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FTC Amends Telemarketing Rule To Ban Payment Methods Used By Scammers

Posted by timothy on from the good-luck-with-all-that dept.

An anonymous reader writes: The Federal Trade Commission has approved final amendments to its Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR), including a change that will help protect consumers from fraud by prohibiting four discrete types of payment methods favored by scammers. The TSR changes will stop telemarketers from dipping directly into consumer bank accounts by using certain kinds of checks and "payment orders" that have been "remotely created" by the telemarketer or seller. In addition, the amendments will bar telemarketers from receiving payments through traditional "cash-to-cash" money transfers – provided by companies like MoneyGram, Western Union, and RIA.

6 of 48 comments (clear)

  1. What changes? by kuzb · · Score: 4, Insightful

    What changes is very little. If a telemarketer is honest he'll probably be playing by the rules already - however these people are scammers. They're not going to suddenly start changing the way they operate because the FTC said "stop, or we'll say stop again!". It's not like most of the marks these people are going after will even be aware of such changes.

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    BeauHD. Worst editor since kdawson.
  2. Germany should take note by Jack+Malmostoso · · Score: 2

    Here in Germany credit cards are still seen as an exotic and luxurious item, and most transactions are conducted by giving direct access to your bank account. Sign up for a phone plan? Give them your bank account. Sign up for internet? Bank account. Buy on Amazon? You guessed it, bank account.

    An extremely popular payment method is Sofortüberweisung, where you authorize a bank transfer at checkout. I am not sure what would happen if someone would intercept this payment and add a couple of zeroes to the amount, as technically you have authorized the transaction with your two-way authentication.

    1. Re:Germany should take note by harvey+the+nerd · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Use two bank accounts, one big, one small, say a few thousand $/Euro. No merchant gets the big account number, only recurring work, retirement transfers into the big account and deposits. 1-2 monthly transfers from big acct to small acct to keep it full.

    2. Re:Germany should take note by aix+tom · · Score: 3, Informative

      The thing with this "direct bank access" in Germany is that I can go to my bank inside six weeks after the transfer and just tell them "reverse that transaction" and they just do it no question asked. So no scammer would ever use that to get money.

      In fact, the "scamming" happens more the other way around. People ordering stuff with that direct debit payment, then reverse the payment after five weeks. Then the merchant has to either sue them to get his money, or he can decide do just live with the loss and just black-list them as customers.

  3. One can dream by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Why not ban telemarketers altogether?

    1. Re:One can dream by mi · · Score: 2

      Why not ban telemarketers altogether?

      The First Amendment. A sales pitch is speech...

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      In Soviet Washington the swamp drains you.