For the most part, we can’t say many glowing things about the debt collection industry that has, in the past, been known for using a litany of abusive and deceptive practices to pry money from consumers. Three such companies will no longer be bothering people after the Federal Trade Commission temporarily shut down the operations for engaging in nearly all of the hallmarks of shady collectors: threatening lawsuits or arrest, impersonating law enforcement and government officials and illegally contacting supposed debtors. [More]
Government Policy
FTC Puts A Stop To Three Debt Collection Operations Using Threatening Text Messages, Robocalls
By 5.21.15
FCC Warns Internet Providers To Comply With Privacy Rules
By 5.21.15
While some Internet service providers are aching to track users’ every online move so they can analyze and sell that data, the FCC is warning these companies that the Commission will be taking a hard look at these practices after the new net neutrality rules kick in next month. [More]
Takata Beefing Up Replacement Airbag Production, Again
By 5.20.15
Just as federal regulators caution that it could take years before the nearly 34 million recalled vehicles equipped with Takata airbags that can spew shrapnel upon deployment are replaced, the Japanese auto parts maker says it expects to speed up its output of replacement parts by year’s end. [More]
CFPB Launches Financial Coaching Program For Transitioning Servicemembers, Financially Underserved
By 5.20.15
The first step in living a fiscally responsible life is to understand what financial products are available and how they fit into your goals. Or at least that’s the idea behind the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s recently launched Financial Coaching Initiative that aims to assist certain groups of consumers become financially independent and knowledgeable. [More]
IRS Investigating How Woman’s Tax Call Ended Up On Howard Stern Show
By 5.20.15 — Updated: 2.14.17
A woman in Cape Cod thought she was just talking to an IRS representative over the phone, but what she — and apparently the agent — didn’t realize was that their call, including her personal info, was being broadcast to listeners of Howard Stern’s radio show. [More]
Man Sues Blue Bell Claiming He Contracted Listeria-Induced Meningitis After Eating Contaminated Ice Cream
By 5.20.15
Investigator are still working to determine what caused the current Blue Bell Creameries listeria outbreak that has been linked to three deaths and at least 10 illness in four states dating back at least five years. But that hasn’t stopped a former Texas man from filing a lawsuit against the company alleging that he contracted listeria-related meningitis after eating the company’s products two years ago. [More]
NHTSA Says It Could Take Days Or Weeks Before All Takata Recalled Vehicles Are Identified
By 5.20.15
Japanese auto parts maker Takata finally buckled under pressure from federal regulators Tuesday, declaring that nearly 33.8 million vehicles sold in the United State come equipped with airbags that can spew pieces of shrapnel upon deployment. While about 17 million of those vehicles had already been part of recalls by major automakers, millions of others have yet to be identified, leaving consumers wondering if they’re driving around with what some people have likened to an explosive device in their steering wheel. [More]
Does Net Neutrality Give The FCC Authority To Overturn Data Caps?
By 5.19.15
While some cable companies, like Comcast and Cox, continue to run regional tests of data caps for their broadband services, at least one major industry analyst is egging the industry to establish harder data caps before the FCC’s new net neutrality rules go into effect in mid-June, even though the new rules don’t actually set any hard and clear guidelines about the Commission’s authority to intervene on the issue of data caps. [More]
34 Million Takata Airbags Declared Defective, More Recalls To Come
By 5.19.15
After months of resisting federal regulators’ push for a national recall of vehicles containing defective Takata-produced airbags that could spew shrapnel when deployed, the Japanese auto parts maker announced today that it has declared an estimated 34 million vehicles defective because of the potentially deadly safety devices. The declaration is the first step in what will likely be the county’s largest recall of a consumer product. [More]
PayPal Must Pay $25M In Refunds, Penalties For Illegally Signing Customers Up For Online Credit Product
By 5.19.15
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau alleges that online payment platform PayPal signed up customers for PayPal credit accounts without authorization, forced customers to use this credit line instead of their preferred payment methods, and failed to address disputes. As a result, PayPal will pay a total of $25 million in refunds and penalties. [More]
4 Cancer Charities Accused Of Swindling Donors Out Of $187 Million
By 5.19.15
Federal regulators, state officials and prosecutors and law enforcement officers from all 50 states and the District of Columbia partnered today to charge four cancer charities and their operators for running a scheme that swindle consumers out of $187 million in charitable donations. Two of the charities have agreed to settle the charges and dissolve their businesses, while two other plan to fight the charges in court. [More]
AT&T CEO: We Can Invest In Our Company Despite Net Neutrality Because It’ll Lose In Court Anyway
By 5.19.15
All of the big ISPs hate the FCCs new net neutrality rule. They’ve been protesting the agency’s decision since before it was even made. And yet the top executives at the cable ISPs have all by now explained why net neutrality is not actually a threat to their businesses, and this week was AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson’s turn. [More]
NHTSA Investigating Nissan Vehicle Issue That Can Result In Blown Tires, Brake Failure
By 5.19.15
Suffering a tire blowout while driving down the highway is never a welcome experience, but imagine if you found out that the tire blew, not because of debris on the roadway, but as a result of a manufacturing defect with your vehicle? It’s for that reason more than 130,000 Nissan Versa vehicles are now under investigation by federal regulators. [More]
New FDA Rule Would Provide More Information About Antibiotics In Farm Animals, But Still Not Enough
By 5.19.15
After decades of inaction on the issue, the FDA is slowly taking actions that it hopes will curb the overuse of antibiotics in farm animals, which currently accounts for around 80% of all antibiotics sold in the U.S. The agency’s latest measure, if approved, will provide more information about how farmers are using these medically important drugs, but by the FDA’s own admission, it’s still not sufficient. [More]
Company That Makes Wet Wipes Agrees Not To Call Products “Flushable” Unless It Can Prove It
By 5.18.15
After pleas from sewage workers and hearing from plumbers who say flushable wipes are actually not flushable or good for sewer systems, one company that makes wet wipes for retail partners has agreed to stop marketing its products as safe for flushing, unless it can substantiate that claim. [More]
NHTSA Probing Fiat Chrysler’s Response To At Least 20 Safety Recalls, Schedules July 2 Public Hearing
By 5.18.15
Federal regulators are once again expressing their displeasure with Fiat Chrysler’s slow-moving response to fixing millions of Jeeps that can explode following low-speed rear-end collisions. Today, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced it plans to take the car manufacturer to task not only for its leisurely pace on the Jeep recalls, but for nearly 20 other safety recalls. [More]
Warrant: Researcher Claims He Commandeered Flight Through In-Flight Entertainment System
By 5.18.15
Nearly a month after a government report identified security weaknesses within the airline industry, including the possibility that newer airplanes with interconnected WiFi systems could be hacked, a recently obtained Federal Bureau of Investigation search warrant shows a security researcher claims he briefly took control of an aircraft after hacking into the plane’s in-flight entertainment system. [More]
North Carolina Sues FCC To Keep Limits On Municipal Broadband
By 5.18.15
It’s been a big year for North Carolina in terms of improving the Internet connections for many of its residents. Google Fiber will bring new options to multiple markets in the state, and the FCC acted against a state law that limits municipal broadband providers from expanding their services. But rather than acknowledge that maybe it shouldn’t let Time Warner Cable dictate state laws, North Carolina has sued the FCC. [More]
