The Federal Communications Commission imposed the largest fine in its history, $225 million, on a Texas-based telemarketer for sending out 1 billion robocalls to entice people into buying misleading, at times fraudulent, health insurance plans.
“The FCC’s investigation found that the Rising Eagle spoofed its robocalls to deceive consumers and caused at least one company whose caller IDs were spoofed to become overwhelmed with angry call-backs from aggrieved consumers,” the agency said in a statement Wednesday.
John Spiller and Jakob Mears are accused of being responsible for the massive robocall operation through two businesses they controlled, Rising Eagle and JSquared Telecom. The fines have been assessed through the Truth in Caller ID Act.
The robocalls falsely claimed to offer health insurance plans from well-known health insurance companies such as Blue Cross Blue Shield and Cigna, the agency added.
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FCC acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel announced the Texas fine on Wednesday, the first set of anti-robocall actions, part of a larger agenda to help consumers avoid unwanted calls.
The anti-robocall agenda “should serve as a warning sign to other entities that believe the FCC has turned a blind eye to this issue. We certainly haven’t and we’re coming for you,” Rosenworcel said.
The previous record for the largest FCC fine was given to a robocall network in Florida in 2017, responsible for close to 100 million calls over a period of three months.
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The agency charged a $120 million fine against Miami resident Adrian Abramovich for flooding consumers with 96 million spoofed calls.
