FTC says 19 websites impersonating the agency, incl. FTC-Support.org and ftcfederal.org, were taken down
The FTC said it has helped shut down 19 websites impersonating the agency, including FTC-Support.org and ftcfederal.org, according to WRNJ Radio on 30 October 2026. The FTC is not affiliated with them.
- First reported
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Source: wrnjradio.com · published
What happened
On 30 October 2026 WRNJ Radio reported that the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has helped shut down 19 websites that were impersonating the agency, as part of its crackdown on government and business impersonation scams. Over the past year the FTC sent warning letters to domain registrars and other service providers identifying sites that appeared to violate its Impersonation Rule, which led to the removal of the sites. The ones named include FTC-Support.org, ftcfederal.org, FTC-Complaints.org, FTC-help.com, federaltradecommissionapp.com, federaltradecommission.net, fttc.us and FTB-gov.us. The sites were impersonating the FTC; the agency is not affiliated with them. The FTC has also worked to have social media pages impersonating the agency and its officials removed.
How the scam works
The report describes the scale of the problem rather than one scheme. The FTC says impersonation scams have been the most frequently reported fraud category in recent years, with consumers reporting billions of dollars in losses. Its Impersonation Rule, which took effect in 2024, lets it bring federal court cases seeking money for affected consumers and civil penalties. Since then it has completed 14 enforcement actions resulting in more than $80 million in consumer redress, including eight actions since April 2025 that cover areas such as health insurance marketing, debt collection, debt relief and false claims of government affiliation. Those enforcement cases are allegations by the FTC against the named companies.
The agency is also looking at the role of online platforms, and in September it asked for public comment on whether to update the rule or write a new one covering social media companies and search engines. The FTC repeats its standard warning that it will never demand money, make threats, tell someone to transfer money or promise a prize. Anyone who meets a site or message that uses the FTC's name in that way should treat it as an impersonation attempt and report it at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
Source
WRNJ Radio, “FTC shuts down 19 imposter websites, secures more than $80 million for consumers in scam crackdown”, 30 October 2026, reporting an FTC announcement.
Red flags
- A website or message using the FTC's name with a look-alike address such as ftcfederal.org or federaltradecommission.net.
- A claim that the FTC needs you to pay a fee, give account details or transfer money.
- Threats or a promised prize or refund, which the FTC says it never uses.
- A “complaint” or “support” site that is not on the FTC's official ftc.gov or reportfraud.ftc.gov pages.
- Social media pages that claim to be the FTC or its officials.
If you were targeted
- 1Use only ftc.gov, consumer.ftc.gov and ReportFraud.ftc.gov, typing the address yourself.
- 2Do not pay or give account details to anyone claiming to be the FTC; the FTC says it will never demand money.
- 3If you dealt with one of these sites, tell your bank, change passwords you shared and report it at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
- 4Report impersonating websites and social media pages to the platform and to the FTC.
- 5Check unexpected contact from any agency by looking up its number on its official website.