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FTC to VoIP Service Providers: Willful Blindness Is Not a Defense When It Comes to Facilitating Illegal Telemarketing Practices

 

  • The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) warned 19 Voice over Internet Protocol service providers (“VoIP Providers”) that assisting and facilitating illegal telemarketing or robocalling is a violation of the FTC Act and the FTC’s Telemarketing Sales Rule (“TSR”).
  • In letters sent to the VoIP Providers, the FTC warned that it may take legal action against a VoIP Provider if it assists a seller or telemarketer in violating the TSR, either knowingly or by turning a blind eye to the illegal conduct.
  • The letters identify several types of conduct that may violate the TSR, including making false statements to induce a consumer to pay for goods or services or to contribute to charity, misrepresenting a seller’s affiliation with a government agency, and initiating telemarketing calls to numbers listed on the National Do Not Call Registry, among other things.