendants’ websites or called one of the toll-free phone numbers on the sites ended up on the phone with telemarketers working for the defendants. The telemarketers often falsely identified themselves as insurance agents licensed in the consumer’s state.
The defendants’ telemarketers led consumers to believe that for a one-time enrollment fee, ranging from approximately $60 to $175, and a monthly payment, ranging from approximately $40 to $500, Simple Health could provide them with a “PPO” health insurance plan that was comprehensive and widely accepted by doctors in the consumers’ geographical areas, the FTC alleged. In many cases, they promised that the plans would have no copays or deductibles.
Those who enrolled subsequently learned that the plans they had purchased from Simple Health were not comprehensive health insurance and do not provide the promised coverage and benefits. A typical plan provides no coverage for preexisting medical conditions or prescription medications, pays only $50 toward physician visits—capped at three visits per year—and covers a maximum of $100 per day for hospitalization. The maximum benefit a consumer could realize from the plan is $3,200 per person, per year, and only if that person were hospitalized for 30 days.
The FTC alleged that as a result, tens of thousands of consumers who thought they had purchased comprehensive health insurance found themselves uninsured, some saddled with substantial medical expenses that they assumed would be covered by the purported health insurance they had obtained from Simple Health.
On top of that, because the defendants’ limited benefit plans and discount memberships do not qualify as health insurance under the Affordable Care Act, some people who enrolled were subject to a fee imposed on those who can afford health insurance, but choose not to buy it, the FTC alleged.
The defendants, according to the FTC, have been charged with violating the FTC Act and the agency’s Telemarketing Sales Rule. The defendants named in the complaint are Steven J. Dorfman, Simple Health Plans LLC, Health Benefits One LLC, Health Center Management LLC, Innovative Customer Care LLC, Simple Insurance Leads LLC, and Senior Benefits One LLC.
Source: FTC.gov
Oct 26, 2018 | Consumer Protection, Employment & Technology Archive
Kehoe Law Firm, P.C. is making consumers aware that on October 25, 2018, a class action complaint was filed against Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. (“Wells Fargo”) for alleged violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”). Wells Fargo, allegedly, “placed tens of thousands of harassing calls to wrong parties-people with no ongoing business relationship with Wells Fargo and who owe no debt.”
According to the class action complaint, Wells Fargo “engaged in this ongoing practice of contacting Plaintiff and proposed Class Members on their cellular telephones without their express consent,” and “nonetheless continued to make automated calls,” despite a June 2008 citation issued against Wells Fargo by the FCC for TCPA violations. The complaint stated that
[n]otwithstanding these prior violations of the TCPA, the FCC’s citation, and the prior class action lawsuits and settlements, Wells Fargo violated the TCPA by contacting Plaintiff and proposed Class Members on their cellular telephones by using “an artificial or prerecorded voice” . . . and/or via an “automatic telephone dialing system,” . . . without their prior express consent within the meaning of the TCPA.
Allegedly, in 2016, Wells Fargo started to place calls to the cellular telephone of the Plaintiff from telephone numbers (800) 289-8019, (248) 728-2304, and (888) 804-5037. When telephone numbers (800) 289-8019 and (888) 804-5037 were dialed, recorded messages identifying Wells Fargo played, according to the complaint. The calls to the Plaintiff’s cell phone “were intended for a recipient other than Plaintiff,” and the Plaintiff tried to get Wells Fargo to cease making calls to her cellular telephone number. Additionally, the Plaintiff, according to the class action complaint, was never a Wells Fargo customer and never had a business relationship with Wells Fargo.
The lawsuit seeks to enjoin Wells Fargo from continuing to make calls to the Plaintiff’s and other class members’ cellular telephone numbers without their prior express consent, as well as statutory damages.
Do You Believe You Are a Victim of Illegal Robocalls, Text Messages, “Junk” Faxes or Telemarketing Sales Calls?
If you have received illegal robocalls, text messages, “junk” faxes or telemarketing sales calls, you may be able to recover at least $500 for each illegal call, text or fax you received and, possibly, as much as $1,500 for each illegal call, text message or facsimile that was made either willfully or knowingly in violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.
To help evaluate your potential legal claims under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, please complete KLF’s confidential Robocall Questionnaire or, if you prefer to speak with an attorney, please complete the form above on the right, e-mail [email protected] or contact Michael Yarnoff, Esq., [email protected], (215) 792-6676, Ext. 804, for a free, no-obligation evaluation of your potential legal rights.
