ftc consumer feature

Bureau of Consumer Protection Federal Trade Commission

Contact: Collot Guerard, 202-326-3338

Colleen Tressler, 202-326-2368

January 2001

Cracking Down on Mail, Email and Fax Scams:

Project Mailbox

A New York City woman cashed a check that she received in the mail. She thought it was a rebate for a

recent purchase shed made. It wasnt. She missed the small print on the back of the check which told her that

by cashing the check she was agreeing to be billed monthly for Internet service. The woman didnt even own

a computer.

A young couple got an email message telling them that they were specially selected to win a fabulous

Florida vacation. But once they arrived at their destination, the hotel accommodations were so shoddy, they

had to pay for an upgrade.

The owner of a printing company needed to buy a piece of office equipment. When he got an unsolicited

fax advertising bargain prices on the merchandise he needed, he quickly faxed back his order with his checking account number. The equipment never arrived, but his account was debited. He tried to contact the

company by fax, but the number had been disconnected.

Every day, consumers receive unsolicited offers by direct mail, email and fax. Most of these solicitations are for legitimate products and services and charities, but not all. Mail with deceptive and fraudulent

promotions costs consumers and businesses millions of dollars a year.

Bogus mail offers sometimes arrive in official-looking envelopes with return names and addresses that

resemble those of respected organizations. Some may appear to be personalized with handwritten addresses

and correct first class postage. Others may contain checks or notifications that the recipient is a guaranteed

winner of up to thousands of dollars. Unsolicited commercial emails, known as spam, and faxes also are

used to pitch everything from bogus credit card offers and advance fee loans to foreign lotteries and investment and pyramid schemes.

For the fourth consecutive year, the Federal Trade Commission, its partner agencies, the U.S. Postal

Inspection Service (USPIS), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and the National Association of

Attorneys General (NAAG) have collaborated on Project Mailbox, a national law enforcement and consumer education effort to halt deceptive offers sent by mail, spam, and unsolicited fax.

According to Collot Guerard, the FTC staff attorney responsible for Project Mailbox, This year, offers

using sweepstakes and prize promotions led the list of the 300 law enforcement actions. Project Mailbox

partners brought more than 180 law enforcement actions against operators using deceptive sweepstakes and

prize promotions. As a result of these activities, millions of dollars were returned to consumers who fell for

the deceptive offers.

Betty Montgomery, Attorney General of Ohio and chairman of the NAAG Consumer Protection Committee, stated that We have case after case of elderly consumers on fixed incomes buying thousands of

dollars worth of magazine subscriptions and trinkets because they believed it would increase their chances of

hitting the jackpot in a sweepstakes. While weve been able to recover millions of dollars taken from consumers over the past year, we will remain vigilant, watching our mail for the next scheme.
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Whether the fraudulent pitch comes by mail, email or fax, Jodie Bernstein, Director of the FTCs Bureau of Consumer Protection, says consumers can minimize their chances of being scammed. Here are her

suggestions:

● Dont pay for a free gift.

● If an offer asks for money in advance to claim a prize or enter a contest, dont send it.

● If you receive a check from an unknown source, dont endorse it or you may be signing a

contract for services or products you dont need.

● Document your transactions, and keep the envelopes. They are proof that the mails were

used for fraudulent solicitations.

● Never give out your credit card or bank account numbers in response to mail from an

organization you dont know.

● Check out the organization with the Attorney General or Better Business Bureau in your

state or the state where the company is located before you send money for any product or

service.

● Call the FTC if you want more information or you think youve been scammed, toll-free

1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357).

To reduce the amount of direct marketing you receive, Guerard advises consumers to contact the Direct

Marketing Association, Mail Preference Service, PO Box 9008, Farmingdale, NY 11735-9008. For email

marketing, visit the DMAs EMail Preference Service online at www.e-mps.org.

The FTC works for the consumer to prevent fraudulent, deceptive and unfair business practices in the

marketplace and to provide information to help consumers spot, stop and avoid them. To file a complaint, or

to get free information on any of 150 consumer topics, call toll-free, 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357), or

use the complaint form at www.ftc.gov. The FTC enters Internet, telemarketing, and other fraud-related

complaints into Consumer Sentinel, a secure, online database available to hundreds of civil and criminal law

enforcement agencies worldwide.

This Consumer Feature is available electronically at www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/features/mailbox.htm.

Federal Trade Commission Toll-free 1-877-FTC-HELP

 www.ftc.gov For the Consumer