The Federal Trade Commission has settled with a payment processor and four affiliated entities over allegations that the companies knowingly enabled deceptive merchants, including foreign tech-support operations, to access the U.S. card-payment system. Beyond the $4.85 million monetary judgment, the case is notable for an accompanying Joint Statement from Chairman Andrew Ferguson and Commissioner Mark Meador articulating a knowledge standard — including actual knowledge, constructive knowledge, and conscious avoidance — for unfair payment-processing claims under Section 5.
FTC Announces Settlement and Articulates Knowledge Standard for Payment-Processor Liability
