A court report has been issued warning plaintiffs in the 3M earplug multidistrict litigation (MDL) about a new scam that unscrupulous individuals are perpetrating. According to the 3-page order, the main source of these scammers is online sites where the official settlement administration company’s information has been published.
The U.S. District Judge For The Northern District of Florida, M. Casey Rodgers, received notice that fraudulent actors were posing as members of ARCHER Systems LLC, the settlement administration company that is overseeing the potential $6 billion settlement between 3M and the thousands of plaintiffs who allege that their defective CAEv2 earplugs caused tinnitus, hearing damage, and hearing loss.
ARCHER Systems has created a dedicated claimant contact number for 3M plaintiffs. Unfortunately, that number was then posted online to a number of social media sites including Reddit. Fraudulent individuals armed with this knowledge then proceeded to use that official number to disguise their phone number through a process known as spoofing. With their spoofed number, the scammers appear to be calling from ARCHER Systems. They then make unsolicited calls to plaintiffs to steal their social security number, date of birth, or other sensitive and identifying information.
In Judge Rodgers' order, it is stated unequivocally that “THIS IS A SCAM.” Additionally, the order states that the FBI has been notified about the attempted fraud and identity theft. The FBI will seek to bring these scammers to justice and prevent further harm.
In the meantime, plaintiffs are reminded to be vigilant in their practices both online and over the phone. First, it should be noted that ARCHER Systems employees will only ask for the last four digits of a plaintiff’s social security number and never the entire sequence. Second, if a plaintiff receives a fraudulent phone call or email from someone claiming to represent ARCHER Systems, they should inform their counsel of the interaction so that the attorneys can pursue the issue further. Finally, plaintiffs are advised to be extremely cautious about putting identifying information online, especially information pertaining to the 3M settlement, the status of claims, or membership in the MDL. The more information that is available to fraudsters online, the easier a target the individual presents.
If you have been harmed by a defective medical device, drug, or consumer product, you may be eligible for financial compensation. Contact MedTruth today for a free case review and begin your journey to justice.