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☆ Number of older adults who lost $100,000 or more to fraud has tripled since 2020, FTC says
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-18 | by ( Greg Iacurci | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

In 2023, about 4,600 adults age 60 and older reported being defrauded of a six-figure sum, according to a report the FTC issued in October. Such thefts can be especially devastating to older adults, who have less opportunity to earn back what they've lost, greatly impacting their quality of life in old age, experts said. Common scams targeting older AmericansConsumers overall lost $10 billion to scams in 2023, a record high, according to the FTC. Older adults were 60% more likely than younger ones to report losses exceeding $100,000 last year, according to the FTC. Criminals commonly stole such vast sums from older adults via romance scams, investment frauds and imposter scams, the FTC said.

Persons: Karl, Josef Hildenbrand, That's, they've, John Breyault, Breyault, Crypto Organizations: Getty, Federal Trade Commission, National Consumers League, FTC, Finance, A.I, underreporting, Gallup, Microsoft, Publishers Clearing, Social Security Administration, Federal Bureau of Investigation, FBI

☆ What to know about airline refunds, delays as global IT outage causes 'mass chaos,' expert says
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-19 | by ( Greg Iacurci | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Airlines around the world experienced disruption on an unprecedented scale after a widespread global computer outage grounded planes and created chaos at airports. Ting Shen/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesMajor airlines like United, Delta and American Airlines grounded flights Friday morning amid a global IT outage impacting their operations, triggering delays for travelers. More from Personal Finance:Global tech outage hits financial services companies, including Charles SchwabRent a car for a road trip, or drive your own? Expedia, for example, said on social media Friday morning it was "experiencing high call volume and long wait times due to a global IT outage. The United Airlines terminal on July 19, 2024 as a global technology outage affected LAX airport in Los Angeles.

Persons: Ting Shen, Eric Napoli, Napoli, There's, John Breyault, Charles Schwab, Taylor, Biden, Breyault, Sara Rathner, Myung J, Chun Organizations: Delta Airlines, Ronald Reagan National Airport, Airlines, Bloomberg, Getty, American Airlines, U.S . Department of Transportation, National Consumers League, Finance, Global, United Airlines, Los Angeles Times, Transportation Department, Microsoft Locations: Arlington , Virginia, Delta, Los Angeles

☆ In wake of AT&T outage, consumer advocates say you should always ask for money back if there’s a blackout
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( Greg Iacurci | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The outage affected tens of thousands of customers in cities across the country whose phones lost signal overnight. It was the result of an internal company error — not a cyberattack — as AT&T worked to expand its network, it said. AT&T is crediting consumers and small business customers "most impacted by the outage" to "compensate them for the inconvenience they experienced," company CEO John Stankey wrote in a letter Sunday. watch now"This is not our first network outage, and it won't be our last — unfortunately, it's the reality of our business," he wrote. The credit doesn't apply to AT&T Business Enterprise and Platinum accounts, AT&T prepaid or Cricket, its low-cost service, the company said.

Persons: Eric Thayer, John Stankey, Stankey, John Breyault Organizations: Getty, T Business, Cricket, National Consumers League Locations: Redondo Beach , California

☆ What AT&T got right and wrong communicating to its customers during the outage
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-23 | by ( Samantha Delouya | Ramishah Maruf | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

The company didn’t publicly acknowledge the outage until it first posted on its site about the outage at 11:15 am ET. Reports on outage tracking service Downdetector showed the network initially went down more than seven hours earlier: Reyes said he experienced the outage starting at 3:50 am ET. AT&T posted just once on X about the outage, pointing customers seeking more information to a faulty link. For many AT&T customers, the network outage was far more than an inconvenience. A "No Service" message is seen on an iPhone in Atlanta during an AT&T outage on February 22.

Persons: CNN —, Damián Reyes, ”, “, I’m, Reyes, Uber, didn’t, Reyes ’, ” Reyes, Mojtaba, John Breyault, Brook Joyner, CNN Breyault, Catherine Thorbecke, Clare Duffy Organizations: CNN, Mobile, T’s Twitter, Villanova University, Wireless Networking Laboratory, National Consumers League, San Francisco’s Department of Emergency Management Locations: Jacksonville , Florida, Atlanta

☆ Starbucks sued for alleged deceptive marketing of its ‘100% ethically’ sourced coffee
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-10 | by ( Parija Bhatnagar | Parija Kavilanz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

New York CNN —Starbucks is being sued by a consumer advocacy group alleging that the global coffee chain falsely and deceptively advertises the “committed to 100% ethical sourcing” claim on its coffee and tea products. There are significant human rights and labor abuses across Starbucks’ supply chain,” she said. Practices sourcing certification. Starbucks developed its own sourcing standards called Coffee And Farmer Equity Practices, or C.A.F.E in 2004. Greenberg said her group is seeking to restrict Starbucks from further engaging in deceptive advertising and to run a corrective advertising campaign.

Persons: “, ”, ” Sally Greenberg, Greenberg Organizations: New, New York CNN, National Consumers League, Starbucks, CNN, SCS Global Services, BBC Locations: New York, Washington, India, Brazilian, Brazil

☆ Starbucks sued for allegedly using coffee from farms with rights abuses while touting its ‘ethical’ sourcing
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-10 | by ( Kenzi Abou-Sabe | Adiel Kaplan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

A consumer advocacy group is suing Starbucks, the world's largest coffee brand, for false advertising, alleging that it sources coffee and tea from farms with human rights and labor abuses, while touting its commitment to ethical sourcing. "But it's pretty clear that there are significant human rights and labor abuses across Starbucks' supply chain." Practices, in 2004 to oversee its coffee sourcing in more than 30 countries. The verification program holds Starbucks coffee suppliers to more than 200 environmental, labor and quality standards. "I think it is really hard to have an ethical supply chain.

Persons: Sally Greenberg, Greenberg, Genevieve LeBaron, LeBaron Organizations: Starbucks, D.C, National Consumers League, NBC News, Brasil, SCS Global Services, Conservation International, Rainforest Alliance, Hershey, School of Public, Simon Fraser University, United Nations Locations: Washington, Guatemala, Kenya, Brazil

☆ Tips for Canceling Online Subscriptions
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-07 | by ( Ann Carrns | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Many people and groups have filed online comments about the proposed rules. A man in Eugene, Ore., wrote that to cancel TextNow, an app offering messaging and calling services, he ultimately had to persuade his credit union to cut off monthly withdrawals from his account. At issue is the use of “negative option” plans, which presume that consumers accept an offer unless they affirmatively decline it — like a free trial that continues as a paying subscription. advises consumers to put a calendar reminder in their phones when they sign up for a free trial so they will be alerted when it is time to cancel. to require companies to notify customers before each recurring charge, and to remind them that they can cancel if they choose.

Persons: “, MyHeritage, John Breyault, Howard, ”, Breyault Organizations: Companies, National Consumers League Locations: Eugene ,

☆ Some airlines effectively charge parents to sit with their kids. Biden is shaming the industry into changing that.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-22 | by ( Brent D. Griffiths | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Consumer groups and President Joe Biden are aghast that carriers have effectively charged families more to sit together. No airline explicitly imposes a "family seating fee," but consumer advocates have complained for years about how that's exactly what's happening. Airlines for America, an industry lobbying arm that counts the big four, America, Delta, Southwest, and United, among its members, previously pointed out that none of its members explicitly charge a family seating fee. This is a March 24, 2023 screenshot of the Department of Transportation's dashboard of airline family seating policies. Sen. Ed Markey of Massachusetts is working with a trio of other Senate Democrats, including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, on separate legislation on just family seating.

☆ It's far harder to cancel a subscription than it is to sign up for one. A bill in Congress wants to change that.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( Brent D. Griffiths | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Consumers and advocates are fed up with it being incredibly difficult to cancel subscriptions. Only last year did the Times begin to allow digital subscribers to cancel their subscriptions directly, Times spokesperson Charlie Stadtlander told Insider. Planet Fitness is up front that its members must cancel at a gym or by mail, even if they can sign up online. Amazon agreed to change how users cancel its Prime membership after European regulators, US consumer groups, and, finally, the FTC stepped in. Then-DC Attorney Karl Racine went after the food delivery service Grubhub for hitting customers with hidden fees and using deceptive marketing about its subscription service.

☆ The Biden administration gave Southwest a deadline to issue refunds for the flight chaos over Christmas. A month later, some passengers were still waiting to be paid.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( Kelsey Vlamis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Pete Buttigieg gave the airline a deadline for refunds, but it came and went. John Erickson, a Southwest passenger who was stuck in Denver for three days after Southwest canceled his flight, told WFLA the airline told him it would take months to receive his refund. In a statement provided to Insider, Southwest rebuked the possibility it engaged in unrealistic flight schedules. Southwest previously told Insider last week it was still working daily to process refund and reimbursement requests from passengers. The spokesperson said DOT "will hold Southwest accountable if it fails" to issue timely refunds or reimbursements.

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