At the Federal Trade Commission, when we say we protect the nation’s consumers, we mean that the agency protects every community in the nation from fraud and scams. This includes African Americans, Asian Americans, Latinos, Native Americans, immigrants, older consumers, lower-income communities, and veterans and service members.

As we celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, it’s a good time to look back on how the FTC has worked to protect the Latino community, in particular, in the past year. Here are some highlights:

  • Income scams: At the FTC’s request, a federal court temporarily shut down Oro Marketing, Inc., which falsely promised Latino consumers they would make money by reselling high-end goods. The FTC said the company charged consumers $400 or more for shoddy products and threatened some customers who refused to pay for the merchandise. The agency also reached a settlement with the operators of Fortune Hi Tech Marketing, Inc., a pyramid scheme that targeted Spanish-speaking and immigrant communities and enrolled more than 350,000 consumers as “sales representatives.” The FTC said the company deceptively claimed people would earn significant income as representatives, but 98 percent of the people who paid start-up costs and monthly fees lost more money than they made. The company must surrender assets worth at least $7.75 million, which will be returned to consumers.
  • Auto sales scams: Two cases from the agency’s sweep of auto cases involved ads from dealers in a mix of English and Spanish: Casino Auto Sales of La Puente, Calif., and Rainbow Auto Sales, of South Gate, Calif., allegedly violated the FTC Act by deceptively advertising that consumers could purchase vehicles at specific low prices when, in fact, the price was $5,000 higher.
  • Immigration services scams: The court ordered the owners of Loma International Business Group, Inc. to pay up to $616,000 in consumer refunds, and banned them from providing or promoting immigration services. In 2011, the FTC brought the case against Loma’s owners. The FTC said the owners misled immigrants, convincing them that Loma was authorized to provide immigration services, and deceiving them into paying for immigration services the owners weren’t qualified or authorized to provide.
  • Illegal debt collection practices: At the FTC’s request, a court shut down Rincon Management Services LLC, a debt collection business whose employees falsely told Spanish-speaking consumers that they would be sued or arrested if they didn’t pay. The Commission also obtained a federal court order to stop debt collector RTB Enterprises, Inc. from bullying Spanish-speakers into paying debts and unnecessary fees. The companies will surrender $3.3 million and $100,000, respectively, to be used for consumer refunds.
  • Unordered merchandise scams: A federal judge temporarily halted and froze the assets of Hispanic Global Way Corporation at the FTC’s request. The company swindled Spanish-speakers by routinely sending unordered or defective products, and making it difficult or impossible for them to get refunds. The FTC seeks to permanently stop the illegal practices and make the defendants return victims’ money.
  • Fotonovelas: Based on the complaints received from Spanish-speakers about scams that target the Latino community, the FTC is releasing a series of fotonovelas: the first on government imposters, and the second about income scams, with more to follow.

In the coming weeks, we will host a roundtable on debt collection in the Latino community, and a workshop on how fraud affects different communities. Those will be opportunities to hear from people in many communities, but we also want to hear from you. When you see frauds and scams, please tell us – online or by phone at 1-877-FTC-HELP. Every complaint makes a difference.