Topic: Fraud

FTC on crypto scammers and plans to modernize guidance to prevent digital deception

By Susan Ross (US) and Paul Guirguis (US) on June 15, 2022 Posted in Fraud

As a follow up to our previous posts on digital assets and social media, the Federal Trade Commission recently published a Consumer Protection Data Spotlight on June 3, 2022. In the post, the FTC provides insights on the fraud reports submitted to the FTC from January 1, 2021 to March 31, 2022. According to the … Continue reading

Social media and cryptocurrency fraud

By Susan Ross (US) and Paul Guirguis (US) on March 15, 2022 Posted in Fraud

Creators of fraudulent crypto assets beware. A recent court decision supported investors, creators and marketers of legitimate crypto assets, and the integrity of the crypto asset market as a whole. While the creator of BitConnect remains at large and is facing his own indictment for his role in the scheme that allegedly defrauded investors of … Continue reading

Deception sells: The current theme in the age of social media

By Kajon Pompey (US) on November 26, 2019 Posted in Fraud

In this age of social media, companies and brands have faced countless criticisms for their lack of transparency, copyright infringements disguised in the form of “flattery or inspiration” and we can’t forget the many inclusivity flops. Brands, including beauty brands, are now dedicating more of their marketing budgets to paying influencers for their “honest” reviews … Continue reading

Are your social media followers/fans/members authentic?

By Susan Ross (US) on September 14, 2016 Posted in Fraud

We have previously written on social media account verification for businesses, in order to help customers deal only with the authentic brand. But what about authenticating your social media followers/users/fans/members? Unfortunately, there are currently “no methodologies available that would provide us with an exact number of non-actual member types of accounts,” according to LinkedIn’s 10-K … Continue reading

Rise of the social media bots

By Mayura Noordyke (US) on May 4, 2016 Posted in Fraud, General

As we discussed in a recent post, “Social media overload”, social media has grown exponentially over the past decade and has caused businesses to change how they operate and how they make decisions. Social media has quickly become one of the most important marketing platforms, providing a convenient way for companies to reach broad audiences.… Continue reading

Authentication on social media platforms

By Karen Sie (CA) on March 7, 2016 Posted in Fraud, Trademark

Engaging with customers online is quickly becoming the norm as consumers increasingly use social media to ask questions, seek customer service, and participate in dialogue with a business or their brand. The use of social media to deliver customer service allows businesses to be at the forefront of our digital age. That said, businesses could … Continue reading

We’re back, with our top five social media stories of 2015

By Susan Ross (US), Nerushka Bowan, Mayura Noordyke (US) and Karen Sie (CA) on February 3, 2016 Posted in Copyright, Defamation, Employment and labor, Fraud, General, Privacy, Security

The Social Media Law Bulletin is back! The ongoing interest of our readers as well as the increasing impact of social media led us to re-launch the Social Media Law Bulletin. We will be bringing you coverage of one or two items approximately each week, but in the meantime, we thought we would give you … Continue reading

Yelp!’s Strategy for Attacking Fake Reviews: Lawsuit

By on September 11, 2013 Posted in Fraud

Business owners using online consumer review platforms should be truthful and accurate, especially with respect to online reviews. On August 20, 2013, social media search-and-review service Yelp! sued solo practitioner Julian McMillan for allegedly posting fake reviews about his own law firm. Yelp claimed that in 2010, employees from McMillan’s firm posted positive reviews of … Continue reading

Paid Reviews Continue to Generate Headlines

By Jay Greathouse (US) on April 25, 2013 Posted in Fraud

As commerce shifts to online shopping and consumers increasingly rely on user reviews, some researchers are predicting that by year end 10-15% of consumer reviews will actually be fake reviews (either positive or negative) paid for by advertisers or their agents. Gartner Says By 2014, 10-15 Percent of Social Media Reviews to Be Fake, Paid … Continue reading

Computer Fraud and Abuse Act

By Seth Jaffe (US) on March 28, 2013 Posted in Fraud

The Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (“CFAA”), 18 U.S.C. § 1030 et seq., projects the common law tort of real property trespass into the virtual realm of computers. The CFAA has been successfully invoked for creation of fake user accounts on social network sites, email spam, email phishing, robotic data mining, and unauthorized hard-drive wiping. … Continue reading