Do-not-call violators get zinged with $7.7M in fines

0 Comments | USA TODAY, November, 2007 | by Paul Davidson

In the biggest crackdown on do-not-call list violations in two years, bedmaker Craftmatic and five other marketers have agreed to pay a total $7.7 million in civil penalties to settle claims that they called consumers on the registry, federal regulators said Wednesday.

"Consumers have made clear that they greatly value the do-not-call registry, and they must be able to depend on its privacy protection," says Deborah Platt Majoras, Federal Trade Commission chairman.

Several cases appear to have been attempts by marketers to skirt the rules by trying to create a business relationship with consumers. About 145 million phone numbers are on the registry.

Adjustable-bed maker Craftmatic agreed to a $4.4 million penalty, the second-largest for do-not-call...