Proposed FTC Order will Prohibit Telehealth Firm Cerebral from Using or Disclosing Sensitive Data for Advertising Purposes, and Require it to Pay $7 Million
Retrieved on:
Thursday, April 18, 2024
Key Points:
District court
FTC Action Leads to Industry Ban for Ringleader of Student Loan Debt Relief Scam
Retrieved on:
Thursday, April 18, 2024
The ringleader of a student loan debt relief scam will be permanently banned from the debt relief industry and is required to turn over assets as part of a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission.
Key Points:
- The ringleader of a student loan debt relief scam will be permanently banned from the debt relief industry and is required to turn over assets as part of a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission.
- The settlement with Marco Manzi resolves FTC charges involving the student loan debt relief scheme.
- The FTC said that Apex operators pocketed approximately $8.8 million in junk fees by luring students with false promises of loan forgiveness.
- The FTC has resources on how to avoid student loan debt relief scams at ftc.gov/StudentLoans.
Proposed FTC Order will Prohibit Telehealth Firm Cerebral from Using or Disclosing Sensitive Data for Advertising Purposes, and Require it to Pay $7 Million
Retrieved on:
Thursday, April 18, 2024
The order must be approved by the court before it can go into effect.
Key Points:
- The order must be approved by the court before it can go into effect.
- “As the Commission’s complaint lays out, Cerebral violated its customers’ privacy by revealing their most sensitive mental health conditions across the Internet and in the mail,” said FTC Chair Lina M. Khan.
- “To address this betrayal, the Commission is ordering a first-of-its-kind prohibition that bans Cerebral from using any health information for most advertising purposes."
- Cerebral provides online mental health and related services on a negative option basis, which means consumers are automatically charged unless they cancel those services.
- Despite promising that consumers could “cancel anytime,” Cerebral required its clients to navigate a complex, multi-step, and often multi-day process to cancel.
- The complaint alleges that the company continued to charge consumers while it slow-walked consumers’ cancellation requests, which cost consumers millions in additional charges.
- The proposed order, which must be approved by a federal court before it can go into effect, only applies to Cerebral.
- The Commission voted 3-0 to refer the complaint against Cerebral and Robertson and a stipulated final order with Cerebral to the Department of Justice for filing.
- The DOJ filed the complaint and stipulated order in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.
FTC Action Leads to Industry Ban for Ringleader of Student Loan Debt Relief Scam
Retrieved on:
Thursday, April 18, 2024
The ringleader of a student loan debt relief scam will be permanently banned from the debt relief industry and is required to turn over assets as part of a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission.
Key Points:
- The ringleader of a student loan debt relief scam will be permanently banned from the debt relief industry and is required to turn over assets as part of a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission.
- The settlement with Marco Manzi resolves FTC charges involving the student loan debt relief scheme.
- The FTC said that Apex operators pocketed approximately $8.8 million in junk fees by luring students with false promises of loan forgiveness.
- The FTC has resources on how to avoid student loan debt relief scams at ftc.gov/StudentLoans.
Alcohol Addiction Treatment Firm will be Banned from Disclosing Health Data for Advertising to Settle FTC Charges that It Shared Data Without Consent
Retrieved on:
Friday, April 12, 2024
Key Points:
Alcohol Addiction Treatment Firm will be Banned from Disclosing Health Data for Advertising to Settle FTC Charges that It Shared Data Without Consent
Retrieved on:
Friday, April 12, 2024
The Federal Trade Commission has taken action against an alcohol addiction treatment service for allegedly disclosing users’ personal health data to third-party advertising platforms, including Meta and Google, for advertising without consumer consent, after promising to keep such information confidential.
Key Points:
- The Federal Trade Commission has taken action against an alcohol addiction treatment service for allegedly disclosing users’ personal health data to third-party advertising platforms, including Meta and Google, for advertising without consumer consent, after promising to keep such information confidential.
- As part of a proposed order settling the FTC allegations, New York-based Monument, Inc. will be banned from disclosing health information for advertising and must obtain users’ affirmative consent before sharing health information with third parties for any other purpose.
- “This action continues the FTC’s work to ensure strict limits on how firms handle sensitive health data, rather than putting the onus on consumers to protect themselves,” said Samuel Levine, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection.
- Monument used these pixels and APIs to track “standard” and “custom events,” meaning instances in which consumers interacted with Monument’s website.
- If the company is found to have misrepresented its finances, it will be required to pay the full amount.
- The Commission voted 3-0 to refer the complaint and stipulated final order to the Department of Justice for filing.
- The DOJ filed the complaint and stipulated order in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
SEC Charges Former Arista Networks Chairman Andy Bechtolsheim with Insider Trading
Retrieved on:
Tuesday, March 26, 2024
Washington, D.C.--(Newsfile Corp. - March 26, 2024) - The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced insider trading charges against Andreas “Andy” Bechtolsheim, the founder and Chief Architect of Silicon Valley-based technology company Arista Networks, Inc. To settle the SEC’s charges, Bechtolsheim agreed to pay a civil penalty of nearly $1 million.
Key Points:
- Washington, D.C.--(Newsfile Corp. - March 26, 2024) - The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced insider trading charges against Andreas “Andy” Bechtolsheim, the founder and Chief Architect of Silicon Valley-based technology company Arista Networks, Inc. To settle the SEC’s charges, Bechtolsheim agreed to pay a civil penalty of nearly $1 million.
- According to the SEC’s complaint, Bechtolsheim misappropriated material nonpublic information regarding the impending acquisition of Acacia Communications, Inc., a manufacturer of highspeed optical interconnect products.
- The SEC alleges that Bechtolsheim, who was Arista Networks’s chair at the time, learned of Acacia’s impending acquisition on July 8, 2019, through his and Arista Networks’s longstanding relationship with another multinational technology company that was also considering acquiring Acacia and consulted with Bechtolsheim concerning the potential acquisition.
- Immediately after learning this information, Bechtolsheim allegedly traded Acacia options in the accounts of a close relative and an associate.
Genesis Agrees to Pay $21 Million Penalty to Settle SEC Charges
Retrieved on:
Tuesday, March 19, 2024
“We charged Genesis with failing to register its retail crypto lending product before offering it to the public, bypassing essential disclosure requirements designed to protect investors,” said SEC Chair Gary Gensler.
Key Points:
- “We charged Genesis with failing to register its retail crypto lending product before offering it to the public, bypassing essential disclosure requirements designed to protect investors,” said SEC Chair Gary Gensler.
- At the time, Genesis held approximately $900 million in crypto assets from 340,000 Gemini Earn investors.
- Genesis and two affiliates filed voluntary Chapter 11 petitions in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York on January 19, 2023.
- Investors have been unable to access or withdraw the crypto assets they invested with Genesis via Gemini Earn.
SEC Charges 17 Individuals in $300 Million Crypto-Asset Ponzi Scheme Targeting the Latino Community
Retrieved on:
Thursday, March 14, 2024
Today’s complaint follows the SEC’s successful emergency action in September 2022 that halted the CryptoFX scheme and charged its two main principals, Mauricio Chavez and Giorgio Benvenuto.
Key Points:
- Today’s complaint follows the SEC’s successful emergency action in September 2022 that halted the CryptoFX scheme and charged its two main principals, Mauricio Chavez and Giorgio Benvenuto.
- “Our efforts bore significant fruit as the charges and allegations today demonstrate.”
According to the SEC’s complaint, CryptoFX purported to trade in crypto asset and foreign exchange markets for investors but was in reality a Ponzi scheme. - The complaint alleges that CryptoFX raised $300 million from investors but did not use most of the funds for its claimed trading purposes.
- The SEC encourages investors to check the backgrounds of anyone selling or offering them an investment using the free and simple search tool on Investor.gov .
Innodata Shareholder Lawsuit Filed By Block & Leviton – Investors Who Have Lost Money Should Contact The Firm
Retrieved on:
Wednesday, April 10, 2024
and is brought on behalf of investors that incurred damages on their purchases in Innodata, Inc. securities between May 9, 2019 and February 14, 2024, inclusive.
Key Points:
- and is brought on behalf of investors that incurred damages on their purchases in Innodata, Inc. securities between May 9, 2019 and February 14, 2024, inclusive.
- A class has not yet been certified, and until certification occurs, you are not represented by an attorney.
- Block & Leviton is widely regarded as one of the leading securities class action firms in the country.
- You can learn more about us at our website, www.blockleviton.com , or call (617) 398-5600 or email [email protected] with any questions.