FTC Offers Hotline for Consumer Fraud Calls

The Federal Trade Commission has set up a toll-free telephone line for consumers to report fraud.

The FTC said it will compile reports of consumer fraud such as Internet scams and phony prizes offered by mail and make the data available to almost 200 law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and Canada.

Before offering the toll-free line, the FTC took complaints on an ad hoc basis and consumers had to call the Washington office.

The toll-free number for the Consumer Response Center is (877) FTC-HELP or 382-4357. The line is staffed by counselors from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. PST, Monday through Friday.