Lumosity claims its computer games can help improve your memory.
But it turns out, those claims are, in fact, too good to be true - and now federal regulators are calling them deceptive.
The Lumosity "brain-training" program claims that by simply playing its games online or on an app, you can improve your memory, attention, and problem solving skills. It even claims those games can prevent memory loss, dementia, and Alzheimer's disease, all based on "proven neuroscience research."
But according to the Federal Trade Commission, there really is no science to back these claims up.
The FTC charged the makers of Lumosity with deceiving consumers, and now the company has agreed to pay a $2 million fine to settle the case.
Lumosity offered some 40 online games that supposedly were designed to target and train specific areas of the brain. The company recommended training on these games for 10 to 15 minutes three or four times a week.
In order to access the games, you needed a paid subscription which cost any where from $14.95 a month to almost $300 for a lifetime membership.
In addition to making unsubstantiated claims about what Lumosity could do for memory, federal regulators say Lumosity also never disclosed that some of the consumer testimonials featured on the company's website were from contest winners who'd been given significant prizes.
If you signed up for Lumosity before January 1st of last year and are on an automatic-renewal plan, under the terms of the settlement, Lumosity must send you a notice about the settlement and give you a one-click option to cancel your subscription immediately.
The settlement also says the company must have "competent and reliable scientific evidence" before it makes any future claims about the benefits of Lumosity's games.
You can find the FTC settlement with Lumosity here.
You can find the FTC complaint against Lumosity here.
