Volkswagen intends to plead guilty to environment charges, but case put over
By MSN News/The Canadian Press Volkswagen’s attempts to plead guilty to all 60 Canadian charges it faces in an international emissions scandal were put on hold Friday as an environmental lawyer argued the court should hear victim impact statements. The federal government charged the behemoth this week with … Read More ›
2.7 billion email addresses & plain-text passwords exposed online
by Waqas, Hackread.com December 11th, 2019 Comparitech along with IT security researcher Bob Diachenko, have discovered a massive trove of login credentials that were exposed to public access without any authentication or security. In 2017, HackRead exclusively reported about DoubleFlag, a hacker who was selling one billion … Read More ›
California will mandate health coverage next year. Here’s what that means
By Catherine Ho San Francisco Chronicle Dec. 13, 2019 In a significant new change, California will require people to buy health insurance next year or pay a tax penalty. State-level mandates for health coverage already exist in Massachusetts, New Jersey and Washington, D.C., which have sought to … Read More ›
Are extended warranties worth it? Not so much, experts say
By David Lazarus, LA Times December 13, 2019 “They are cash cows for retailers,” said Linda Sherry, a spokeswoman for the advocacy group Consumer Action. “Salespeople get commissions, which is why they push them so hard.” But that doesn’t mean you want to dismiss the idea of … Read More ›
Former CFC President James (Jim) Gordon Passes Away
Jim served as President of the Consumer Federation of California from 2000 to 2018, where he oversaw the restructuring and growth of the organization. Jim was a labor leader who started as a rank and file member of the Communications Workers of America while employed at Pacific … Read More ›
Stopping Phone Spoofing
Assembly Bill 1132 (Gabriel) Becomes Law! Prohibits impersonating a government agency phone number December 2019 update A new CFC-sponsored law, AB 1132 (Gabriel) makes it unlawful in California to use caller ID information to impersonate a state, federal or local government agency phone. Your caller ID shows … Read More ›
Elizabeth Warren wants jail time for CEOs in Equifax-style breaches
by Timothy B. Lee, Ars Technica
Massachusetts US Senator Elizabeth Warren wants to make sure that CEOs who preside over massive data breaches don’t get off as easily as Equifax CEO Richard Smith, who retired with a multi-million dollar pay package weeks after the breach. On April 3, she announced the Corporate Executive Accountability Act. Read More ›
Broad coalition supports the Toxic-Free Cosmetics Act (AB 495)
CFC joins Environmental Working Group, Black Women for Wellness, Sierra Club California, Breast Cancer Action, Clean Water Action, and many others in support of AB 495 (Muratsuchi/Wicks). The bill will prohibit cosmetics containing one or more of 20 highly toxic chemicals (such as lead or asbestos) from … Read More ›
CFC supports the Issue Ad DISCLOSE Act (AB 1217)
Would require “issue ads” to disclose their donors in the same manner as ballot initiative ads and independent expenditure ads for candidates. For example, in 2018 a shadowy group known as CALInnovates purchased over 400 Facebook ads and targeted Twitter ads against SB 822 (Net Neutrality), with … Read More ›
CFC supports SB 645 (Monning)
SB 645 protects Californians who are suffering and dying from mesothelioma and silicosis from marathon depositions over seven hours that add physical and emotional stress to their final days. Learn more about SB 645 Read CFC’s letter of support to bill’s author Senator Bill Monning
CFC supports AB 1538 (Weber)
AB 1538 would clarify the right of a consumer to choose a cash payment in lieu of repairing a damaged vehicle under an auto insurance policy. Learn more about the bill Read CFC’s March 21 support letter to the Assembly Committee on Insurance
Los Angeles City Attorney Alleges The Weather Channel App Mines Users’ Private Data
by Los Angeles City Attorney, Press Office
The complaint alleges that TWC used the geolocation tracking technology present in the app to monitor where users live, work, and visit, twenty-four hours a day, as well as how much time users spend at each location. The complaint further alleges that TWC led its users to believe that their location data would only be used to provide them with “personalized local weather data, alerts and forecasts.” Read More ›
Wells Fargo Resolves Investigations with $575 Million Settlement
by KQED Forum, KQED
San Francisco-based Wells Fargo has agreed to pay $575 million to resolve multiple investigations into misconduct at the bank, including inquiries stemming from the 2016 revelation that bank employees were opening accounts for customers without their knowledge. Read More ›