The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has just accused marketer Kevin Trudeau of violating a court order because of claims he’s made about his book, “The Weight Loss Cure ‘They’ Don’t Want You to Know About.” The 2004 court order settled prior charges that Trudeau had made claims for cancer cures and other serious health problems.
Trudeau was banned from using infomercials to sell any product, service, or program. The ban contained a narrow exemption for infomercials for books and other publications, but specifically required that Trudeau not misrepresent the content of the books. The FTC is now charging that he violated that narrow exemption.
Given Trudeau’s long history of fighting with the FTC, my guess is that they’re playing for keeps this time with the contempt of court motion. Regardless of whether you think Trudeau’s stuff has merit or he’s a fraud, the moral of this story is to not make claims that repeatedly put you in the FTC’s consumer protection spotlight.
If you’re selling money-making or health-related products or services, the FTC and state attorneys general pay particular attention to what you sell in order to protect the public. Don’t make unsubstantiated claims. It just isn’t worth it.
Watch this video by John Stossel that covers Trudeau.
