A student loan operation stopped mid-flight, in April 2026
On 16 April 2026 the FTC announced it had obtained a temporary restraining order against NERD Solutions and ED REF, alleging they cold-called borrowers — thousands of them on the Do Not Call list — while posing as the Department of Education or their loan servicers, and collected at least $8.8 million. These are allegations and the case will be decided by the court.
- Year
- 2026
- Where
- United States
- Outcome
- Charged — an allegation, not a conviction
- Reported loss
- $8.8 million
- Victims
- Not stated in the sources
- Schemes
- Student loan forgiveness scams
- Last reviewed
- 2026-09-06
The facts, as recorded
- The FTC announced the action on 16 April 2026; the US District Court for the Central District of California entered a temporary restraining order on 13 April 2026.
- Defendants named were NERD Solutions Inc., ED REF Inc., Natalie Rodriguez and Pablo Ortiz.
- The FTC alleges the operation collected at least $8.8 million from consumers.
- The defendants allegedly pretended to be affiliated with the US Department of Education or consumers' actual loan servicers, and made false claims of student loan forgiveness.
- Consumers were allegedly reached by cold calling, thousands of whom were on the National Do Not Call Registry.
- The complaint cites the FTC Act, the Telemarketing Sales Rule, the Impersonation Rule and the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act.
- The FTC files a complaint when it has reason to believe the named defendants are violating or are about to violate the law; the case will be decided by the court and the allegations have not been proven.
Why this case matters
It is the most recent, and it is the same four elements again: a claim of affiliation with the Department of Education, a promise of forgiveness, an upfront fee, and cold calls to people on the Do Not Call Registry.
Two settled cases in 2025, one banned operation in July 2026, and a new one restrained in April 2026. The template survives its own enforcement.
What the four statutes tell you
The complaint cites the FTC Act, the Telemarketing Sales Rule, the Impersonation Rule and the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act. Each corresponds to a distinct part of the alleged conduct, and reading them across is the fastest way to understand the scheme.
- The FTC Act — the general prohibition on deceptive practices. The forgiveness promise.
- The Telemarketing Sales Rule — advance fees for debt relief are prohibited outright, and calling numbers on the Do Not Call Registry is a violation in itself.
- The Impersonation Rule — a comparatively recent rule specifically prohibiting impersonating a government agency. The Department of Education claim.
- The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act — obtaining customer information from a financial institution under false pretences. This one indicates the operation was allegedly reaching into servicer records.
That last item is the least obvious and the most consequential. A caller who can recite your actual loan balance and servicer is not guessing.
The remedy, and its timing
A temporary restraining order stops the operation while the case proceeds. It is the fastest tool the FTC has, and its value is measured in what does not happen next rather than in money recovered.
Compare the timelines elsewhere in this category: BCO Consulting was banned in October 2023, and its victims received their money in August 2025. A TRO in April 2026 against an operation still running is worth more per dollar than a judgment years after collapse.
The caveat
These are allegations. The FTC files a complaint when it has reason to believe the named defendants are violating or are about to violate the law, and the case will be decided by the court.
Sources
- FTC Stops Operation that Allegedly Targeted People Seeking Student Loan Debt Relief. US Federal Trade Commission. Accessed 2026-09-06. Supports: The 16 April 2026 announcement, the 13 April 2026 temporary restraining order, the defendants, the $8.8m, the impersonation and forgiveness allegations, the Do Not Call cold calling, the four statutes cited and the allegation language.
- Operators of Student Loan Forgiveness Scam Will Be Permanently Banned from Debt Relief Industry, Ordered to Turn Over Assets. US Federal Trade Commission. Accessed 2026-09-06. Supports: The earlier settlement describing the same conduct, used for comparison.