FTC Sends More Than $6.7 Million to Consumers Impacted by Gig Work Company’s Deceptive Earnings Claims

The Federal Trade Commission is sending more than $6.7 million to consumers impacted by a gig work company’s deceptive claims about the potential money workers could make on its platform.

In its July 2024 complaint, the FTC alleged that Arise Virtual Solutions regularly targeted people looking for opportunities to support their families by working from home, including stay-at-home mothers, with misleading promises about the earnings they could make on its platform. Arise used deceptive advertisements that said consumers who signed up on its platform would have access to jobs that paid “up to $18/hour” doing remote customer service work for major companies, according to the complaint. The FTC said that the company violated the FTC Act and the Business Opportunity Rule, including the requirement to truthfully disclose the basis for earnings claims to consumers.

Under the July 2024 order settling the FTC’s allegations, Arise is prohibited from making any earnings claims to consumers without being able to substantiate those claims or making any false or misleading claims generally. It also was required to pay $7 million to compensate affected consumers.

The FTC is sending checks to 98,254 affected consumers. Recipients should cash their checks within 90 days, as indicated on the check. Consumers who have questions about their payment should contact the refund administrator, Epiq Systems, at 888-998-8059, or visit the FTC website to view frequently asked questions about the refund process. The Commission never requires people to pay money or provide account information to get a refund.

The Commission’s interactive dashboards for refund data provide a state-by-state breakdown of refunds in FTC cases. In 2024, FTC actions led to more than $339 million in refunds to consumers across the country.