Tag Archives: Scams
Fake celebrity skin care ads dupe consumers with ‘Free Trial’ offers
by David Emory, Snopes
The perpetrators use networks of bogus web sites, social media, and e-commerce technology to trick users into ordering “free trials” of supposedly celebrity-endorsed products, only to find they’ve unknowingly signed up to receive regular shipments for which they’re automatically charged on a monthly basis. Read More ›
Save Social Security! Group Accused of Scams Targets N.J. Seniors
by Karin Price Mueller, NJ.com
A complaint-laden organization that solicits donations nationwide is making a play in New Jersey. The letter had many warning signs of a scam: telling the recipient to “rush,” saying the recipient had been “specially selected” and saying the mailing was “exclusive.” Read More ›
Why A Staggering Number Of Americans Have Stopped Using The Internet The Way They Used To
by Andrea Peterson, Washington Post
Nearly one in two Internet users say privacy and security concerns have now stopped them from doing basic things online — such as posting to social networks, expressing opinions in forums or even buying things from websites, according to a new government survey released Friday. … When asked to list their biggest concerns, nearly two out of three respondents cited identity theft, while nearly half brought up credit card or banking fraud. About one in five listed data collection by the government. Read More ›
Call Kurtis: Why You May Not Want To Say A Word During An Unexpected Call
In 2014 the Federal Communications Commission fined Central Telecom Long Distance $3.9 million, “For unjust, unreasonable and deceptive practices.” In one woman’s FCC complaint, she says the company took a recording of her answering “yes” to another question and copied it multiple times on the playback, which ultimately changed her preferred long distance telephone carrier without her authorization. “It’s definitely not honest, and a little shady, absolutely,” said Danielle Spang with the BBB. Read More ›
Gender-Based Price Differences Could Be Banned
by Allen Young, Sacramento Business Journal
Senate Bill 899 passed the Senate Judiciary Committee along party lines this week and now heads to the Senate floor. … Female consumers pay 7 percent more on average for products that are essentially the same as the male version, according to a study released in December by a public consumer watchdog agency in New York City. The study looked at 800 consumer products with “clear male and female versions” and found that products targeted toward girls and women were more expensive 42 percent of the time. Read More ›
These Are U.S. Consumers’ Top 5 Complaints
by Krystal Steinmetz, Money Talks News
Debt collection gripes made up 29 percent of the complaint calls to the FTC last year, while 16 percent of the complaints were related to identity theft. … “We recognize that identity theft and unlawful debt collection practices continue to cause significant harm to many consumers,” Jessica Rich, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, said in a statement. “Steps like the recent upgrade to IdentityTheft.gov and our leadership of a nationwide initiative to combat unlawful debt collection practices are critical to our ongoing work to protect consumers from these harms.” Read More ›
Nonprofit Blue Shield Accused Of Backing Out Of $140-Million Charity Pledge
by Chad Terhune, Los Angeles Times
Blue Shield’s corporate conduct has come under intense scrutiny for the past year after officials revoked its longtime state tax exemption. Auditors at the California Franchise Tax Board criticized the insurer for stockpiling “extraordinarily high surpluses” of $4 billion and for failing to offer more affordable coverage as a nonprofit. California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones is also investigating Blue Shield’s disclosures on executive compensation. Read More ›
Beware The Fine Print: Arbitration Everywhere, Stacking The Deck Of Justice
by Jessica Silver-Greenberg and Robert Gebeloff, The New York Times
The move to block class actions was engineered by a Wall Street-led coalition of credit card companies and retailers, according to interviews with coalition members and court records. Strategizing from law offices on Park Avenue and in Washington, members of the group came up with a plan to insulate themselves from the costly lawsuits. Their work culminated in two Supreme Court rulings, in 2011 and 2013, that enshrined the use of class-action bans in contracts. The decisions … upended decades of jurisprudence. Read More ›
A Fiat Chrysler Discount Will Cost You Your Right To Sue
by David Lazarus, Los Angeles Times
Until now, experts say, no major car manufacturer has sought to encourage customers to forgo their right to sue. … Many large businesses prefer arbitration because settlements are limited and because professional arbitrators often favor the corporate side. Arbitrators’ fees are typically paid by the company in a dispute. A 2007 report by Public Citizen found that over a four-year period, arbitrators ruled in favor of banks and credit card companies 94 percent of the time in disputes with California consumers. Read More ›
More Trouble For ITT Education Services: Agency Restricts For-Profit’s Use Of Federal Student Aid
by Ashlee Kieler, Consumerist
The new restrictions from the Dept. of Education are just the latest regulatory and legal issue for ITT Educational Services. Last month, the company revealed that the Department of Justice was looking into whether the company defrauded the federal government. … Back in May, the SEC filed fraud charges against current and former executives with the company for their part in concealing problems with company-run student loan programs. … The company has faced actions from several states, including the suspension of GI Bill Eligibility in the state of California in May of this year. Read More ›
For-Profit Colleges Accused Of Fraud Still Receive U.S. Funds
by Patricia Cohen, The New York Times
For-profit schools enroll about 12 percent of the nation’s college students, yet they account for nearly half of student loan defaults. … Kaplan [Career Institute’s] schools, including its online California law school, where only one in five students graduates, received $776.3 million worth of federal student loans and grants last year. Because it lacks bar association accreditation, most graduates outside California are not allowed to take a bar exam. Read More ›
Uber Sued Over Alleged Rapes By Drivers
by Marisa Kendall, The Recorder, San Francisco
“Unfortunately, despite its self-proclaimed ‘commitment to safety,’ opening the Uber app and setting the pick-up location has proven to be the modern day equivalent of electronic hitchhiking,” the lawyers wrote. “Buyer beware—we all know how those horror movies end.” … The two assaults are part of a pattern of “similarly heinous, but avoidable attacks,” the Jane Does’ lawyers wrote. They claim more than 30 sexual assaults by Uber drivers against passengers have been reported in the media over the past two years.
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Auto Insurance Company GEICO Pays Out Multi-Million Dollar Settlement
by Tom Vacar, Fox 2 (KTVU Oakland)
The Consumer Federation of California charges that GEICO tried to discourage less preferable customers. Those include those not college-educated, not professional, not executive, a woman, an unmarried person, or those not currently insured. They would not be offered those lowest legal minimum [rates]. Read More ›