Menu
Federal Contractor Misconduct Database (FCMD)
The federal government routinely awards contracts to companies with
histories of misconduct, including
…
contract fraud and other
violations. POGO believes that providing this website will help to
improve contracting decisions and increase public knowledge of how
the government spends billions of taxpayer dollars each year.
Read more…
Mobile Cramming Settlement
AT&T Mobility LLC paid federal and state authorities $105 million to settle charges of unlawfully billing cell phone customers for unauthorized third-party charges, a practice known as “mobile cramming”. AT&T agreed to pay $80 million to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for consumer refunds, $20 million in penalties and fees to 50 states and the District of Columbia, and a $5 million penalty to the Federal Communications Commission. The FTC alleged that AT&T billed customers hundreds of millions of dollars in charges originated by other companies, usually in amounts of $9.99 per month, for ringtone, wallpaper, and text message subscriptions. The FTC alleged that AT&T kept at least 35 percent of those charges. The FTC alleged that AT&T compounded the problem by making it difficult for customers to know that third-party charges were being placed on their bills: the fees were only identified as “AT&T Monthly Subscriptions,” leaving customers to believe the charges were part of services provided by AT&T. In some cases, customers complained that AT&T refused to issue refunds or would only issue partial refunds.
- Misconduct Type
- Consumer Affairs
- Enforcement Agency
- Multiple Agencies
- Contracting Party
- None
- Court Type
- Civil
- Disposition
- Settlement
- Date of Settlement Announcement
- 10/8/2014
Contractors Involved |
Penalty |
Total |
|
AT&T Inc. |
$105,000,000
|