Why would someone need to dispose of a huge amount of cash — tens of thousands of euros — very quickly? That’s what authorities in Geneva, Switzerland, want to know, after finding wads of foreign cash clogging toilets at a bank and at restaurants around the city. [More]
europe
Airline Industry Says Expanding Ban On Laptops Would Cost Travelers $1 Billion
By 5.17.17
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has banned any electronic device larger than a smartphone from the cabins of flights from 10 airports in the Middle East and Africa, and is considering extending the ban to flights from Europe as well. This has airlines freaking out because it means banning laptops from thousands of flights, not hundreds, and a trade group representing the airlines estimates that an expanded ban would cost travelers $1 billion. [More]
Airlines Already Freaking Out About Possible Laptop Ban On Flights From Europe
By 5.12.17
Back in March, the Department of Homeland Security announced a new policy, which banned passengers from 10 airports in eight countries in the Middle East and Africa from having computers and some other electronics with them in the plane cabin on direct flights into the United States. Now DHS may expand the ban to flights from Europe as well, and airlines are freaking out about it. [More]
American Students Moving To Europe For Free College
By 3.30.17
With the average recent college graduate leaving campus with a diploma and $30,000 in debt, it’s no surprise that would-be-students are looking for ways to get an education without taking on such a financial burden. While they could opt to live in certain cities or states, or go to work for any of a number of the companies offering free schooling, many are moving… to Europe. [More]
Uber Leaves Denmark Over New Taxi Law
By 3.28.17
Uber is again taking its toys and going home, this time leaving the entire country of Denmark after the country passed new taxi regulations that require drivers for hire to have meters and seat sensors, which apply to app-based transportation networks. [More]
Facebook, Google, Twitter Told To Revise User Agreements Or Face Fines In Europe
By 3.17.17
Operating globally is tricky: You have to know, and follow, the rules not just of the country where you’re based, but of the countries and regions where you serve customers, too. And for a major silicon valley trio, the way they serve customers in the European Union is apparently not up to snuff. [More]
Apple Officially Appeals EU’s Decision On Back Taxes
By 12.19.16
Three months after Apple CEO Tim Cook called the European Union’s ruling that the company owes Ireland about €13 billion in back taxes “political crap,” the tech giant officially filed an appeal against the decision, adding to the already years-long battle between the Commission, Apple, and Ireland. [More]
With Sales Sagging In The U.S., Chipotle Eyes European Expansion
By 9.19.16
Here in the U.S., where Chipotle runs some 2,000 eateries, the burrito chain has trying to cope with sagging sales following a handful of food-borne illness outbreaks in 2015. But overseas, where the brand is still a novelty, Chipotle apparently sees a bright future. [More]
EU Regulators: Apple Owes Ireland $14.5 Billion In Back Taxes
By 8.30.16
That thing where corporations do anything they can to pay as little tax as possible doesn’t just hit inside the U.S. Companies that relocate part of their operations overseas to avoid an American tax bill still have to pay the taxes they owe to the countries they’re in, and that’s what European antitrust regulators say Apple hasn’t properly done. [More]
Proposed European Law Change Could Make Google Pay Publishers For Your News Results
By 8.26.16
Regulators in Europe are proposing a big update to copyright law in the region that, if adopted, would likely to lead to major changes in the way your news aggregators, well, aggregate. [More]
In France, Uber And Executives Convicted Of Deceptive Commercial Practices
By 6.9.16
Ride-hailing app Uber’s service that lets any safe driver with access to a new-ish car become a driver for hire is generally popular with the frugal public all over the world, but is less popular with regulators and with professional taxi drivers. That’s been the case in France, where the company was convicted today of deceptive commercial practices and illegal business activity, and with its executives fined a collective €850,000 ($962,689). [More]
T-Mobile Claims $.20/Minute Coverage In “All” Of Europe, But What About Andorra? What About Andorra??
By 9.17.15
Today, T-Mobile brashly announced — using italics to stress how big a deal it is — that its Simple Choice plans can be used to make “low flat-rate calls for just $0.20 a minute in a total of 145 countries and destinations worldwide—including all of Europe,” but for some reason the magenta-infused wireless provider apparently missed the five minutes in high school European History class where their teacher offhandedly mentioned something about Andorra. [More]
Dutch Prosecutors Open Criminal Investigation Into Uber Following Violations Of Banned Service
By 4.17.15
Uber’s latest hurdle to provide service in Europe, where many cities and countries have banned the ride-sharing service, comes in the form of a criminal investigation by Dutch prosecutors. [More]
Dutch Businessman Linked To European Horsemeat Scare Sentenced To 2.5 Years In Jail
By 4.7.15
While we’ve had our own share of meat scandals in our nation’s history, Americans with a love of Mr. Ed and Black Beauty watched dismayed about two years ago, as Europe was in the throes of huge horsemeat scandal. And now, a Dutch businessman linked to the meat switcheroo, where horsemeat was sold as beef, is headed to prison. [More]
Amsterdam Uber Driver: Mysterious Masked Men Threatened Me
By 3.19.15
From the point of view of Uber, a service that summons cars and drivers over the Internet, maybe the fines imposed on the company by governments are a relatively cheap marketing expense instead of a nuisance. Yesterday, we shared that Germany has banned the company yet again. Authorities in the Netherlands have imposed a fine of $107,000 on the company for violating the laws that regulate taxis. [More]
New Frontiers In ATM Skimmer Technology: Wiretapping
By 12.9.14
We have a morbid fascination with ATM skimmers here at Consumerist, as anyone with a bank account probably should. The technology has made a lot of progress, from molded overlays for card slots and PIN pads to invisible Bluetooth devices that beam payment information to the bad guys until their batteries die. Now there’s a new type of skimmer spotted on real ATMs, but impossible for customers to detect: wiretaps. [More]
Here’s Another Near-Invisible Card Skimmer Found On A European ATM
By 8.22.14
On the right of this photo is a 1-euro coin, which is more or less the size of a U.S. dollar coin. On the left is a super-thin skimmer recovered from the card-reader slot of an ATM in Europe. Powered by a watch battery, it was only found when the ATM displayed a “fatal error” message and a technician came by to figure out what was wrong. [More]
Europe’s Highest Court Tells Google People Have The “Right To Be Forgotten”
By 5.13.14
When you search for yourself on Google — and don’t deny you’ve done it at least once — do you love absolutely every bit of information that comes up? No, but you figure, it’s on the Internet, so it’s there forever. But Europe’s highest court has ruled that people have the “right to be forgotten,” and that they should be able to ask Google to remove certain sensitive information from Internet search results. [More]
