DepositBuilder

5 Sections of Consumer Protection - FTC

• Managing Your Finances: Learn how to establish and use credit, request a free copy of
your credit report, read your credit score, and avoid credit scams.
• Major Purchases and Investments: Learn the details of buying a house or a car,
repairing or renovating your home, buying a franchise or starting a business, paying
for a college education, or purchasing funeral goods and services.
• Your Consumer Rights: Learn the steps to take to resolve disputes, correct billing
errors, and reduce the number of unwanted telemarketing calls you get.
• Avoiding Scams and Rip-offs: Learn to recognize work-at-home scams, fake
international driver’s licenses, the green card lottery scam, vacation package scams,
and misleading advertising claims for health and weight loss.
• Safety and Security: Learn the basics about protecting your personal information to
avoid identity theft, practicing online safety, and avoiding online scams.

Consumer tips - FTC

Consumer tips
Read Up! How to be an Informed Consumer
provides in-depth information about many
different consumer issues, as well as tips on
how to avoid scams and rip-offs. But it is a
good idea to keep these tip-offs to rip-offs in
mind before you make any major purchase:
1. Know who you are dealing with. Don’t
do business with any company that won’t
provide its name, street address, and
telephone number.
2. Protect your personal information. Share
credit card or other personal information
only when you’re buying from a company
you know and trust.
3. Take your time. Resist any urge to “act
now” despite the offer and the terms. Once
you turn over your money, you may never
get it back.
4. Read the small print. Get all promises
in writing and review all the documents
carefully before you pay any money or sign
a contract.
5. Never pay for a “free” gift. Throw away
any offer that asks you to pay for a gift. If
it’s free or a gift, you shouldn’t have to pay
for it. Free is free.
6. Know the risks before you spend your
money. When it comes to investments,
every potentially high-profit investment is
high-risk. That means you could lose your
investment — all of it.