Archive for the ‘Consumer Issues’ Category
Friday, March 5th, 2010
While reading a news story this afternoon we realized that a mobile interface to the Better Business Bureau (BBB) Reliability Report database was never posted on ResourceShelf a few months ago when it launched.
So, here it is.
The Mobile Version of the Database is Accessible at: http://m.bbb.org.
From a News Announcement in the Ridgefield (CT) Press:
The BBB mobile web address offers an uncluttered interface that allows consumers to simply enter the name of a company, and retrieve Reliability Reports on both BBB accredited and non-accredited businesses.
Source: Better Business Bureau, Ridgefield Press
Posted in Business and Economics, Consumer Issues, Wireless Web and Search | No Comments »
Friday, February 26th, 2010
USDA Demonstrates New ‘Food Environment Atlas’ Unveiled as Part of Let’s Move! Campaign
USDA officials today highlighted one of its newest web-based mapping tool, Your Food Environment Atlas, which will enable researchers, policy makers, and the public to find information on a range of factors that affect access to healthy, affordable food, and will allow users to map the data by county.
The map will provide highly detailed information on local food environments and health outcomes, including grocery store access and disease and obesity prevalence.
The demonstration of the new mapping tool follows First Lady Michelle Obama’s launch of the Let’s Move! campaign, a high-priority initiative to address childhood obesity within a generation. The food environment atlas will help to jump-start a national discussion on childhood nutrition, health, and well-being.
The Food Environment Atlas is at www.ers.usda.gov/foodatlas. Learn more about the Let’s Move! campaign by visiting www.LetsMove.gov.
Posted in Consumer Issues, Databases, Directories, and Guides, Geographic, Government Documents and Political Information, New Websites and Resources, Reference Tools, Search Tools, Source File | No Comments »
Wednesday, February 24th, 2010
From the Web Page:
The Federal Trade Commission today released a report listing top complaints consumers filed with the agency in 2009. It shows that while identity theft remains the top complaint category, identity theft complaints declined 5 percentage points from 2008.
15 Complaint Categories are Listed, Top 10 Below
1. Identity Theft
2. Third Party and Creditor Debt Collection
3. Internet Services
4. Shop-at-Home and Catalog Sales
5. Foreign Money Offers and Counterfeit Check Scams
6. Internet Auction
7. Credit Cards
8. Prizes, Sweepstakes and Lotteries
9. Advance-Fee Loans and Credit Protection/Repair
10. Banks and Lenders
Btw, the complete list contains the actual number of complaints for each of the categories.
See Also: Consumer Sentinel Network Fact Book (101 pages; PDF)
Numerous details, tables, and charts. Statistics everywhere. Essential for consumer collections. Legal collections might also want to have a copy.
Posted in Business and Economics, Consumer Issues, Lists and Rankings, Statistics | No Comments »
Wednesday, February 24th, 2010
FRB announces new online consumer guide to credit cards
The Federal Reserve Board on Friday launched a new interactive website to help consumers better understand the new credit card protections that will take effect on February 22. These rules ban several harmful practices and require greater transparency in the disclosure of the terms and conditions of credit card accounts.
The site, which can be found at www.federalreserve.gov/creditcard, summarizes the main provisions of the rules and explains how they will affect credit card users. Two interactive features will allow consumers to learn more about the terms and fees of credit card offers and about the new features of their monthly statements.
Posted in Business and Economics, Consumer Issues, Government Documents and Political Information, New Websites and Resources, Source File | No Comments »
Tuesday, February 23rd, 2010
Widespread Data Breaches Uncovered by FTC Probe
The Federal Trade Commission has notified almost 100 organizations that personal information, including sensitive data about customers and/or employees, has been shared from the organizations’ computer networks and is available on peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing networks to any users of those networks, who could use it to commit identity theft or fraud. The agency also has opened non-public investigations of other companies whose customer or employee information has been exposed on P2P networks. To help businesses manage the security risks presented by file-sharing software, the FTC is releasing new education materials that present the risks and recommend ways to manage them.
Peer-to-peer technology can be used in many ways, such as to play games, make online telephone calls, and, through P2P file-sharing software, share music, video, and documents. But when P2P file-sharing software is not configured properly, files not intended for sharing may be accessible to anyone on the P2P network.
+ Peer-to-Peer File Sharing: A Guide for Business
+ OnGuard Online: P2P Security
Also includes sample notification letters (PDFs).
Source: Federal Trade Commission
Posted in Business and Economics, Consumer Issues, Government Documents and Political Information, Legal, Privacy, Search News, Source File, Technology and Internet, Web 2.0 | No Comments »
Friday, February 12th, 2010
Amazon Wants To Give A Free Kindle To All Amazon Prime Subscribers
In January Amazon offered select customers a free Kindle of sorts – they had to pay for it, but if they didn’t like it they could get a full refund and keep the device. It turns out that was just a test run for a much more ambitious program. A reliable source tells us Amazon wants to give a free Kindle to every Amazon Prime subscriber.
Just as soon as they can work out how to do it without losing money.
Amazon Prime is a subscription product that gives customers free two day shipping on everything they buy from Amazon. The current fee is $79/year.
These are Amazon’s very best customers – the ones who tend to make multiple purchases per month. And they are also likely to buy multiple books per month on their Kindle devices. If those users buy enough books, and Amazon gets the production costs of the Kindle down enough, Amazon can get Kindles into “millions” of people’s hands without losing their shirt. At least when the goal is to break even or better over the course of a couple of years, the expected lifetime of a Kindle.
Source: TechCrunch
Posted in Books, Business and Economics, Consumer Issues, E-books, Search News, Technology and Internet | No Comments »
Tuesday, February 9th, 2010
Social Transmission and Viral Culture (PDF; 379 KB)
People often share news, opinions, and information, and social transmission shapes both individual behavior and collective outcomes. But why are certain things more viral than others? An analysis of over 7,500 New York Times articles published over six months suggests that individual-level psychological processes (e.g., emotion) act as a selection mechanism on culture, shaping what becomes viral. Even controlling for external drivers of attention (e.g., the time an article spent on the Times’ homepage), awe-inspiring articles are more likely to be among the newspaper’s most e-mailed stories on a given day. Practically useful, surprising, positive, and affect-laden articles are also more likely to be viral. The magnitudes of these relationships are considerable. These results underscore the importance of considering how individual-level psychological processes shape collective outcomes such as the transmission and prominence of culture.
Source: Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania (Berger/Milkman)
Posted in Consumer Issues, Media, Papers, Presentations, Reports, Scholarly Publishing, Social Media, Source File, Web 2.0 | No Comments »
Sunday, January 31st, 2010
From an Article:
The FDA has launched a new,searchable database that includes 971 recalls since January 1, 2006. (The database only goes back four years. If you have pet food from before then, I urge you to throw it away now for reasons completely unrelated to recalls!)
The number 971 sounds quite scary indeed. If you’re thinking of circumventing this problem by making your pet’s food, remember that recalls of human food are stunningly common as well…
Access the New Pet Food Recall Database
Access the Human Food Recall Database
Source: Dr. Eric Barchas, DVM (Dogster/Catster)
Other Human Food Recalls Can be Found Here
Also, More RecallsHere No Food But Many Other Products, Some Data Back to 1973.
Posted in Consumer Issues, Databases, Directories, and Guides, Government Documents and Political Information, Reference Tools, Resources | No Comments »
Wednesday, January 27th, 2010
Forty-nine percent of surveyed consumers unlikely to buy dedicated e-book readers
Dedicated e-book readers won’t be the easiest sell if you go by Verso’s 2009 Survey of Book Buying Behavior—presented at DigitalBookWorld. On the positive, the overwhelming majority of owners say they do not pirate e-books.
Participating were 5,640 respondents, 48% male and 51% female. Here are Verso’s questions and findings, with a 1.6% margin of error and a 95% confidence level.
Source: TeleRead
Posted in Consumer Issues, E-books, Search News | No Comments »
Monday, January 25th, 2010
Buying You: The Government’s Use of Fourth-Parties to Launder Data about ‘The People’
Your information is for sale, and the government is buying it at alarming rates. The CIA, FBI, Justice Department, Defense Department, and other government agencies are at this very moment turning to a group of companies to provide them information that these companies can gather without the restrictions that bind government intelligence agencies. The information is gathered from sources that few would believe the government could gain unfettered access to, but which, under current Fourth Amendment doctrine and statutory protections, are completely accessible.
Fourth-parties, such as ChoicePoint or LexisNexis, are private companies that aggregate data for the government, and they comprise the private security-industrial complex that arose after the attacks of September 11, 2001. They are in the business of acquiring information, not from the information’s originator (the first-party), nor from the information’s anticipated recipient (the second-party), but from the unavoidable digital intermediaries that transmit and store the information (third-parties). These fourth-party companies act with impunity as they gather information that the government wants but would be unable to collect on its own due to Fourth Amendment or statutory prohibitions. This paper argues that when fourth-parties disclose to law enforcement information generated as a result of searches that would be violations had the government conducted the searches itself, those fourth-parties’ actions should be considered searches by agents of the government, and the data should retain privacy protections.
Source: Columbia Business Law Review
Several options available for retrieval of full text.
Posted in Access to Information, Consumer Issues, Information Industry, Papers, Presentations, Reports, Privacy, Search News, Source File | No Comments »
Sunday, January 17th, 2010
DOT Unveils Improved Aviation Consumer and Enforcement Website
Air travelers will find it easier to file complaints with the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) about airline service, compare the historical on-time and baggage mishandling records of airlines, and find helpful tips about air travel thanks to a redesigned, more user-friendly aviation consumer web site unveiled today by the Department. The web site can be found at http://airconsumer.dot.gov.
…
The improved site contains useful information about the Department’s complaint handling system for consumers who experience air travel service problems, including a web form that consumers can use to file a complaint with DOT about airline service.
The site also offers guidance regarding aviation rules and statutes, advice concerning airlines that have stopped operating or filed for bankruptcy protection, and travel tips and publications related to air travel, such as the Air Travel Consumer Report, Fly-Rights and the annual report on disability-related air travel complaints.
It also features easy-to-navigate links to all of the Department’s information for air travelers, as well as links to other agency web sites with useful material for air travelers. The public will also find it easier to obtain enforcement orders, rules and guidance pertaining to a wide array of subjects such as baggage, fare advertising, refunds, overbooking, disability and flight delays.
Source: U.S. Department of Transportation
Posted in Consumer Issues, Government Documents and Political Information, Portals, Source File | No Comments »
Sunday, January 17th, 2010
Internet Use Among Midlife and Older Adults: An AARP Bulletin Poll
Computer and Internet use continue to be in the domain of the young and affluent, with respondents between the ages of 50 and 64 and those with annual household incomes in excess of $25,000 more likely than their older, less affluent counterparts to report using a computer anywhere, to be more likely to use the Internet for any reason they were asked about, and to access and use the Internet on at least a daily basis.
Notably, older respondents—those ages 65 and older—are much more likely to say they do not currently use a computer or the Internet and, among non-users, are much more likely to say they have no interest in doing so in the future. The less affluent respondents, however, are just beginning to use the Internet, which suggests that access and price may no longer be impediments for them.
+ Full Report (PDF; 127 KB)
Source: AARP Knowledge Management
Posted in Consumer Issues, Papers, Presentations, Reports, Search News, Source File, Technology and Internet | No Comments »
Tuesday, January 12th, 2010
Deloitte’s State of the Media Democracy Survey, Fourth Edition
Source: Deloitte Development LLC
Digitization is radically transforming the way we consume content. But how much do we know about consumers’ behaviors across the generations and what their future media preferences are likely to be? To continue to shed light on these questions and many more, Deloitte’s Technology, Media and Telecommunications (TMT) practice has commissioned a fourth edition of its State of the Media Democracy survey.
The survey looks at:
- Generational preferences for traditional and emerging media devices and platforms
- The evolving adoption of mobile devices, social networking and interactive gaming
- Reactions to conventional and next-generation advertising
- Emerging consumer preferences and the implications for advertisers, content companies, distributors, developers and device manufacturers
+ Full report and associated documents
Posted in Access to Information, Business and Economics, Consumer Issues, Media, Papers, Presentations, Reports, Search News, Source File, Technology and Internet, Web 2.0 | No Comments »
Thursday, January 7th, 2010
The blog is titled, “Dollars and Sense” and the focus is National Consumer Protection Week in March 7-13.
There are sections for:
+ Kids and Parents
+ For “Everyone”
+ For Businesses
+ International
There is also an outreach toolkit.
David Vladeck, Director, Bureau of Consumer Protection, Federal Trade Commission writes in the first blog post about why is organization chose a blog format:
Through a blog, we can be a little bit less formal than a traditional government website and hopefully, quicker and more responsive. On this blog – for FTC people and NCPW participants – we plan to promote helpful consumer resources, provide examples of successful partnerships and campaigns, explore new outreach ideas, and get feedback from our readers. Many of our blog posts will respond to events in the news and seasonal concerns—like holiday shopping. And it will be a great place for consumers to get helpful tips about how to protect their privacy, manage money and debt, avoid identity theft, understand credit and mortgages, and steer clear of frauds and scams.
Source: FTC
Posted in Consumer Issues, Government Documents and Political Information, Social Media | No Comments »
Saturday, January 2nd, 2010
If you’re heading to the Olympics in Vancouver in a few weeks the “Fatabase” (talk about a name that gets right to the point) might be of interest. It contains nutritional information for 64 chain restaurants in British Columbia. Of course, many of these dining establishments are located in other provinces and in the United States so this info could also be useful.
Search by restaurant name/type of meal or keyword search.
Access The Fatabase
Source: Vancouver Sun
Posted in Consumer Issues, Databases, Directories, and Guides, Resources, Source File | No Comments »
Wednesday, December 30th, 2009
From the Announcement:
The Federal Trade Commission has launched its Web site and blog for National Consumer Protection Week 2010, which will be held March 7-13. Consumer.gov/ncpw, encourages people to learn about their rights as consumers, and promotes free resources to help them protect their privacy, manage money and debt, avoid identity theft, understand credit and mortgages, and steer clear of frauds and scams.
[Snip]
For the first time, the site features a blog, www.consumer.gov/ncpw/blog, where visitors can learn about consumer resources in an informal and interactive environment, can connect directly with representatives of public and private consumer protection organizations, and where National Consumer Protection Week partners can share outreach ideas.
Source: FTC
Posted in Business and Economics, Consumer Issues, Social Media | No Comments »
Monday, December 28th, 2009
FTC Issues Report to Congress on Use of its Enhanced Authority Under the U.S. SAFE WEB Act
The Federal Trade Commission has issued a report to Congress examining how the agency has used the expanded law enforcement authority Congress provided in the U.S. SAFE WEB Act to protect American consumers since the Act was signed into law on December 22, 2006. The SAFE WEB Act authorizes the FTC to share information and work cooperatively with foreign law enforcement agencies to protect consumers from cross-border harm.
The report, “The U.S. SAFE WEB Act: The First Three Years,” is available on the FTC’s Web site and as a link to this press release. The report details how the agency has used its new authority to protect consumers in the global economy. For example, the FTC shared non-public information pursuant to the Act with foreign authorities, including the New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs, to shut down a vast international spam network that sent billions of e-mails peddling bogus products to U.S. and foreign consumers. The New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs provided the FTC with substantial investigative assistance and, as a result of this cooperation, both the FTC and the New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs initiated successful enforcement actions shutting down this fraudulent operation. In addition to other relief, the FTC obtained a $15.15 million default judgment against the principal operator of the global spam network in FTC v. Atkinson. The report makes clear that this kind of cross-border cooperation is critical to the FTC’s ability to combat the types of global scams that consumers increasingly face.
The FTC report provides information on a wide range of matters mandated by Congress, including data on the number of cross-border complaints received by the Commission; a description of specific cases in which the FTC worked cooperatively with foreign
agencies; the number of times the FTC has issued compulsory process on behalf of foreign agencies; and implementation of the agency’s International Fellows Program.
+ Full Report (PDF; 846 KB)
Source: Federal Trade Commission
Posted in Consumer Issues, Government Documents and Political Information, Legal, Search News, Source File | No Comments »
Thursday, December 24th, 2009
Food Defense Tool from FDA and APHIS Helps Farmers, Producers Assess Vulnerabilities
The FDA of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) have created an online tool to help farmers and producers assess and mitigate vulnerabilities in their production processes.
The risk assessment tool called Agriculture CARVER + Shock is designed to help the food industry at the farm level – implement food production security methods. The software is free and available at http://www.fda.gov/Food/FoodDefense/CARVER.
CARVER was originally developed by the U.S. military to identify areas that might be vulnerable to attack. The FDA and USDA adapted the model to the food and agriculture sector. The software currently evaluates potential vulnerabilities in the supply chains of different foods and food processes. The FDA and APHIS worked with Sandia National Laboratories to develop the special agriculture module, designed primarily for harvest and pre-harvest food production operations.
“This assessment tool helps the producer understand how an attacker might think,” said Stephen F. Sundlof, D.V.M., Ph.D., director of the FDA’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. “Producers can easily identify weak spots in their operation and receive practical advice on countermeasures they can put in place.”
Source: U.S. Food and Drug Administration
Posted in Consumer Issues, New Websites and Resources, Resources, Source File | No Comments »
Wednesday, December 23rd, 2009
Cybersafety Booklet for Parents and Kids Now Available
A new booklet released today by the Federal Trade Commission and other government agencies helps parents and teachers steer kids safely through the online and mobile phone worlds.
Net Cetera: Chatting with Kids About Being Online was unveiled this morning at Jefferson Middle School in Washington, D.C. by FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, and Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski. At the middle school, which is known for its emphasis on science and technology, the officials met with students and teachers to discuss online safety.
…
Net Cetera tells parents and teachers what they need to know to talk to kids about issues like cyberbullying, sexting, mobile phone safety, and protecting the family computer. Talking to kids about these topics can help them avoid behaving rudely online; steer clear of inappropriate content like pornography, violence, or hate speech; and protect themselves from contact with bullies, predators, hackers, and scammers.
The booklet is available at OnGuardOnline.gov, the federal government’s online safety Web site. OnGuardOnline.gov is a partnership of more than a dozen federal agencies and the technology industry.
+ Direct to booklet (PDF)
Source: FTC, Department of Education, Federal Communications Commission
Posted in Consumer Issues, Databases, Directories, and Guides, Government Documents and Political Information, Privacy, Resources for Educators, Social Media, Source File, Technology and Internet, Web 2.0 | No Comments »
Sunday, December 20th, 2009
From a News Release: (Lots of Stats)
The eYouGuide explains the concrete rights of European consumers surfing the web or shopping online, thanks to 25 years of EU consumer protection rules. Also when online, European consumers have a right to:
- clear information about prices and conditions before making a purchase;
- decide if and how their personal data is treated;
- delivery sent in 30 days after purchase;
- a “cooling-off” period of at least 7 working days after purchase during which they can change their mind;
- a minimum 2 year guarantee on products purchased;
- protection against rogue vendors, unfair contractual terms and commercial practices.
Consumers can be sure that all these rights apply on any website that ends with the suffix “.eu”. Unlike websites ending with .com or .net, a website ending with .eu (the EU top level domain opened in 2006, now at 3 million sites, IP/09/536), must be registered by a person or company established in one of the 27 EU Member States and is subject to EU laws.
More about the .eu domain.
Source: European Commission
Posted in Business and Economics, Consumer Issues, Information Policy, Privacy | No Comments »
