Protect Yourself and Report the Latest Frauds, Scams, Spams, Fakes, Identify Theft Hacks and Hoaxes
There are affiliate links on this page.
Read our disclosure policy to learn more.
Translate this page to any language by choosing a language in the box below.
The Federal Trade Commission and U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have gone after seven companies who are selling unapproved products, making claims that these products may help treat coronavirus (COVID-19). That would be a violation of federal law by making deceptive or scientifically unsupported claims.
According to the FDA, there are no approved vaccines, drugs, or investigational products currently available to treat or prevent Coronavirus.
The federal government is aggressively going after these modern snake oil salesmen (and saleswomen) who are trying to take advantage of
naive consumers' fears of Coronavirus, by claiming their essential oils and other products can help prevent, treat, cure or reduce the risk of
contacting coronavirus.
The agencies sent the letters to the following companies:
These companies were advertising products products like:
FTC Chairman Joe Simons says:
"These warning letters are just the first step. We're prepared to take enforcement actions against companies that continue to market this type of scam."
FDA Commissioner Stephen M. Hahn, continued:
"The FDA considers the sale and promotion of fraudulent COVID-19 products to be a threat to the public health. We have an aggressive surveillance program that routinely monitors online sources for health fraud products, especially during a significant public health issue such as this one. The FDA's laws are designed to protect the public health by ensuring, among other things, that drugs are safe and effective for their intended uses, We understand consumers are concerned about the spread of COVID-19 and urge them to talk to their health care providers, as well as follow advice from other federal agencies about how to prevent the spread of this illness. We will continue to aggressively pursue those that place the public health at risk and hold bad actors accountable,"
In the letters, the FTC states that one or more of the efficacy claims made by the marketers are unsubstantiated and therefore may violate the FTC Act. The letters advise the recipients to immediately cease making all claims that their products can treat or cure coronavirus.
If the false claims do not cease, the Commission may seek a federal court injunction and an order requiring money to be refunded to consumers. Finally, they instruct the recipients to notify the FTC within 48 hours of the specific actions they have taken to address the agency's concerns.
The FTC says, ignore online offers for vaccinations. If you see ads for prevention, treatment, or cure claims for the Coronavirus, ask yourself: if there had been a medical breakthrough for Coronavirus, wouldn't it be all over the nightly news? Would you really be hearing about it for the first time through an ad or sales pitch?
In addition to following up with companies that fail to make adequate corrections, the FTC and FDA will continue to monitor social media, online marketplaces, and incoming complaints to help ensure that the companies do not continue to market fraudulent products under a different name or on another website.
Of course, in all cases, you can start by reporting it to us, using this form. We will use the information to warn other consumers and help you to direct it to law enforcement agencies.
FTC: File a consumer complaint online or by calling 1-877-FTC-HELP (382-4357).
A catch-all for bringing internet scams to the attention of the FBI and FTC is the U.S. government's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) at Internet Fraud Complaints Center.
If you are looking for your local FBI Office Listings to report a crime or scam, click here.
Do you want to report a fraud, scam or crime to the FBI (the Federal Bureau of Investigation), but can't find the phone number for your nearest local FBI office? See this page to find the closest office!
For other government agencies to report scams, see this page.