Consumerist reports that a hacker group claims to unprecedented access to iPhones and is threatening to remotely wipe them clean if Apple doesn’t pay a ransom. Motherboard reports that the group of hackers — known as the Turkish Crime Family — allegedly gained access to a list of between 300 million and 559 million iCloud […]
Author Archives: Allison Zieve
The New York Times reports: Wells Fargo and its leaders have expressed much contrition about the bank’s misdeeds, which included setting up as many as 2 million bank accounts without customers’ consent. Top executives have surrendered more than $90 million in compensation, fired employees at all levels and vowed to clean house. But the top […]
In an op-ed in The Hill, former Rep. Steve Israel (D-N.Y.) explains: While President Trump has kept the public busy with his latest theories about President Obama’s wire-taps, the “deep state” and Arnold Schwarzenegger’s ratings, the Republican Congress has been quietly pushing forward a legislative agenda that will have an all too real impact on […]
The Federal Trade Commission announced yesterday that the operators of a telemarketing scheme charged with bilking millions of dollars from consumers, many of whom are seniors or military veterans on fixed income, will pay approximately $7.5 million in consumer redress under a settlement with the FTC. The stipulated final order also prohibits the defendants – […]
The Hill reports: President Trump will sign an order Wednesday to formally evaluate the Obama administration’s landmark greenhouse gas emissions standards for cars. The action, a top request from the automaker lobby to the new president, is the first step toward potentially weakening the aggressive standards that set a goal of a 54.5 mile-per-gallon auto […]
Volkswagen has pleaded guilty to three felonies and agreed to pay some fines in connection with its emissions cheating. A few stories on the plea deal are here, here, and here.
In connection with the health care legislation moving through the House of representatives, Stat News reports: A little-noticed bill moving through Congress would allow companies to require employees to undergo genetic testing or risk paying a penalty of thousands of dollars, and would let employers see that genetic and other health information. Giving employers such power is […]
The Hill reports: "The Senate is taking a hammer to a pair of Obama-era education rules. Senators voted 50-49 on Thursday to roll back a regulation that placed tougher accountability measures on schools. The rule detailed how public schools must carry out laws meant to ensure they are meeting the needs of all students. Republicans […]
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has announced plans to delay the effective date of its prepaid card rule for six months, to April 1, 2018. The CFPB's press release stated: "The CFPB’s prepaid accounts rule will provide strong consumer protections and we want the rule to become effective as soon as possible. However, through our […]
Responding to Rep. Chaffetz's statement suggesting that poor people cannot afford health care because they choose to buy iPhones, an op-ed by Stephen in the Washington Post explains that "the real reasons people suffer poverty don't reflect well on the United States." The op-ed is here.