The FTC has filed a
complaint and secured a
temporary injunction against five companies and their owners,
alleging use of deceptive practices to trick consumers into
purchasing unneeded technology services for their computers.
As detailed in the complaint, the FTC alleges that the scheme
worked as follows: a pop-up ad would appear on a consumer's
computer screen, stating that the computer had been hacked or
infected, and the ad would give a toll-free number to call for
technical support services.
The ads were designed to appear as if they were from Microsoft,
Apple, or the consumer's internet service provider, and often
consumers were unable to close or navigate away from the ads.
When a consumer called the phone number, he or she would be
automatically connected to one of the companies' telemarketers
in India who would try to convince the person that their computer
needed to be repaired and that they should pay for repair services
at a cost of approximately
