"The federal government and 11 states have joined together to accuse 30 purported debt relief operations of using deception and false promises to swindle more than $95 million from student loan borrowers.
“Operation Game of Loans” — the eyeroll-worthy code name for the investigation — culminated today with the Federal Trade Commission and attorneys general from 11 different states bring multiple actions against alleged scam companies that marketed themselves as providing debt relief services.
According to the FTC, the companies involved in these actions charged consumers illegal upfront fees, falsely promised to help reduce or forgive student loan debt burdens, and pretended to be affiliated with the government or loan servicers, in violation of the FTC’s Telemarketing Sales Rule and the FTC Act." …