And this folks, is why I am thankful for the FTC and their commitment to consumer safety. Just when I thought I had seen it all, here is another case of deceptive and unsubstantiated claims by a manufacturer.

The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has clamped down on the ‘false and unsubstantiated advertising’ of a device that claimed it could kill pathogenic bacteria.

The settlement imposes judgments of $629,359, against Zadro Health Solutions.

The FTC alleged that Zadro Health Solutions and its owners Zlatko and Rebecca Zadro made false and baseless advertising claims about their Nano-UV devices.

In their ads, defendants claimed their devices “safely kill 99.99% of targeted bacteria – E. coli, Salmonella and the H1N1 (swine flu) virus in 10 seconds” and that their “specifically designed Disinfecting Wands have been proven to eliminate 99.99% of targeted germs and viruses in as little as 10 seconds.”

Zadro Health Solutions’ water and surface disinfectant devices allegedly were touted as “producing sufficient energy to damage and alter DNA of all kinds of microorganisms.”

On their Nano-UV packaging, the Zadro defendants allegedly claimed Nano-UV wands were proven effective for killing 99% of germs on numerous surfaces, including in food preparation areas.

Prices for the Nano-UV devices ranged from $59.99, to $159.99, according to the complaint.

“The defendants said their devices’ UV rays would kill dangerous microorganisms, but they didn’t have scientific evidence to back that up,” said Jessica Rich, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection.