NFT Marketplace Inc (NFTM)

[Michel]

The deal is part of the so-called Trap Operation Technology of the FTC, through which the agency and local law partners have identified corporate companies allegedly defraud customers, often senior citizens,

State and federal agencies shut down the Help Desk National operation in July and accused the defendants of running a scheme since at least January 2015 that targeted senior citizens and featured “high-pressure sales tactics” that the companies used on consumers in an effort to get them to pay for computer security and technical support services.

According to the complaint, the Help Desk companies operated as an interrelated network, including named defendants Big Dog Solutions LLC, PC Help Desk US LLC and Inbound Call Specialist LLC — all based in Florida — in addition to Nevada-based BlackOptek CE Inc., Canada-based 9138242 Canada Corp. and Iowa-based Digital Growth Properties LLC.

After using pop-ups to mislead consumers into believing their computers may have been compromised by malware or hackers, the Help Desk companies gained consumers’ trust by claiming they were authorized by "Microsoft Corp. or Apple Inc.", the complaint said.

After running purported tests, the Help Desk companies charged consumers $200 to $400 for their technical support services and, in many instances, would “use the fear they have created” to sell ongoing technical support ranging from about $10 to $20 per month, the complaint said.