Internet Experts Creating a Community of Compliance with Practical Solutions

On October 22, 2024, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) announced a groundbreaking new rule aimed at enhancing consumer rights and privacy in the financial sector. The new regulation is designed to give individuals more control over their personal financial data, making it easier for them to access, share, and transfer their financial information to different service providers.

The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) is issuing over $2.8 million in refunds to individuals who fell victim to deceptive "free trial" offers for personal care products and dietary supplements. The refunds come as part of the FTC’s ongoing efforts to hold companies accountable for misleading marketing practices that trick consumers into signing up for unwanted subscriptions. The refund process stems from an investigation into Apex Capital Group, its principals Phillip Peikos and David Barnett, and their related entities. These companies engaged in a multi-year scam that began in 2014, marketing seemingly risk-free "free trial" offers for a variety of products. Consumers were promised that they would only need to pay shipping fees for these trial products, but hidden in fine print were costly recurring charges for the full price of the products. Worse still, many consumers were unknowingly enrolled in negative option continuity plans, which meant they were automatically billed for monthly shipments unless they actively canceled.

The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) is mailing nearly $1.9 million in refunds to thousands of customers impacted by Hey Dude, Inc.’s unfair shipping practices and manipulation of customer reviews. This follows a settlement reached in September 2023, which saw the online shoe retailer held accountable for a series of violations related to the Mail, Internet, and Telephone Order Merchandise Rule (also known as the Mail Order Rule) and the suppression of negative reviews.