Court judgment orders illegal robocallers to pay over $3 million

FTC disconnects PointBreak Media robocall scheme for deception

WASHINGTONThe Federal Trade Commission said a media robocall scheme targeting small business owners has been disconnected for good, and the two men behind the scam have been ordered to pay more than $3 million by a U.S. district court in Florida.

The FTC said callers falsely claimed the company, PointBreak Media, represented Google and sought fees between $300 and $700 for first-page placement in online search result listings.

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In addition, the FTC said the company violated telemarketing sales rules because the defendants made robocalls to more than 74 million consumers and called more than 14 million numbers on the National Do Not Call Registry.

The court judgment bans such illegal robocalls and directs the scheme's main perpetrators, Dustin Pillonato and Justin Ramsey, to pay over $3.3 million.

In addition, some assets seized by the company may be refunded to small businesses that were duped by the scheme.

The actions and judgments against PointBreak Media are part of the FTC's crackdown on illegal robocalls and telemarketing.