On 3/3/21, the CFPB announced that they had filed a lawsuit against a payment processor and its founder for knowingly processing payments for companies engaged in internet-based technical-support fraud. The CFPB alleges that between 2016 and 2018, Howard and BrightSpeed knowingly processed payments for client companies that purported to offer technical-support services and products over the internet, but instead tricked consumers, often older Americans, into purchasing expensive and unnecessary antivirus software or services.
The CFPB alleges that many of BrightSpeed’s client companies purported to provide antivirus software and technical-support services to consumers, but instead scammed them into purchasing unnecessary and expensive computer software and services for amounts sometimes as high as $2,000. BrightSpeed’s clients sold their products and services through telemarketing and received payment through remotely created checks. The CFPB alleges that BrightSpeed and Howard continued to process the scammers’ remotely created check payments for months and, in some cases, years. BrightSpeed and Howard did so despite being aware of nearly 1,000 consumer complaints, several inquiries from police departments around the country, and return rates averaging more than 20%.
The CFPB’s announcement can be found here.
The CFPB’s complaint can be found here.