ORLANDO, Fla. – Six states, and the Federal Trade Commission, are suing a rental listing platform accused of paying for fake positive reviews for people looking for affordable housing.
Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody said Roomster Corp. and its owners, John Shriber and Roman Zaks, also charged for access to phony listings, taking in tens of millions of dollars from renters.
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California, Colorado, Illinois, Massachusetts and New York are also part of the legal complaint against the company.
Roomster’s website and mobile apps have users pay a fee to access listings like rental properties, roommate requests and sublets. The company claims the listings are authentic and verified, but Moody accuses the company of misrepresenting to lure customers to pay for access to listings that turned out to be fake.
“The complaint filed today alleges these defendants deceived consumers looking for affordable housing options by filling the internet with fake reviews and other misrepresentations,” Moody said in a statement. “The alleged deceptive acts siphoned tens of millions of dollars from mostly lower-income people seeking a rental property. I’m proud to take action today with the FTC and other states to hold Roomster accountable for their wrongdoing.”
To view the complaint, click here.
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