Hartford — The Federal Trade Commission along with attorneys general from Connecticut and Pennsylvania were successful Friday in shutting down alleged tech scammers said to have robbed consumers of more than $17 million by pretending to represent Microsoft, Apple and other major tech companies.  

Connecticut Attorney General George Jepsen said the state last month joined the FTC and Pennsylvania's attorney general in filing a joint complaint in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania alleging that the defendants used Internet advertisements and popups that appeared to be from well-known technology companies to lure consumers into calling them.

On Friday, Jepsen announced that this week the court granted a preliminary injunction, barring the defendants from engaging in any deceptive and unfair practices and froze the company's assets.

The complaint names Click4Support LLC and Innovazion Inc., which also did business as Click4Support and UBERTECHSUPPORT, both based in Essex; Pennsylvania-based iSourceUSA LLC, which also did business at Click4Support Tech Services; and Pennsylvania-based Spanning Source LLC, which also did business as Click4Support; Bruce Bartolotta of Deep River; George Saab of Stow, Mass.; Chetan Bhikhubhai Patel of Newtown, Pa.; and Niraj Patel of New Hope, Pa., as defendants.

According to the complaint, when consumers called the defendants' phone numbers they were allegedly misled into thinking that their computers were full of viruses, malware or other security breaches and were given a high-pressure sales pitch for unnecessary tech support services. 

"Our complaint alleges that the defendants in this case engaged in deliberate deception in their marketing and business practices, representing that they were affiliated with well-known companies when, in fact, they had no relationship at all," said Jepsen. "The allegations of consumer fraud in this case are egregious, and I'm pleased that the court has issued an order effectively shutting this operation down while our lawsuit progresses."

The complaint also alleges the defendants would pressure consumers into signing up for tech support plans and repair services — often costing hundreds and sometimes thousands of dollars.

In some cases, the alleged technical support involved deleting harmless files, but in other cases the defendants would allegedly make changes that could potentially harm the computer's performance.

The complaint alleges violations of the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act (CUTPA) as well as the FTC Act, the Telemarketing Sales Rule and the Pennsylvania Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law.

The lawsuit seeks permanent injunctions, consumer redress and forfeiture of ill-gotten gains.

Jepsen thanked the Better Business Bureau of Connecticut, which provided information on about 148 consumer complaints that it had received against Click4Support, for its assistance with its investigation.

Assistant Attorneys General Sandra Arenas and Lorrie Adeyemi, who is also the head of the attorney general's Consumer Protection Department and Legal Investigator Christine Buck are assisting Jepsen.

i.larraneta@theday.com

Twitter: @larraneta