AG Slatery Urges Federal Trade Commission to Stop Impersonation Scams

Nashville- Tennessee Attorney General Herbert H. Slatery III, along with Florida, Iowa, Mississippi, and Pennsylvania, is leading a bipartisan coalition of 49 attorneys general calling on the Federal Trade Commission to adopt a national rule to target impersonation scams.  

“A problem clearly affecting every state and territory – which is the case with these types of scams-demands a national solution,” said General Slatery. “We want to put a stop to this not only in Tennessee, but across the country.”

In their letter, the attorneys general express concern about the number and extent of impersonation scams. They say a national rule is needed to stop these fraudulent acts and protect Americans. 

Impersonation scams take on many forms:

Impersonation of government entities: Scammers claim to be from or affiliated with a government agency and urge you to quickly provide payment to obtain licensing or certificates in document preparation or regulatory compliance scams.

Business impersonation: Scammers pretend to be working for a business or as a third party endorsed by the business. Imposters may claim to be contacting you on behalf of companies such as Microsoft or Apple to assist with a ransomware or technology issue.

Person-to-person deceptions: These scams leverage personal information to make a connection with victims. Whether claiming a grandchild is in urgent need of money or creating a fake profile on a social media or dating site, these impersonation scams account for thousands of complaints to attorneys general each year.

A robust national standard outlawing impersonation scams should:

• Clarify what constitutes impersonation, since government and business impersonation scams can range from overt pretense to misleading subtlety.
• Deprive bad actors from claiming they are unaware their activities are illegal in some jurisdictions as opposed to others.
• Increase collaboration between states and the FTC on multistate enforcement actions against imposter scammers.
• Allow states to enforce their own standards, free of any preemption by a federal rule.

To read the letter, click here: https://bit.ly/3BMgIdN

To learn more about impersonation scams or file a complaint with the Division of Consumer Affairs, click here: Scams, Schemes & Swindles (tn.gov)

General Slatery is joined by the attorneys general of: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.

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#22-04:  AG Slatery Urges Federal Trade Commission to Stop Impersonation Scams