In February 2020, a class-action lawsuit was filed against advertisers of Nuvega Lash for allegedly falsely marketing cosmetics on various websites and in social media advertisements. Among other things, the complaint alleges that the advertisers:

  • Mislead consumers by using “fake celebrity endorsements” in advertisements, including a SnapChat ad with an endorsement from Blac Chyna and a “fake news article” quoting Oprah, Jessica Alba, Sandra Bullock, and Jennifer Aniston;
  • Misleadingly offer consumers free samples without adequately disclosing that customers are automatically enrolled in monthly subscriptions where they will be charged every month;
  • Misleadingly represent that consumers will only be charged the cost of shipping and handling when, according to plaintiffs, customers must cancel their order within 14 days to avoid being charged more than $90 for products;
  • Make it difficult for customers to cancel their subscriptions;
  • Falsely represent that there is a limited supply of Nuvega Lash products and there is a “high demand” for them due to media coverage when, according to plaintiffs, there is not a limited supply of the products and there has been no actual media coverage;
  • Falsely represents that the free sample promotion ends on a specific date when, according to plaintiffs, there is no end date for the promotion and websites are programmed to automatically enter the current date as the end date;
  • Misleadingly present fake reviews; and
  • Misleadingly design websites to look like “legitimate news article[s]” when, according to the complaint, the websites are ads.

Plaintiffs also claim that disclosures containing the subscription terms do not appear on mobile or tablet devices, and are inadequate on desktop computers because the font size is too small, the color of the font is “almost unreadable against the background,” and the information is in a lengthy paragraph of text. (Adam et al v. Barone et al, Case No. 20-cv-761, N.D. Cal.)

For more of TINA.org’s coverage of cosmetics, click here.


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