The creators of the Lumosity “brain training” program will pay the Federal Trade Commission $2 million to settle charges they deceived consumers with unfounded claims that their product sharpened cognitive performance and could protect against decline, according to the Federal Trade Commission.

Lumosity said its games could help users perform better at work and in school, and reduce or delay cognitive impairment associated with age and other serious health conditions, claims that could not be backed by scientific evidence, the FTC said.

Lumos Labs of San Francisco, the company behind Lumosity, will pay $2 million and will notify subscribers of the FTC action, according to the Jan. 4 order handed down by the U.S. District Court Northern District of California. The company also must provide customers with an easy way to cancel their auto-renewal to avoid future billing, the court said.

The order imposes a $50 million judgment against Lumos Labs, to be suspended due to its financial condition, after the company pays $2 million to the commission.

“Lumosity preyed on consumers’ fears about age-related cognitive decline, suggesting their games could stave off memory loss, dementia, and even Alzheimer’s disease,” said Jessica Rich, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “But Lumosity simply did not have the science to back up its ads.”

The Lumosity program consists of 40 games purportedly designed to target and train specific areas of the brain. The company advertised that training on these games for 10 to 15 minutes, three or four times a week, could help users achieve their “full potential in every aspect of life,” according to the FTC complaint.

The company sold both online and mobile app subscriptions, with options ranging from a monthly fee of $14.95 to a lifetime membership for $299.95.

Lumosity has been widely promoted through TV and radio advertisements on networks including CNN, Fox News, the History Channel, National Public Radio, Pandora, Sirius XM, and Spotify, the FTC said. The defendants also marketed through emails, blog posts, social media, and on their website, Lumosity.com, and used Google AdWords to drive traffic to their website, purchasing hundreds of keywords related to memory, cognition, dementia, and Alzheimer’s disease, according to the complaint.

The complaint charges the defendants with failing to disclose that some consumer testimonials featured on the website had been solicited through contests that promised significant prizes, including a free iPad, a lifetime Lumosity subscription, and a round-trip to San Francisco.

The FTC alleges that the defendants claimed training with Lumosity would: improve performance on everyday tasks, in school, at work, and in athletics; delay age-related cognitive decline and protect against mild cognitive impairment, dementia, and Alzheimer’s disease; and reduce cognitive impairment associated with health conditions, including stroke, traumatic brain injury, PTSD, ADHD, the side effects of chemotherapy, and Turner syndrome, and that scientific studies proved these benefits.

The court order requires the company and co-founder and former CEO Kunal Sarkar, and co-founder and former Chief Scientific Officer Michael Scanlon, to have competent and reliable scientific evidence before making future claims about any benefits for real-world performance, age-related decline, or other health conditions.

The order requires the company to notify subscribers who signed up for an auto-renewal plan between January 1, 2009 and December 31, 2014 about the FTC action and to provide a means to cancel their subscription.

Twitter: @SusanJMorse