Like just about anything else, artificial intelligence can be used for good or evil. And human nature being what it is, there are plenty of early adopters out there thinking up new ways to use AI to scam, deceive and rip off consumers.

The Federal Trade Commission is trying to get out in front of the trend, taking action against multiple companies that have relied on AI to supercharge deceptive or unfair conduct that harms consumers.

The cases being announced today include actions against a company promoting an AI tool that enabled its customers to create fake reviews, a company claiming to sell AI Lawyer services, and multiple companies claiming that they could use AI to help consumers make money through online storefronts.

Using AI tools to trick, mislead, or defraud people is illegal, said FTC Chair Lina M. Khan. The FTCs enforcement actions make clear that there is no AI exemption from the laws on the books. By cracking down on unfair or deceptive practices in these markets, FTC is ensuring that honest businesses and innovators can get a fair shot and consumers are being protected.

The cases included in this sweep show that firms have seized on the hype surrounding AI and are using it to lure consumers into bogus schemes, and are also providing AI powered tools that can turbocharge deception.

DoNotPay

The FTC is taking action against DoNotPay, a company that claimed to offer an AI service that was the worlds first robot lawyer, but the product failed to live up to its lofty claims that the service could substitute for the expertise of a human lawyer.

According to the FTCs complaint, DoNotPay promised that its service would allow consumers to sue for assault without a lawyer and generate perfectly valid legal documents in no time, and that the company would replace the $200-billion-dollar legal industry with artificial intelligence.

DoNotPay, however, could not deliver on these promises. The complaint alleges that the company did not conduct testing to determine whether its AI chatbots output was equal to the level of a human lawyer, and that the company itself did not hire or retain any attorneys.

The complaint also alleges that DoNotPay offered a service that would check a small business website for hundreds of federal and state law violations based solely on the consumers email address. This feature purportedly would detect legal violations that, if unaddressed, would potentially cost a small business $125,000 in legal fees, but according to the complaint, this service was also not effective.

DoNotPay has agreed to a proposed Commission order settling the charges against it. The settlement would require it to pay $193,000, provide a notice to consumers who subscribed to the service between 2021 and 2023 warning them about the limitations of law-related features on the service.

Ascend Ecom

The FTC has filed a lawsuit against an online business opportunity scheme that it alleges has falsely claimed its cutting edge AI-powered tools would help consumers quickly earn thousands of dollars a month in passive income by opening online storefronts. According to the complaint, the scheme has defrauded consumers of at least $25 million.

The scheme is run by William Basta and Kenneth Leung, and it has operated under a number of different names since 2021, including Ascend Ecom, Ascend Ecommerce, Ascend CapVentures, ACV Partners, ACV, Accelerated eCom Ventures, Ethix Capital by Ascend, and ACV Nexus.

According to the FTCs complaint, the operators of the scheme charge consumers tens of thousands of dollars to start online stores on ecommerce platforms such as Amazon, Walmart, Etsy, and TikTok, while also requiring them to spend tens of thousands more on inventory. Ascends advertising content claimed the company was a leader in ecommerce, using proprietary software and artificial intelligence to maximize clients business success.

The complaint notes that, while Ascend promises consumers it will create stores producing five-figure monthly income by the second year, for nearly all consumers, the promised gains never materialize, and consumers are left with depleted bank accounts and hefty credit card bills.

The complaint alleges that Ascend received numerous complaints from consumers, pressured consumers to modify or delete negative reviews of Ascend, frequently failed to honor their guaranteed buyback, and unlawfully threatened to withhold the supposed guaranteed buyback for those who left negative reviews of the company online.

As a result of the FTCs complaint, a federal court issued an order temporarily halting the scheme and putting it under the control of a receiver. The FTCs case against the scheme is ongoing and will be decided by a federal court.

Ecommerce Empire Builders

The FTC has charged a business opportunity scheme with falsely claiming to help consumers build an AI-powered Ecommerce Empire by participating in its training programs that can cost almost $2,000 or by buying a done for you online storefront for tens of thousands of dollars.

The scheme, known as Ecommerce Empire Builders (EEB), claims consumers can potentially make millions of dollars, but the FTCs complaint alleges that those profits fail to materialize.

The complaint alleges that EEBs CEO, Peter Prusinowski, has used consumers money as much as $35,000 from consumers who purchase stores to enrich himself while failing to deliver on the schemes promises of big income by selling goods online.

In its marketing, EEB encourages consumers to Skip the guesswork and start a million-dollar business today by harnessing the power of artificial intelligence and the schemes supposed strategies.

As a result of the FTCs complaint, a federal court issued an order temporarily halting the scheme and putting it under the control of a receiver. The FTCs case against the scheme is ongoing and will be decided by a federal court.

Rytr

Since April 2021, Rytr has marketed and sold an AI writing assistant service for a number of uses, one of which was specifically Testimonial & Review generation. Paid subscribers could generate an unlimited number of detailed consumer reviews based on very limited and generic input.

According to the FTCs complaint, Rytrs service generated detailed reviews that contained specific, often material details that had no relation to the users input, and these reviews almost certainly would be false for the users who copied them and published them online.

In many cases, subscribers AI-generated reviews featured information that would deceive potential consumers who were using the reviews to make purchasing decisions. The complaint further alleges that at least some of Rytrs subscribers used the service to produce hundreds, and in some cases tens of thousands, of reviews potentially containing false information.

The proposed order settling the Commissions complaint is designed to prevent Rytr from engaging in similar illegal conduct in the future. It would bar the company from advertising, promoting, marketing, or selling any service dedicated to or promoted as generating consumer reviews or testimonials.

FBA Machine

In June, the FTC took action against a business opportunity scheme that allegedly falsely promised consumers that they would make guaranteed income through online storefronts that utilized AI-powered software.

According to the FTC, the scheme, which has operated under the names Passive Scaling and FBA Machine, cost consumers more than $15.9 million based on deceptive earnings claims that rarely, if ever, materialize.

The complaint alleges that Bratislav Rozenfeld (also known as Steven Rozenfeld and Steven Rozen) has operated the scheme since 2021, initially as Passive Scaling. When Passive Scaling failed to live up to its promises and consumers sought refunds and brought lawsuits, Rozenfeld rebranded the scheme as FBA Machine in 2023.

The rebranded marketing materials claim that FBA Machine uses AI-powered tools to help price products in the stores and maximize profits.

The schemes claims were wide-ranging, promising consumers that they could operate a 7-figure business and citing supposed testimonials from clients who generate over $100,000 per month in profit. Company sales agents told consumers that the business was risk-free and falsely guaranteed refunds to consumers who did not make back their initial investments, which ranged from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of dollars.

As a result of the FTCs complaint, a federal court issued an order temporarily halting the scheme and putting it under the control of a receiver. The case against the scheme is still under way and will be decided by a federal court.