Ink cartridge scammers forced to pen cheque for $AUD100k fine

A company called Artorios Ink has been slugged with an $AUD100,000 fine after the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) busted it for a scam that saw it cold call businesses and claim it was time for them to buy more ink cartridges.

The company's modus operandi saw it call companies and claim:

• That the business had agreed to purchase printer cartridges from Artorios Ink, when in fact there was no such agreement;
• That Artorios Ink was an approved, regular or current supplier of the business, when in fact it was not; and
• that Artorios Ink had instituted proceedings in the Magistrates’ Court of Victoria against the business to obtain payment for printer cartridges, when in fact Artorios Ink had not instituted any such proceedings.

The scam was eventually found out, the ACCC took Artorios to the Federal Court and the company's principals wound it up in the midst of those proceedings.

Judgement has now been delivered, with Artorios' two principals each ordered to hand over $50,000 fines after 'fessing up to the scam.

Vulture South imagines that managed print services across the land may feel a little queasy about this case. We're not suggesting that they over-service customers. But with the ACCC advising businesses to train staff so they don't fall for such scams in future, folks carrying big bundles of ink or toner cartridges into an office are now going to arouse rather more suspicion than they did yesterday. ®