 Watch Those Claims
What gives you strong bones, treats or cures cancer,
multiple sclerosis and heart disease? Coral calcium say promoters of one brand
of the stuff. Snake Oil says the FTC.
In a recent action, the FTC filed actions against several
marketers for making false and unsubstantiated medical claims for coral calcium
and for a pain relief product.
In related law enforcement efforts, the FTC and the FDA are
sending strong warning letters to Web site operators who are marketing coral
calcium products claiming that coral calcium is an effective treatment or cure
for cancer and/or other diseases. In dozens of warnings sent this week, the FTC
states it is aware of no competent and reliable scientific evidence supporting
such claims and that such unsupported claims are unlawful under the FTC
Act.
Accordingly, the FTC is instructing the Web site operators
to remove any false or deceptive claims from their sites immediately. In a
similar action, the FDA warned Web site operators that disease claims and
unsubstantiated structure/function claims cause their products to be in
violation of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.
For more information see
http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2003/06/trudeau.htm
Bogus Privacy Threat
If you get an email claiming that starting July 1 major
credit bureaus will be allowed to release your credit information to anyone who
requests it, don’t panic. And don’t forward the email to all your friends.
Instead just click the X or delete button in
your email program and send the mail straight to the trash.
The reason?
The letter is bogus. According
to the Federal Trade Commission, email containing the bogus warning has surfaced
about this time (June) each year for the last three years. Yet there is no such July 1 deadline for preventing credit bureaus from
releasing information about you. By law, credit
bureaus can release your credit information only to people with a legitimate
business need. (To companies who are considering lending you money, or extending
credit to you, for instance.)
Lenders and
insurers may use information in your credit file as a basis for sending you
unsolicited offers – a practice known as “prescreening,” the FTC notes.
However, you have the right to opt out of these offers by calling,
toll-free: 1-888-567-8688. The major credit bureaus use that number only to
enable consumers to opt out of “prescreened” offers.
You also
have the right, in most cases, to prevent financial institutions from sharing
your personal information with unaffiliated third parties. Each year, financial
institutions must send a notice to their customers telling them how they use
customers’ information and what opt-out rights the customer has.
For
additional information on privacy issues, visit
http://www.ftc.gov/privacy/index.html
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