II

106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 699

To protect the public, especially senior citizens, against telemarketing fraud,

including fraud over the Internet, and to authorize an educational campaign to improve senior citizens’ ability to protect themselves against

telemarketing fraud.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

MARCH 24, 1999

Mr. WYDEN (for himself and Mr. BAUCUS) introduced the following bill; which

was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

A BILL

To protect the public, especially senior citizens, against telemarketing fraud, including fraud over the Internet, and

to authorize an educational campaign to improve senior

citizens’ ability to protect themselves against telemarketing fraud.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
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1 TITLE I—TELEMARKETING

2 FRAUD AND SENIORS PRO3 TECTION ACT

4 SEC. 101. SHORT TITLE.

5 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Telemarketing Fraud

6 and Seniors Protection Act’’.

7 SEC. 102. FINDINGS.

8 Congress makes the following findings:

9 (1) Telemarketing fraud costs consumers nearly

10 $40,000,000,000 each year.

11 (2) Senior citizens are often the target of tele12 marketing fraud.

13 (3) Fraudulent telemarketers compile into so14 called ‘‘mooch lists’’ the names of consumers who

15 are potentially vulnerable to telemarketing fraud.

16 (4) According to the American Association of

17 Retired Persons, 56 percent of the names on such

18 ‘‘mooch lists’’ are individuals age 50 or older.

19 (5) The Department of Justice has undertaken

20 successful investigations and prosecutions of tele21 marketing fraud through various operations, includ22 ing ‘‘Operation Disconnect’’, ‘‘Operation Senior Sen23 tinel’’, and ‘‘Operation Upload’’.

24 (6) The Federal Bureau of Investigation has

25 helped provide resources to assist organizations such
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1 as the American Association of Retired Persons to

2 operate outreach programs designed to warn senior

3 citizens whose names appear on confiscated ‘‘mooch

4 lists’’.

5 (7) The Administration on Aging was formed,

6 in part, to provide senior citizens with the resources,

7 information, and assistance their special cir8 cumstances require.

9 (8) The Administration on Aging has a system

10 in place to inform senior citizens of the dangers of

11 telemarketing fraud.

12 (9) Senior citizens need to be warned of the

13 dangers of telemarketing fraud before they become

14 victims of such fraud.

15 SEC. 103. PURPOSE.

16 It is the purpose of this title to protect senior citizens,

17 through education and outreach, from the dangers of tele18 marketing fraud and fraud over the Internet and to facili19 tate the investigation and prosecution of fraudulent tele20 marketers.

21 SEC. 104. DISSEMINATION OF INFORMATION.

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Health and

23 Human Services, acting through the Assistant Secretary

24 of Health and Human Services for Aging, shall publicly

25 disseminate in each State information designed to educate
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1 senior citizens and raise awareness about the dangers of

2 telemarketing fraud and fraud over the Internet.

3 (b) INFORMATION.—In carrying out subsection (a),

4 the Secretary shall—

5 (1) inform senior citizens of the prevalence of

6 telemarketing fraud targeted against them;

7 (2) inform senior citizens how telemarketing

8 fraud works;

9 (3) inform senior citizens how to identify tele10 marketing fraud;

11 (4) inform senior citizens how to protect them12 selves against telemarketing fraud, including an ex13 planation of the dangers of providing bank account,

14 credit card, or other financial or personal informa15 tion over the telephone to unsolicited callers;

16 (5) inform senior citizens how to report sus17 pected attempts at telemarketing fraud;

18 (6) inform senior citizens of their consumer

19 protection rights under Federal law; and

20 (7) provide such other information as the Sec21 retary considers necessary to protect senior citizens

22 against fraudulent telemarketing.

23 (c) MEANS OF DISSEMINATION.—The Secretary shall

24 determine the means to disseminate information under
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1 this section. In making such determination, the Secretary

2 shall consider—

3 (1) public service announcements;

4 (2) a printed manual or pamphlet;

5 (3) an Internet website; and

6 (4) telephone outreach to individuals whose

7 names appear on so-called ‘‘mooch lists’’ confiscated

8 from fraudulent telemarketers.

9 (d) PRIORITY.—In disseminating information under

10 this section, the Secretary shall give priority to areas with

11 high concentrations of senior citizens.

12 SEC. 105. AUTHORITY TO ACCEPT GIFTS.

13 The Secretary of Health and Human Services may

14 accept, use, and dispose of unconditional gifts, bequests,

15 or devises of services or property, both real and personal,

16 in order to carry out this title.

17 SEC. 106. DEFINITION.

18 For purposes of this title, the term ‘‘State’’ includes

19 the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto

20 Rico, Guam, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and the

21 Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
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1 TITLE II—TELEMARKETING

2 FRAUD OVER THE INTERNET

3 SEC. 201. EXTENSION OF CRIMINAL FRAUD STATUTE TO

4 INTERNET.

5 (a) EXTENSION.—Section 1343 of title 18, United

6 States Code, is amended by—

7 (1) by inserting ‘‘(a)’’ before ‘‘Whoever’’;

8 (2) in subsection (a), as so designated, by strik9 ing ‘‘or television communication’’ and inserting

10 ‘‘television, or Internet communication’’; and

11 (3) by adding at the end thereof the following:

12 ‘‘(b) For purposes of this section, the term ‘Internet’

13 means collectively the myriad of computer and tele14 communications facilities, including equipment and oper15 ating software, which comprise the interconnected world16 wide network of networks that employ the Transmission

17 Control Protocol/Internet Protocol, or any predecessor or

18 successor protocols to such protocol, to communicate in19 formation of all kinds by wire or radio.’’.

20 (b) CONFORMING AND CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—

21 (1) The section heading of such section is amended to read

22 as follows:
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1 ‘‘§ 1343. Fraud by wire, radio, television, or Internet’’.

2 (2) The table of sections at the beginning of chapter

3 63 of that title is amended by striking the item relating

4 to section 1343 and inserting the following new item:

‘‘1343. Fraud by wire, radio, television, or Internet.’’.

5 SEC. 202. FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION SANCTIONS.

6 (a) RULEMAKING TO APPLY SANCTIONS.—The Fed7 eral Trade Commission shall initiate a rulemaking pro8 ceeding to set forth the application of section 5 of the Fed9 eral Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 45), and other

10 statutory provisions within its jurisdiction, to deceptive

11 acts or practices in or affecting the commerce of the

12 United States in connection with the promotion, advertise13 ment, offering for sale, or sale of goods or services through

14 use of the Internet, including the initiation, transmission,

15 and receipt of unsolicited commercial electronic mail.

16 (b) INTERNET DEFINED.—In this section, the term

17 ‘‘Internet’’ means collectively the myriad of computer and

18 telecommunications facilities, including equipment and op19 erating software, which comprise the interconnected

20 world-wide network of networks that employ the Trans21 mission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol, or any prede22 cessor or successor protocols to such protocol, to commu23 nicate information of all kinds by wire or radio.

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