List Firms Held Accountable for Fraudulent Telemarketing Scripts
Three list companies that allegedly violated the Federal Trade Commission’s Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR) have settled with the agency, agreeing to pay a combined $187,500 in fines and to refrain from providing lists to telemarketers engaged in illegal business practices.
According to the stipulation orders, Fort Lauderdale, FL-based ListData Computer Services Inc. is required to pay $100,000; NeWorld of Asheville, NC will pay $62,500; and Guidestar Direct Corp., which does business as Carney Direct Marketing in Irvine, CA, will pay $25,000.
The ListData settlement contains language requiring the firm to pay an additional $316,000 if it’s found to have misrepresented its financial situation.
The FTC claimed that the companies the defendants rented lists to had provided scripts that were in clear violation of the TSR. For example, a script received by ListData read, in part,
