Google Sues Scammers For Trademark Infringement, Piracy

Work at home for Google!

Sound too good to be true? Well, that’s because it is.

Google has filed a federal lawsuit against Pacific WebWorks and several unnamed defendants claiming they committed “trademark infringement and dilution, unfair competition, federal cyberpiracy and a violation of consumer sales practices,” according to CNET News.

Google asserts that Pacific WebWorks has been using its logo and name in an orchestrated effort to defraud individuals through a work-at-home scheme. Google’s logo has been used in online ads, pop-up ads, and promotional e-mails targeting individuals, offering an easy way to make money from home.

The scam created fake testimonials in the form of blog posts and comments and uses Google’s name in a litany of fake programs: Google Adwork, Google ATM, Google Biz Kit, Google Cash, Earn Google Cash Kit, Google Fortune, Google Marketing Kit, Google Profits, The Home Business Kit for Google, Google StartUp Kit, and Google Works.

The fake work-at-home scam defrauded individuals by requiring them to pay Pacific WebWorks an "’instant access" fee for admittance to a members-only portal or a "shipping and handling fee" for a DVD that claims to demonstrate how to make money through the program. Those who provided their credit card information were charged between $50 and $79.90 on a monthly basis. Attempts made to stop payments or receive reimbursement were unsuccessful.

Google strives to remove fraudulent and predatory ads from its search engine and advertisements, but according to a Google official, such scams are difficult to eliminate because new ones are constantly being created. To help its cause, Google is offering advice to users via its blog that details how to spot predatory scammers.

We’ve discussed trademark infringement lawsuits before on brandchannel (ahem: Starbucks, Porsche), but in this case Google is taking the necessary steps to not only protect its brand, but also consumers.