On January 13, 2026, the Federal Trade Commission announced that it sued a specialized advice website operator and its CEO, alleging the online service deceives people seeking expert advice into enrolling in a monthly recurring subscription without obtaining consumers’ affirmative consent. 

The FTC alleges that the company and its founder and CEO falsely claim that consumers can “join” the service and get access to expert advice for as little as $1 or $5.  But when consumers sign up to use the service, the company actually enrolls them in a recurring monthly subscription costing anywhere from $28 to $125 and immediately charges them this fee, as well as the $1 or $5 join fee, according to the FTC.  The complaint alleges that the company continues to charge the subscription fee every month until the consumer cancels their subscription.

“[The company’s] misleading pricing tactics obscured the true price of its services, preventing consumers from making an informed choice on whether [the company’s] services were worth it to them,” said Christopher Mufarrige, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “The FTC is focused on ensuring that online sellers transparently price their services.”

While the company provides limited information about the required monthly subscription on its website, it does not disclose the terms clearly and conspicuously as required by the Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act (ROSCA), according to the complaint.  As a result, consumers have provided their credit card information to the company without affirmatively consenting to enroll in an ongoing monthly subscription and pay the monthly fee, the FTC alleged.

According to an FTC CID lawyer, the complaint also alleges that the company and its founder/CEO’s deceptive conduct violates ROSCA and the FTC Act.  The complaint seeks a court order prohibiting the allegedly violative conduct, money back for consumers harmed by the deceptive billing practices, and civil penalties against the company and individual.