TRO Orders Removal of Allegations of DMCA Takedown Fraud and of Forged Court Order Submission—but …
The Complaint in Goldstone Financial Group, LLC v. FInanceScam.com alleges that defendant was “actively engaged in a targeted false and defamatory campaign against Plaintiffs, as well as other financial industry professionals. Under the guise of journalism, FinanceScam floods the internet with Artificial Intelligence (AI)-generated defamatory content incorporating Plaintiffs’ federally registered trademarks, which it then charges its victims to remove.” Here are details on one part of the allegedly defamatory content:
- On information and belief, in May of 2025 FinanceScam escalated its campaign against Plaintiffs by beginning to falsely assert that “Anthony Pellegrino and his Reputation Managers are blatantly committing serious crimes in trying to censor information on Google.” These accusations are false, disturbing, and are actively and irreparably damaging Goldstone’s business and Mr. Pellegrino’s reputation.
- FinanceScam’s false criminal accusations against Plaintiffs fall into the “4 methods” it accuses “Reputation Management companies” of using to improperly remove content from the Network.
- “Forging a Court Order.” First, FinanceScam falsely asserts that on “13th April, 17th April and 28th April” Mr. Pellegrino “and his reputation managers” “sent a Forged Court Order to our Hosting Company AlexHost), hoping to con them into thinking that a US Court has declared content published at FinanceScam.com and IntelligenceLine.com as Defamatory”: [Screenshot of the alleged forged order.]
- “Using Fake DMCA Notice” and “Hacking our Website.” Second, under the heading “Fake Copyright Takedown Notices by Anthony Pellegrino”, FinanceScam falsely claims “Anthony Pellegrino paid hackers to hack [Network websites] and remove his negatiev [sic] content . . . . While most were removed after hacking, some remained. To remove the remaining articles from Google Search, he asked the reputation agencies to file fraudulent copyright takedown notices.” …
On the strength of this complaint and the motion for a TRO, Judge Sunil Harjani (N.D. Ill.) ordered the removal of the allegations:
Plaintiffs have shown a likelihood of success on the merits of their claims for cy
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