The state alleges that the businesses billed approximately 30,000 consumers nationwide and attempted to bill approximately 300,000 consumers for a product that never existed. The state alleges approximately 30,000 instances of identity theft, in which consumers' credit cards or debit cards were charged for purchases those consumers never made or authorized. Consumers were charged $19.90 each, totaling over $500,000 in alleged fraudulent charges. A small portion of the 30,000 consumers were refunded according to the companies' purported "immediate credit-no questions asked" refund policy.
"We are pleased with the court's ruling and look forward to pursuing this case aggressively at trial," said Attorney General Bob Cooper. "Combating identity theft is one of my top priorities in the consumer protection arena. I urge consumers to take pro-active steps to protect their personal information from identity theft. Likewise, our office will remain vigilant and take enforcement action against those that we believe are engaging in systematic identity theft."
Identity theft may occur not only by someone improperly using your name and social security number but also when someone improperly uses your financial information such as credit card or bank account numbers for unlawful purposes.
