People who lost money to a telemarketing tech support scam will soon get an email with instructions to claim a partial refund. The refunds are the result of an FTC case against Advanced Tech Support, which also used the name Inbound Call Experts.
At the end of a lawsuit brought by the FTC and the State of Florida, a federal court in Florida ordered the company to pay $10 million for customer refunds. The company deceived hundreds of thousands of people by pressuring them into buying computer services they didn’t need.
According to the FTC, the company used online ads, search results, and partnerships with software developers to lure consumers to call Advanced Tech Support. Then their telemarketers used high-pressure sales tactics to sign people up for unneeded technical support subscriptions and services, sometimes for hundreds of dollars.
The FTC’s emails about refunds in this case will come from subscribe@subscribe.ftc.gov. Your email will have a claim number and a PIN that will give you access to apply for a refund. If you get an email, follow the instructions and respond by October 27, 2017.
If you choose, you don’t have to click on the link in the email. You can start the claims process at ftc.gov/TechSupport or call the refund administrator at 877-793-0908. It’s a good idea to be cautious about clicking on links in emails. We’re using emails for this claims process so more people will get money back.
You never have to pay to get a refund in an FTC case. Anyone who asks you to pay for a refund is a scammer. Report them to the FTC.
This video can help you determine if you’ve been contacted about a tech support scam:
