News in July 2018

Facebook says it has removed 32 pages and accounts from both Facebook and Instagram because they were determined to be engaging in “inauthentic” behavior that purportedly aimed to influence the midterm elections.

“This kind of behavior is not allowed on Facebook because we don’t want people or organizations creating networks of accounts to mislead others about who they are, or what they’re doing,” the company said in a statement.

Facebook is highly sensitive to that kind of activity after it was revealed in March that Cambridge Analytica, a political marketing firm, made unauthorized use of Facebook user data to try to sway the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

Discovered two weeks ago

Facebook said the issue first came to light in mid-July. Since then it has tried to isolate the source, but it has been unsuccessful thus far.

In its investigation, the social media giant has identified eight pages and 17 profiles on Facebook, as well as seven Instagram accounts, that it says violates the company's ban on coordinated inauthentic behavior. All have been taken down.

Facebook also said it has turned over all of its findings to law enforcement agencies, Congress, other technology companies, and the Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab, a research organization that helps Facebook identify abuse.

Little impact

The Facebook investigation also determined that the group or groups behind the “inauthentic” content apparently had little impact. There were more than 9,500 organic posts by the accounts, but very few seemed to draw much notice since the accounts had few followers.

The most followers were for four groups – “Aztlan Warriors,” “Black Elevation,” “Mindful Being,” and “Resisters.” The rest of the pages reportedly had between zero and 10 followers.

Facebook said the targeted groups paid about $11,000 for 150 ads on Facebook and Instagram starting in April 2017. The last ad ran last month.

“It’s clear that whoever set up these accounts went to much greater lengths to obscure their true identities than the Russian-based Internet Research Agency (IRA) has in the past,” Facebook said. “We believe this could be partly due to changes we’ve made over the last year to make this kind of abuse much harder.”

The company said it would continue to work with law enforcement and other tech firms to better understand the threats it faces.

President Trump is holding out the threat of a government shutdown in September if Congress doesn't approve funding for a wall along the U.S. border with Mexico.

But no one else seems to be talking about it.

“There is no discussion up here about a shutdown," said Sen. Jim Risch, (R-Idaho). "Neither side wants it.”

But in a presidential tweet, Trump warned that he would decline to sign the annual appropriations bill if “Democrats do not give us the votes for Border Security, which includes the Wall!”

Currently, the House and Senate have different versions of the appropriations bill, containing very different levels of financial support for a wall. The House version provides $5 billion for wall construction, while the Senate version contains just $1.6 billion.

Small window of time

Once Congress returns from its August recess, it will have less than two weeks to approve a spending bill the president will sign. While there doesn't appear to be an appetite for a government shutdown, one can't be ruled out, especially when the president is holding it out as a threat.

In recent years, the threat of a government shutdown has been used by both Democrats and Republicans as a negotiating tactic. Usually the party in power wants to avoid one because it normally gets the blame.

The last shutdown occurred early this year and lasted only a few days. When the government shuts down, it mostly affects government workers, who are temporarily laid off because there is no money approved to pay them.

What happens during a shutdown

Consumers can be inconvenienced if they need the assistance from one of these "non-essential workers." For example, people applying for or renewing a passport will have to wait until the government is back in operation before they can get their travel documents. In previous shutdowns, the State Department employees who process passports have been among the federal workers who were furloughed.

If you plan to visit a national park, you will likely find it closed. That won't be limited to parks like Yellowstone, but major tourist attractions in Washington, DC that are operated by the National Park Service.

If you need assistance from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), you'll have to wait until the government is back in operation. Consumers trying to get a home mortgage approved could be inconvenienced because their lender might not be able to access their tax records.

On Monday, the Uber announced that it will stop development of it self-driving trucks fleet in order to focus its efforts on self-driving cars. Employees who had been working in this division will be transferred to Uber’s self-driving car operation, while the company’s on-demand logistics project Uber Freight will not be affected by this decision.

“We’ve decided to stop development on our self-driving truck program and move forward exclusively with cars,” said Eric Meyhofer, head of the Uber Advanced Technologies Group.

“We recently took the important step of returning to public roads in Pittsburgh, and as we look to continue that momentum, we believe having our entire team’s energy and expertise focused on this effort is the best path forward.”

Uber Freight

In 2016, Uber acquired the self-driving truck startup Otto, with the idea of uniting self-driving trucks and truck drivers to move freight around the country.

In March, Uber began putting those trucks on the roads in Arizona, though they had been quietly testing the program in the Grand Canyon since November.

“In order to provide digital services in the physical world, we must build sophisticated logistics, artificial intelligence, and robotic systems that serve and elevate humanity,” said Travis Kalanick, Uber’s then-CEO and founder.

“Together, we have one of the strongest autonomous and engineering groups in the word; self-driving trucks and cars that are already on the road thanks to Otto and Uber Advanced Technologies Center in Pittsburgh; the practical experience that comes from running ridesharing and delivery services in hundreds of cities; with the data and intelligence that comes from doing 1.2 billion miles on the road every month.”

With Uber’s self-driving trucks, the automated system takes control of the vehicle’s accelerating, braking, and steering, but a driver behind the wheel monitors the driving and is ready to take over should something go wrong. Additionally, the trucks come with hardware, software, and sensors designed to detect obstacles, identify the best navigation paths, and interpret relevant signage.

Controversy

Nine months after Uber acquired Otto, the rideshare giant was involved in a lawsuit with Waymo, the former Google self-driving project. Waymo accused former Google engineer and Otto co-founder Anthony Levandowski of devising a plan that spilled trade secrets related to Waymo’s developing technologies, and ultimately using it to start Otto.

The lawsuit alleged that Levandowski downloaded over 14,000 confidential and proprietary files before his resignation, and that he was using Waymo’s initiatives to benefit Otto -- and Uber. While Uber fired Levandowski, the two parties reached a settlement out of court.

Recent successes

Uber Freight started in just three regions in the country, and has since expanded to cover the entire continental United States. The operation is considered a viable revenue opportunity for the company, as it nearly tripled in size, with offices in both San Francisco and Chicago.

“Rather than having two groups working side by side, focused on different vehicle platforms, I want us instead collaborating as one team,” Meyhofer said in an email to employees. “I know we’re all super proud of what the Trucks team has accomplished, and we continue to see the incredible promise of self-driving technology applied to moving freight across the country. But we believe delivering on self-driving for passenger applications first, and then bringing it to freight applications down the line, is the best path forward. For now, we need the focus of one team, with one clear objective.”

A new no smoking policy went into effect today at all federal public housing units because of a 2016 Department of Housing and Urban Affairs (HUD) rule.

The rule is designed to protect people in public housing from secondhand smoke. Advocates of the rule point out that federal housing is largely made up of multi-unit complexes, where occupants of one unit might be exposed to tobacco smoke from another.

The rule mandates that lit cigarettes, cigars, and pipes can only be smoked at least 25 feet away from public housing units. Some municipalities may have stricter rules.

Curtailing secondhand smoke

In recent years, studies have shown that secondhand smoke can make its way throughout multifamily housing, moving from units occupied by smokers into units occupied by nonsmokers.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently conducted research that found most multi-unit housing residents had smoke-free homes, but nearly one-third of those residents said cigarette smoke from other areas of the building often entered their apartments.

In 2006, the U.S. Surgeon General concluded that secondhand smoke increases the risk of serious respiratory problems and infections in children. It also said secondhand smoke can cause lung cancer and coronary heart disease in adult non-smokers.

Anti-smoking groups approve

In response to the new rule, an anti-smoking group called the Truth Initiative lauded regulators for stepping up and enacting protections for consumer health that include restrictions on more than just cigarettes.

“We applaud HUD for also including waterpipe/hookah tobacco in its smoke-free policy,” the group said in a statement. “Hookah involves combustion, and hookah smoke exposes users to many of the same toxicants found in cigarette smoke, and may place users at risk for many of the same diseases as cigarette smokers.”

Work began on the smoking ban in late 2015 when HUD began drafting the rule. In addition to reducing the risk of fires and lowering maintenance costs, HUD said the ban on smoking would drastically improve indoor air quality in public housing spaces.

The rule was formally submitted a few months later, and after an extended comment period, it has taken effect.

How the rule will be enforced is another issue. The Truth Initiative urged federal housing officials not to use eviction as a punishment, suggesting enforcement include education and smoking cessation options.

In an effort to alleviate delivery bottlenecks, Tesla is testing a direct-to-consumer Model 3 delivery system for local deliveries.

Chief Executive Elon Musk tested the new system himself by coming along to deliver a blue Model 3 to a customer in Playa Vista, California, a few miles from Tesla’s Marina Del Rey delivery center.

“We tried out a new delivery system using an enclosed trailer straight from factory to owner’s home, so super convenient & car arrives in pristine condition without wasting plastic wrap,” Musk tweeted.

Streamlining delivery process

Since Tesla achieved its goal of producing 5,000 units in a week, the electric automaker’s service centers have been overwhelmed with customer deliveries. The direct-to-consumer delivery system may be intended to ease capacity issues and expedite the delivery system.

For the new system, Model 3s are delivered directly from Tesla’s northern California assembly center to a consumer’s home within a certain radius of the factory. That’s a change from Tesla’s former method of carrying out home deliveries, which was not direct-from-the-factory.

Electrek points out that the new system enables Tesla to streamline the process for local deliveries by cutting out several steps, including waiting for a truck to load several vehicles, going to a Tesla store or delivery hub, and sitting in transit in between.

The automaker is also testing other ways to simplify and speed up the process. Its “Sign and Drive” program gets buyers out the door in just five minutes by replacing the need for a lengthy walk-through at the dealership with a series of nine videos watched by the customer beforehand.

Parents are spending significantly more on back-to-school items this year, according to an annual survey from RetailMeNot.

In some cases, prices have gone up. In other instances, parents are opting for more expensive versions of supplies than they purchased in the past. According to the survey, parents plan to spend an average of $189 on clothing, compared to $153 last year.

The largest percentage increase in back-to-school spending is for electronics gear. Parents are spending an average of $186, compared to $121 in 2017. That's a 53 percent increase.

Spending on shoes is also sharply higher this year, rising 33 percent, from $71 to $95. Other clothing expenses are expected to rise from $153 to $189.

This year the RetailMeNot survey found that spending on backpacks is expected to rise from $33 to $45, along with higher rates of spending on pencils, folders and art supplies.

Spending 35 percent more

In seven categories, parents are projected to spend an average of $569, a 35 percent increase over 2017 back-to-school expenses.

"Parents aren't just spending more money on back to school, they're getting more strategic with their shopping," says Shopping & Trends Expert for RetailMeNot, Sara Skirboll. "We found that 85 percent have given themselves five weeks to gather all the necessary school supplies for the start of the school year."

Back-to-school spending has become a major event for the economy in recent years, while causing some families financial stress. Financial advisers suggest families create a back-to-school budget, like they should for any expensive event.

Back-to-school budget

A budget should include expenses required by the school first, before consideration is given to clothing and shoes. If your child takes part in sports or music programs, those costs need to be accounted for.

Starting the shopping season early can not only remove some of the stress, but might also yield better prices on some items. If your state declares a brief sales tax holiday, make sure you do the bulk of your shopping during that time, when you could save 5 percent or more.

RetailMeNot's survey of teachers found some consistent requests. Students in kindergarten through third grade need to show up at school with a set of crayons. Kids in fourth, seventh, and eighth grades need plenty of loose-leaf paper, and all high school students should have a good supply of pens when the new school year begins.

Hewlett-Packard (HP) is offering hackers a bounty of up to $10,000 if they can find vulnerabilities in the company’s printers.

CNET is reporting that HP quietly started a hacking bounty program in May. A total of 34 researchers have joined, including one who already earned $10,000 for detecting a flaw.

Printers are one of many consumer products that are vulnerable to hacking. Like other unexpected hacking targets, they can fall to the wayside when it comes to the attention of security researchers, who may be more interested in protecting webcams and other obvious targets.

"As we navigate an increasingly complex world of cyber threats, it’s paramount that industry leaders leverage every resource possible to deliver trusted, resilient security from the firmware up," said Shivaun Albright, HP's chief technologist of print security, in a statement.

Taking a proactive approach

With nearly every industry proven to be vulnerable to hackers, researchers have said that businesses need to be more proactive in patching security holes.

As a result, hacking corporate clients in exchange for a “bounty”or fee has grown into a full-time career for some researchers. Recently, the automaker BMW honored the Keen Research group for their findings that hackers could remotely access its cars and wreak terror on drivers.

BMW of North America is recalling 5,594 model year 2018-2019 BMW X3 sDrive30i, X3 xDrive30i, X3 M40i and model year 2019 X4 xDrive30i & X4 M40i vehicles.

The vehicle's rear brake caliper pistons may have an insufficient coating, potentially reducing rear brake performance, increasing a crash risk.

What to do

BMW will notify owners, and dealers will bleed the rear brake circuit, free of charge.

The recall is expected to begin August 21, 2018.

Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.

Mercedes-Benz USA (MBUSA) is recalling 20 model year 2017 Mercedes-Benz G65 AMGs.

Thee vehicles may be equipped with the incorrect reverse speed limitation software. While in reverse, any abrupt changes in steering while exceeding 16 MPH may cause the vehicle to become unstable.

An unstable vehicle in reverse gear can lead to a vehicle rollover, increasing the risk of injury.

What to do

MBUSA will notify owners, and dealers will update the engine control unit (ECU) software, free of charge.

The recall was expected to begin July 27, 2018.

Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-800-367-6372.

Farmers, fishermen, and bourbon distillers have been some of the early victims of the budding trade war between Washington and much of the rest of the world.

Those products have been tagged for retaliatory tariffs after the Trump administration imposed billions of dollars in tariffs on goods from China, Canada, Mexico, and the European Union, meaning U.S. exporters will probably sell less in the months ahead.

But the next victims will probably be U.S. consumers, who will face higher prices, both on imports and on domestic products produced with imported materials.

The evidence emerged last week as many major U.S. corporations reported quarterly earnings and reassured investors on conference calls that higher costs from tariffs would not cut into profit margins, but would be paid by consumers.

'Expect to pass along increased costs'

"With the latest round of tariff talk we could see an inflationary impact in automotive, however, there is still a fair amount of uncertainty around its timing and ultimate impact," said Carol Yancy, CFO of Genuine Auto Parts, parent company of NAPA. "With that said, we expect to be able to pass along any increases to customers."

Investors in Grainger got similar assurances from company CFO Thomas Okray.

"We expect we will see some supplier inflation related to tariffs in the second half, and we are confident in our ability to pass along price increases," he said on the company's earnings conference call.

Donald Allan, CFO at Stanley Black&Decker, was also confident the tariffs wouldn't be a problem for shareholders.

'Transferring this cost increase'

"Our focus right now is really transferring this cost increase on to the customers and end users because we see it as a very direct cost increase, and it's something we believe that's an appropriate response in the short and medium term," Allan said.

However, not every industry may be able to pass on its tariff costs to consumers. Earl Hersterberg CEO of Group 1 Auto Sales, expressed relief after the White House reached an agreement with the EU, heading off planned tariffs on imported cars.

"Any appreciable tariff that would ultimately increase the price of new cars from Germany, Mexico and Canada, if those prices go up sales volume will come down," Hersterberg told CNBC.

The higher prices have not yet appeared for the most part, but have long been predicted. In early July, Information Technology Industry Council (ITI) Executive Vice President for Policy Josh Kallmer warned tariffs on electronic components and finished products would have the greatest impact on consumers.

He predicted higher costs for LEDs, printer and scanner components, and sensors. Higher costs on those items, he said, would raise the price of computers, phones, thermostats, and similar everyday items.

Just weeks after the last Babies “R” Us store closed its doors, Walmart is ramping up its assortment of products geared towards new parents.

Last week, the Bentonville, Arkansas-based retailer updated its website to include a larger selection of baby products.

Walmart said searches for baby and/or nursery items on its website have increased nearly 40 percent within the past year. In an effort to fill the void left by Babies “R” Us, the company has added more than 30,000 baby-themed items to its website.

With the help of a new “shop by style” tool, consumers shopping for baby gear on Walmart.com can choose from six curated baby collections: wanderlust, boho chic, mid-century modern, baby boy, baby girl, and gender-neutral nurseries Shoppers can also narrow their search to a specific area or need, such as storage, nursing, or diaper changing.

"Having to shop for the nursery as a first-time parent can be overwhelming,'' Lauren Uppington, Walmart eCommerce U.S. vice president and general manager for baby, said in a blog post. "That’s why we wanted to make it as easy as possible for new parents to shop for everything they need for their babies’ nurseries.''

Hitting the summer baby boom

Uppington said Walmart timed the introduction of these new shopping features for families for mid-summer because it has historically been “when most babies are born.”

“It also follows efforts to create a new in-store experience in the baby department in more than 2,000 stores across the country,” she said in a statement.

The retailer’s push into the baby business follows other changes to its online shopping experience. In May, Walmart added high-end items to the fashion section of its website in the hope of becoming a “fashion destination” for shoppers. The company also made changes to the home categories on its site.

Several other retailers have set out to pick up where Toys “R” Us and Babies “R” Us left off.

Earlier this year, Target expanded its private-label brand Cloud Island with more diaper bags and crib sheets. BuyBuy Baby offered to help consumers with Babies R Us gift registries recreate them at its stores.

To spin a line from “The Godfather,” MoviePass’ mantra of “I’m going to make them an offer they can’t refuse” took a turn for the worse over the weekend.

First, the subscription-based movie ticketing service had to take out a $5 million emergency loan to pay fulfillment partners so customers could keep using the service.

It seems MoviePass’ parent company, Helios and Matheson Analytics, had failed to pay the companies that are in charge of customers’ payments, so the contractors simply stopped processing the payments which, in turn, left MoviePass customers without a way to buy tickets.

Ironically, the title of the new Tom Cruise movie -- ‘Mission: Impossible - Fallout’ -- was next on MoviePass’ list of faux pas as customers were prevented from seeing the new flick.

MoviePass danced around the heart of the matter when it tweeted out its “issues” on Thursday. First it was, “To our subscribers - we are aware an investigating an issue that is preventing users from checking-in to movies this evening. We ask for your patience as we look into this and recommend waiting for further updates before heading to the theater.”

Then it was, “We are still experiencing technical issues with our card-based check-in process and we are diligently working to resolve the issue.”

That was later followed up with, “We've determined this issue is not with our card processor partners and will be continuing to work on a fix throughout this evening and night. If you have not headed to the theater yet, we recommend waiting for a resolution or utilizing e-ticketing which is not impacted.”

So, what’s it going to be, MoviePass?

The company’s CEO Mitch Lowe did his best to rally MoviePass’ 3 million users, but his comments veered more towards the new demand-based pricing model and away from the $9.95 a month all-you-can-see model.

“As we continue to evolve the service, certain movies may not always be available in every theater on our platform,” Lowe said in a statement on Friday. “The first of those features, Peak Pricing, has rolled out nationally. Bring-a-Guest and Premium Features will begin rolling out soon.”

Lowe’s hue and cry about MoviePass trying to “fundamentally change an industry that hasn’t evolved much in years” is a worthy crusade, but are moviegoers willing to work through the subscription’s provisos in order to get a good deal?

“Don't get me wrong. Between the $5m loans and mission impossible and the surges costing as much as a ticket, moviepass is doomed,” wrote a subscriber on Reddit.

“But i'm gonna ride it till the end because surge pricing and card outages and stub photos don't affect partner theaters with e-ticketing. And it just so happens that my local e-ticketing theaters have the specific releases I am most interested in. And amc a-list is the better service but amc does not get the movies I like. I will be milking this service until the day it dies.”

For the movie buff -- particularly those patient enough to work within MoviePass’ rules -- $9.95 a month for all-you-can-watch can still be a pretty good deal -- especially when you compare that to the cost of a single ticket. The National Association of Theater Owners reported that the average ticket price for a movie was $9.16 in the first quarter of 2018 versus the same quarter a year ago at $8.84.

Last Friday, YouTube announced an update that allows users to stream vertical videos on their desktops with no black bars on the side. With the update, the video’s aspect ratio is automatically adjusted to fit a computer’s screen size. YouTube announced the update in its user forums.

The update had already hit mobile devices on both Android and iOS, swapping the black bars on the side on small videos for an expanded video when possible or white space in other cases.

“Historically, for non-widescreen videos (not 16:9) like vertical and square videos, we would show black bars alongside the video, making the video really small,” YouTube explained. “This update moves away from the need for black bars. We launched this update on mobile awhile back (both Android and iOS) so this change also aligns the desktop and mobile viewing experience.”

Videos that will be affected by the update are those in standard 16:9, vertical videos, and the older 4:3 format. The update is intended to make videos outside of the standard 16:9 aspect ratio easier to view, as well as allow YouTube to compete with other platforms that do not display black bars.

User response to the update

Though the update is still rather new, YouTube has received some backlash from users, as the response has been mostly unfavorable.

In the days following the update, users have complained that the videos are even smaller than before, parts of the video are cut off, and the quality of videos has decreased. One user wrote of her experience with a video that was larger than 640 x 480, but with the new update, the video was forced into a 640 x 480 screen. Parts of the video were allegedly cut off, and she noted poor quality.

“Some YouTube videos just don’t look good when the screen is big,” the user wrote. “Either give us a way to opt out of this, or fix it.”

Pending homes sales, a measure of real estate contracts signed but not yet closed, rose in all four regions of the country in June, suggesting that the housing shortage is getting less severe.

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reports that signed contracts rose a healthy 0.9 percent from May. Year-over-year, however, pending sales are still down 2.5 percent.

The industry has been well aware of the growing shortage of homes, as builders have cut back on construction and owners of existing homes have hesitated to sell -- in part because of the growing trend among baby boomers to age in place.

Easier to find a home

Lawrence Yun, NAR's chief economist, says an uptick in existing inventory helped lift contract signings in June.

"After two straight months of pending sales declines, home shoppers in a majority of markets had a little more success finding a home to buy last month," he said.

Yun believes homes should be selling at a higher rate, but says it's not enough that the economy is growing and hiring has remained steady. Rising home prices and mortgage rates have made the small inventory of homes even smaller for many would-be buyers, since more homes become unaffordable.

"Even with slightly more homeowners putting their home on the market, inventory is still subpar and not meeting demand," Yun said. "As a result, affordability constraints are pricing out some would-be buyers and keeping overall sales activity below last year's pace."

That said, Yun is hopeful that the worst of the supply crunch is over. In June, the inventory of existing homes for sale was slightly higher year-over-year for the first time since 2015.

Hot markets see inventory increases

The inventory increased in a number of metro areas where the scarcity of homes has sent both home prices and rents skyrocketing. Portland, Ore., increased its home listing by 24 percent, while inventory levels increased 19 percent in Seattle and 17 percent in Nashville. In San Jose, Calif., the most expensive housing market in the country, inventory levels increased 15 percent.

But nearly all housing experts agree that a significant increase in homebuilding will be required to fully alleviate the housing shortage. The Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank recently reported that home construction per household is at a 60-year low.

The National Association of Homebuilders projects only 900,000 new homes will be built in the U.S. this year, even though there is demand for 1.2 million or more. As a result, consumers shopping for a home will still need to be ready to act quickly.

"Home price growth remains swift and listings are still going under contract at a robust pace in most of the country, which indicates that even with rising inventory in many markets, demand still significantly outpaces what's available for sale," Yun said. "However, if this trend of increasing supply continues in the months ahead, prospective buyers will hopefully begin to see more choices and softer price growth."

Even though the mortgage industry has made huge technology investments in the last two years, J.D. Power and Associates finds consumer satisfaction with its services hasn't improved.

In its 2018 Primary Mortgage Servicer Satisfaction Study, the industry average for overall satisfaction was virtually the same as 2017 and 2016.

"The mortgage industry has made bold investments in new technology, but servicing still has a long way to go," said Craig Martin, Senior Director of the Mortgage Practice at J.D. Power.

Martin says part of the problem stems from consumers' lack of interest in the new digital technology. The 2018 survey shows only 20 percent of mortgage customers are even using it, 2 percent below 2016's numbers.

How best to engage customers

At the same time, Martin says consumers are expecting more, but that companies in the mortgage servicing space aren't keeping up.

"Servicers not only have to decipher the services that provide the most value to existing and new customers, but they also must solve how best to engage customers," Martin said. "Doing so will translate into higher levels of adoption and usage to deliver cost savings and improved experience. There is a lot of room for improvement."

The study found that consumers who adopt a loan servicer's digital services are more likely to be satisfied with the company. But fewer than half of mortgage customers even use the servicer's website, compared with 77 percent for bank customers.

Mortgage loan customers told J.D. Power that their loan servicer did not have account alerts, sent out by text, or they were unaware of them. The study found this service is relatively under-utilized in the mortgage industry, and identified it as an area where servicers could provide enhanced services.

Quicken Loans on top

Of all the loan servicers, consumers rated Quicken Loans number one for a fifth straight year, giving it a score of 857. TD Bank was second with a score of 821 and made the largest one-year improvement. Huntington Bank ranked third with a score of 819.

Satisfaction with mortgage loan servicers was ranked across six categories, including billing and payment, escrow account administration, mortgage fees, and communication.

Trek Bicycle Corporation of Waterloo, Wis., is recalling about 10,200 pairs of Bontrager Line Pro flat bicycle pedals sold in the U.S. and Canada.

The spindle of one or both of the pedals can break, posing a fall hazard.

The firm has received five reports of broken spindles in the bicycle pedals. No injuries have been reported.

This recall involves all Bontrager Line Pro flat bicycle pedals. These aluminum pedals come in orange and black, with “Line Pro” and “Bontrager” printed on the body of the pedal.

The pedals, manufactured in Taiwan, were sold at independent bicycle stores nationwide and online at www.trekbikes.com and other online retailers from April 2016, through June 2018, for about $100.

What to do

Consumers should immediately stop using the recalled bicycle pedals and take them to a Trek retailer for a free repair.

Consumers may contact Trek at (800) 373-4594 from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. (CT) Monday through Friday, or online at www.trekbikes.com and click on Safety & Recalls at the bottom of the page for more information.

Volkswagen Group of America is recalling 33,168 model year 2015-2018 Volkswagen Golfs and Golf Sportwagens.

The build of silicate on the shift lever micro switch contacts may enable the key to be removed from the ignition while the vehicle shift lever is not in "Park."

Removing the key while the shift lever is in a position other than "Park" increases the risk of an unintended vehicle rollaway that may result in personal injury or a crash.

What to do

Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will install an additional switch and circuit board, free of charge.

The recall is expected to begin September 8, 2018.

Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 37L5.

Chrysler (FCA US LLC) is recalling 1,930 Mopar Stage 1 Kit Performance Packages Powertrain Control Modules (PCM) Part Numbers P5160023, P5160025, and Demon Crate PCM Part Number 68412287AA.

A defect in the PCMs could prevent the cruise control system from disengaging.

If, when using cruise control, there is a short circuit within the vehicle's wiring, the driver may not be able to shut off the cruise control either by depressing the brake pedal or manually turning the system off once it has been engaged, resulting in either the vehicle maintaining its current speed or possibly accelerating.

If the vehicle maintains its speed or accelerates despite attempts to deactivate the cruise control, there would be an increased risk of a crash.

What to do

Chrysler will notify owners, and dealers will either perform a software update or replace the PCM, free of charge.

The recall is expected to begin August 31, 2018. Owners may contact Chrysler customer service at 1-800-853-1403. Chrysler's numbers for this recall are U82 and U83.

The tablets being provided to inmates in prisons all over the country come with special strings attached. Emails, for instance, can take up to 48 hours to reach their intended destination due to security screenings. The email costs a minimum of 35 cents to send and attaching pictures or exceeding word limits costs extra. Apps and other features designed to appeal to bored inmates all come with their own charges.

The telecommunications giant JPay in recent years has distributed free tablets to tens of thousands inmates with the anticipation that they will spend enormous amounts of money to access the features to make the tablets worthwhile. In New York alone, JPay has predicted that it will earn $8.8 million within two years by giving free tablets to 52,000 inmates in the state.

One enterprising group of inmates in Idaho is now facing punishment for hacking a piece of that pie for themselves. JPay and the Idaho Department of Corrections announced Friday that prison inmates found a vulnerability in their tablets and used it to add $225,000 worth of credits to their own JPay accounts. Most inmates loaded $1,000 or less into their accounts, though one took nearly $10,000. In all, a total of 364 inmates allegedly benefited from the scheme, but only briefly.

After the alleged hack was discovered, JPay announced that it has since recovered $65,000 worth of the credits. Apparently, however, the company needs the inmates’ help to get the rest of its own money back. The firm announced that it is suspending almost all service on the tablets -- everything but email -- until the rest of its money is refunded from the inmates involved in the scheme.

“This conduct was intentional, not accidental. It required a knowledge of the JPay system and multiple actions by every inmate who exploited the system’s vulnerability to improperly credit their account,” an Idaho Department of Corrections spokesman told the Associated Press.

Using a fee-based model to bring the comforts of home to prisoners, the jail communications firm JPay is part of an industry that profits enormously off of inmates, or more likely, their families. The firm also handles prison phone calls that used to cost as much as $14 per minute (until the FCC capped prison phone fees under the Obama administration) and commissary accounts in which family members have been charged fees as high as 45 percent of whatever amount they were sending to the inmate.

JPay also handles many of the debit cards that inmates are given upon release from prison to help pay for getting home. But the money in those cards often becomes inaccessible without explanation or is whittled away by various fees, one lawsuit contends.

JPay was purchased by Securus several years ago, another jail telecommunications giant that profits from high fees. Securus in recent years has successfully lobbied some counties to replace in-person jail visits with costly video visitation systems. Securus, which reportedly lets cops track phone calls in real time, has also proven to be vulnerable to hackers.

Even if the money is not returned, JPay will probably come through this theft just fine. Numerous advocacy groups have described the jail communications industry as one that benefits from having a monopoly in whatever facility in which they are operating.

Jail communications “often do not result in stronger lines of communication at all,” the Electronic Frontier Foundation has said. “Many communications services are offered under unfair terms and with artificially inflated fees that are only possible because the services operate monopolies at each prison or jail.”

Voting machine vendor admits vulnerability

In other hacking news, the nation’s largest provider of electronic voting machines recently admitted in a letter to a Senator that it installed remote-access software on some of its machines. Experts agree that such software is known to be widely vulnerable to hacking.

Voting machines in particular were expected to be completely disconnected from the internet or any remote internet activity.

What’s more, the firm, called Election Systems and Software, previously denied using such technology. The company reportedly now claims that it stopped using the remote software in 2007.  

A new research piece predicts travel prices will spike in 2019 thanks to escalating oil costs, a weakening U.S. dollar, pilot shortages, and a mushrooming global economy.

The Global Travel Forecast -- a study conducted by the Global Business Travel Association and Carlson Family Foundation -- foresees a 2.6 percent rise in the cost of air travel and a 3.7 percent hike in hotel prices, worldwide.

Who’s getting hit?

A lot of the uptick in prices will fall squarely on U.S.- and Asia Pacific-based travelers while rates in Eastern and Western Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Latin America are projected to decrease.

Trade wars and relationships between countries could also have a say in how much consumers are asked to pay for tickets and rooms.

“The heightened rhetoric and policy action by the Trump administration threatens to derail the global stance on trade policy,” the report states.

The “frenemy” relationship between the U.S. and Canada could also come into play. “Tightening interest rates, uncertainty over NAFTA, and growing protectionist squabbles between the two long-term northern allies are casting a shadow over prospects in 2019,” the study predicts.

The rebirth of the travel agency

Some consumers may assume that as shopping for travel deals on the internet grew, the role of the traditional travel agent took a backseat. But that decline was short-lived, and the travel agency business is seeing growth once again.

According to Statista, the travel agency industry in the U.S. is projected to produce $17.3 billion in revenue by 2020, up from the $12.2 billion it produced back in 2010.

The industry not only grew in terms of revenue; American travel agency profits also increased annually in recent years.

The role of the travel agent is also expanding. Many travel agents were strapped with systems that used pre-internet messaging standards, which lessened access to the same information and services being offered by the airlines through their online portals.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) is now doing its best to level the playing field by trying to standardize the exchange of information between airlines and travel agents. The IATA’s  NDC (New Distribution Capability) is designed to address the industry’s distribution limitations like product differentiation and time-to-market while improving access to content and making the travel shopping experience as transparent as possible.

Are there still good deals to be had?

The Global Travel Forecast’s crystal ball sees a long-haul, low-cost market on the horizon, a prophecy airlines are ready to rally around.

That niche may be getting crowded, but that’s a good thing for the traveller. Jumping into the mix are a spate of long-haul, budget-based airlines like Norwegian Air, Wizz Air, EuroWings, and AirAsiaX that are offering hard-to-beat fares.

And thanks to the outsourcing of customer support to low-wage countries and selling tickets at a loss in order to try and improve market share, there are lots of smaller online travel agencies (OTAs) on the lookout for deals that larger agencies like Orbitz, Priceline, and Expedia might be hesitant to publish. As an example, the airfare monitoring service Scott’s Cheap Flights recently posted round-trip airfare from Denver to Beijing for $456 and Cincinnati to Rome for $449.

The government reports the economy grew by 4.1 percent in the second quarter, the best growth rate since 2014. But despite a surge in economic activity, a large number of consumers find they can't seem to get ahead.

The latest TD Bank Love and Money Survey found that one-third of consumers admit to living paycheck-to-paycheck. That financial stress has major consequences, the researchers found.

Nearly one in five consumers have put off buying a home because of their finances. For millennials, that figure rises dramatically to 42 percent.

Love and money

The survey examines the relationship between romance and money and finds that finances often get in the way of a harmonious relationship.

Sixty percent of adults in committed relationships say they talk about money with their significant other at least once a week. Millennial couples tend to discuss finances more than other generations.

Among people who have been divorced, 44 percent said they argued about money at least once a month. Among both divorced men and women, 44 percent report their financial picture improved after the split.

Early conversation is important

"Having a conversation about money early on is important," said Jason Thacker, Head of Consumer Deposits and Payments at TD Bank. "Every relationship is different – different goals, challenges and steps needed to take in order to get where you want to be. That's why being open, honest and understanding of each other's priorities when it comes to money is crucial to your overall financial health and success as a couple."

Previous research has also established that money is a sore point in many relationships and delves deeper into the issue. A 2017 study by the Cashlorette.com found nearly half of Americans in serious relationships have argued with their partner about money.

For 60 percent of couples, the biggest topic of financial contention was that either one person spends too much or one person is too frugal. Other participants in the survey expressed doubts about their partner’s honesty about spending or savings.

Genetic testing services have enticed millions of people with the promise of either discovering ancestry or predicting future diseases. According to industry leaders like the Google-backed 23andMe, submitting a swab of saliva can “help you understand who you are, where your DNA comes from and your family story.”

As comforting as that may sound, it doesn’t mention the other purpose of maintaining a massive DNA database: developing new drugs.

23andMe, for three years, has maintained a Research & Development unit, and Big Pharma is now buying in. GlaxoSmithKline is purchasing a $300 million stake in 23andMe, both companies announced Thursday. The first mission is to investigate a treatment for Parkinson's Disease, based on a common gene mutation linked to the disease.

23andMe boasts more than five million customers and says that 80 percent have agreed to allow their samples to be used for research. The company has reportedly published over 100 scientific papers linked to its internal data.

Customer consent and developing new treatments

Some experts have questioned whether consumers were aware that they opted into the research or who the new partnership will really benefit.  (Customers who did not realize that they gave consent can log into their accounts and “opt-out” of future research.)

“Expensive new targeted ‘personalized’ treatments may be of benefit to those who can afford them,” medical ethics professor Jon Merz told the Philadelphia Inquirer. Experts have also noted that research participants are typically paid for their time. In this case, however, it’s the subjects who have paid for the privilege of submitting their own DNA.

In a public statement, 23andMe CEO Anne Wojcicki claimed that “many” customers have been requesting treatments for diseases when they submit their samples.

“By leveraging the genetic and phenotypic information provided by consenting 23andMe customers and combining it with GSK’s incredible expertise and resources in drug discovery, we believe we can more quickly make treating and curing diseases a reality,” she said.

The announcement comes just as an immigration lawyer in Canada claimed that immigration authorities there are using DNA testing sites to deport people.

The Justice Department is investigating whether local TV station owners including Sinclair Broadcast Group and Tribune Company violated antitrust laws in the way their ad sales teams communicated with one another about their performance, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The coordinated efforts between the ad sales teams might have led to higher rates for TV commercials, the Journal said, citing sources familiar with the matter. The probe was launched following an examination of Sinclair’s proposed $3.9 billion acquisition of Tribune by the Antitrust Division.

“It is our policy not to comment on a potential investigation. It is our understanding that this is not specific to Sinclair, but focuses on the larger broadcast industry,” a Sinclair spokesperson told the Journal.

FCC opposes

The proposed merger between Sinclair and Tribute would create a broadcast television station with more than 200 stations.

In their application to the FCC, the two media companies said they would reach 72 percent of American households under the deal. The combined companies would own and operate the largest number of broadcast television stations of any station group.

Last week, FCC Chairman Ajit Pai expressed “serious concerns” about the plans, particularly the proposed “sidecar agreements” that would allow Sinclair to retain control of stations without owning them.

The FCC voted unanimously to send the merger to an administrative law judge for review -- a move that Republican FCC Commissioner Michael O’Rielly called a “de facto merger death sentence.”

On Thursday, President Trump voiced his displeasure over the FCC’s opposition to the Sinclair-Tribune merger.

"So sad and unfair that the FCC wouldn't approve the Sinclair Broadcast merger with Tribune," the president said in his tweet. "This would have been a great and much needed Conservative voice for and of the People. Liberal Fake News NBC and Comcast gets approved, much bigger, but not Sinclair. Disgraceful!"

The California Supreme Court has ruled that the way in which nearly every retail store operates violates wage and hour laws.

In most businesses, employees who arrive on the job early to open the store, and those who stay a few minutes after they clock out to close the business are not compensated for those extra minutes on the job.

The California court, in a unanimous decision, has ruled that employees must be paid for that time. The case was brought by a shift supervisor at a Starbucks, who said he should be paid for the time spent after work closing the business and walking other employees to their cars.

Plaintiff Douglas Troester filed the original complaint in Los Angeles County Superior Court on behalf of himself and all non-managerial California Starbucks employees who performed store closing tasks from mid-2009 to October 2010.

Starbucks had the case moved to federal court and asked for a summary judgment, arguing Troester’s uncompensated time was so minimal that the company was not required to compensate him. A federal district court ruled in Starbucks' favor but Troester appealed to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which asked the California Supreme Court to clarify state law before it proceeded with Troester's class action suit.

Can't be required to perform tasks without pay

"California law does, in short, make some allowances based on considerations of practicality and reasonableness," the court ruled. "It does not, however, permit an employer to require an employee to regularly work for nontrivial periods of time without providing compensation."

The court established that over the 17-month period of his employment, Troester’s unpaid time totaled approximately 12 hours and 50 minutes. At the then-applicable minimum wage of $8 per hour, this unpaid time added up to $102.67.

The effect of the ruling outside California isn't clear. However, it may cause some national retailers to reexamine their policies for employees who routinely open and close facilities and who are not compensated for that time.

National chains like Starbucks might be affected most. A Starbucks spokesperson told the Los Angeles Times the company is disappointed with the ruling and "will await further disposition of the case before the 9th Circuit as the appeal process continues.”

Consumers found fairly stable gas prices over the last week, even as the oil industry reported a significant drop in U.S. supplies.

For the week ending on July 20, U.S. crude oil inventories fell by 6.2 million barrels, giving up the gain of nearly the same amount in the previous week. The rise and fall of oil stockpiles barely phased refiners and gasoline wholesalers.

"The tightened domestic crude supply amid robust global gasoline demand and high global crude demand will likely sustain the more expensive crude oil prices seen this year into the foreseeable future," AAA said in an analysis. "This trend will keep gas prices high throughout the remainder of the summer and possibly into fall."

The AAA Fuel Gauge Survey shows the average price of regular gasoline is $2.85 a gallon, the same as last Friday and nearly the same as a month ago. However, it's up about 57 cents a gallon more than this time a year ago.

Today's average price of premium gasoline is $3.39 a gallon, a penny less than last week. The average price of diesel fuel is $3.15, also a penny lower than last week.

"If demand and supply stay consistent, prices have the potential to stabilize, barring any major events – geopolitical or natural disasters,” said AAA spokesperson Jeanette Casselano.

The states with the most expensive regular gas

The following states have the most expensive regular gas prices on average, according to AAA.

• Hawaii ($3.78)

• California ($3.62)

• Washington ($3.40)

• Alaska ($3.38)

• Oregon ($3.28)

• Nevada ($3.19)

• Idaho ($3.11)

• Utah ($3.09)

• Connecticut ($3.06)

• Pennsylvania ($3.02)

The states with the cheapest regular gas

The following states currently have the cheapest regular gas prices, according to AAA's analysis.

• South Carolina ($2.54)

• Alabama ($2.54)

• Mississippi ($2.55)

• Arkansas ($2.58)

• Louisiana ($2.58)

• Virginia ($2.60)

• Tennessee ($2.60)

• Oklahoma ($2.62)

• Missouri ($2.62)

• Texas ($2.63)

BMW of North America is recalling five model year 2018 BMW X3 xDrive30i and X3 M40i vehicles.

The rear turn signals on the outboard side panel will illuminate red, while the inboard turn signals simultaneously illuminate amber.

Turn signals that flash multiple colors may confuse other drivers, increasing the risk of a crash.

What to do

BMW will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the rear turn signal lights, and replace if necessary, free of charge.

The recall is expected to begin August 13, 2018.

Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.

Pinnacle Foods of Fayetteville, Ark., is recalling Hungry Man Chipotle BBQSauced Boneless Chicken Wings.

The product may be contaminated with Salmonella from whey powder that has been recalled by the producer of the ingredient.

There have been no confirmed reports of adverse reactions due to consumption of the recalled product.

The following product is being recalled:

• 15.25-oz. individual frozen microwavable dinners with “HUNGRY MAN CHIPOTLE BBQ SAUCED BONELESS CHICKEN WYNGZ” printed on the label and bearing a best buy date of 9/6/19.

The recalled product, bearing establishment number “EST. P138” or “P-138” on the side of the carton, was shipped to retail locations in Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Virginia.

What to do

Consumers with questions may contact Pinnacle Foods consumer care at 1-888-257-1057.

The Center for Auto Safety, partnering with automotive expert Jack Gillis, has published multiple years of used car ratings in its car-buying guide, The Car Book.

In addition to in-depth ratings on the complete line-up of 2018 vehicles, the publication offers consumers over 1,000 used car ratings going back five years.

“While buying a used car used to mean buying someone else’s problems, thanks to improved quality, better reliability and millions of leased vehicles hitting the market every year, there are plenty of good choices — if you know what to look for,” Gillis said.

The secret, of course, is knowing the best make and model to purchase. And now, it's no longer a secret. Here are some of the top picks, with cars ranked for value, safety, and reliability.

Top picks

• Audi A6 -- 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017

• BMW 3 Series -- 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017

• Honda Civic -- 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017

• Honda CRV -- 2015, 2016, 2017

• Lexus ES -- 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017

• Subaru Crosstrek -- 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017

• Toyota Avalon -- 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017

• Toyota Camry -- 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017

• Toyota Prius V -- 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017

Other picks include:

• Acura MDX -- 2013

• Cadillac XTS -- 2013, 2015, 2016

• Subaru Outback -- 2015, 2016, 2017

• Subaru Legacy -- 2014, 2015, 2016

• Volvo S60 -- 2015, 2016, 2017

75 percent of consumers buy a used car

Gillis notes that new cars tend to get most of the attention when it comes to providing consumer information. However, 75 percent of consumers purchase used cars.

“For 38 years my goal with The Car Book has been to provide everything consumers need to make an informed, safe and reliable vehicle purchase,” said Gillis. “The good news, buying used is now a whole lot easier. There are plenty of safe, high quality, money saving used cars out there — if you know what to look for.”

To get the best deal, Gillis suggests consumers do plenty of research with resources like Kelley Blue Book and Edmunds to determine the vehicle's value. Cars have a wholesale and a retail value; the range between the two is the bargaining range.

While many consumers are uncomfortable haggling over the price of a car, Gillis says it's not that unpleasant if you follow this formula: offer 20 percent below the price you're willing to pay.

The dealer will likely reject that and make a counter offer. At that point, split the difference.

Southwest airlines is still feeling the financial impact of a deadly accident that happened back in April.

The Dallas-based carrier reported a strong second-quarter profit, but it revealed that the accident that claimed the life of passenger Jennifer Riordan cost the airline $100 million worth of business.

Debris from a failed engine on Flight 1380 from New York to Dallas partially blew out a window on the plane, pulling Riordan -- a mother of two -- through the opening. Several passengers pulled her back in, but she died from her injuries at the hospital later.

"I am especially proud of the heroic efforts of our people to address and overcome the challenges resulting from the accident," Southwest CEO Gary Kelly said in a statement.

The airline pulled advertising in the wake of the April 17 accident and said at the time that it was bracing for a financial impact on bookings as a result of the incident.

Kelly said he expects the financial repercussions of the fatal accident to ease up in the third quarter. Revenue for each seat flown is poised to increase as much as 1 percent in the next three months. It had tumbled by 3 percent following the incident.

"We are encouraged by the solid rebound in demand," Kelly said in the statement.

Southwest shares have fallen 20 percent this year.

Whatever you do on Twitter, don’t change your display name to “Elon Musk.”

Mr. Musk has enough on his plate to worry about, but now Twitter is being besieged by Musk-looking dummy accounts with identical display names and similar-sounding handles popping up in tweets.

However, the dummy accounts aren’t Musk devotees. They’re cryptocurrency scammers lying in wait and offering giveaways of crypto money such as Ethereum.

Of course, there’s the old if-it-sounds-too-good-to-be-true caveat: for a consumer to get their free crypto coins, all they have to do is send a small amount of their own cryptocurrency to a specific crypto wallet which registers them as a user. The end game for the scammer is to create a field day for themselves by adding up all those trivial amounts into a nice bounty.

The difficult part of the equation for Twitter -- or for that fact, any social media platform -- is that a user can call themselves anything they want in a profile or user name. ConsumerAffairs surveyed Musk’s situation on TwitterAudit and found he has 21,366,594 real followers on Twitter and 844,003 fake followers.

Twitter’s modus operandi for dealing with the Musk counterfeiters is to automatically lock any unsubstantiated accounts that have “Elon Musk” in their Twitter handle.

Those crossing that line are hit with a message saying “Your account has been locked” because of “unusual behavior,” then directs them to a set of hoops they’ll have to jump through to verify who they really are.

“As part of our continuing efforts to combat spam and malicious activity on our service, we’re testing new measures to challenge accounts that use terms commonly associated with spam campaigns. We are continually refining these detections based on changes in spammy activity,” a Twitter spokesperson told The Verge.

How does this affect the consumer?

Twitter is on a rampage to shut down accounts it considers suspicious, and its efforts in this situation, combined with the platform’s recent ban on cryptocurrency ads, is a positive turn for consumers.

In its march to rid itself of bad actors, the social media platform will be tightening things up on user names and taking its fight against abuse and automated accounts a step further.

Assuming you’re not a cryptocurrency scam artist, you should be ok. However, you should be prepared to validate who you are. At the end of the day, that’s a small step that should create a better experience and less cluttered Twittersphere for all.

If you've started your first job and moved into your first apartment, chances are you'll shop for renters insurance.

But what if you're still in college and living in a dormitory? College Parents of America, which offers a number of college-related insurance products, suggests renters insurance should be on most college students' back-to-school shopping list.

The group cites recent data which shows the number of fires that occurred in on-campus student housing facilities was up 6.7 percent in 2016, from 1,916 in 2015.

Renters insurance also covers break-ins and thefts, something the group says is occurring with greater frequency on campus. It says the number of reported criminal offenses on campus increased by almost 3 percent in 2016.

At the same time, the typical college student now has more valuable belongings than in the past, including computers, TV sets, and bicycles.

Disruptive events

"We recommend families consider renters insurance because college students and their parents are often caught unprepared, and these unexpected incidents can also disrupt a students' education," said Bob Soza, President of College Parents of America: "In fact, a majority of state insurance commissioners recommend college students consider renters’ insurance.”

According to ConsumerAffairs' Insurance Contributing Editor Matthew Brodsky, renters are often exposed because a landlord's insurance will not cover their loss. He says renters' policies are usually very affordable, in comparison to homeowner insurance.

Nearly every major insurance company offers renters insurance coverage. You'll find ConsumerAffairs reviews of top renters' insurance policies here.

Especially important for off-campus housing

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners recommends renters insurance for college students, but it may be most important for those living off campus.

"Even if a student is a dependent under his or her parent's insurance, the student's personal property, in many cases, is not covered if the student lives off campus," the group advises. "Parents should check their policy or contact their insurance agent to see if renters insurance is right for their son or daughter who is away at school."

If a student is living in a dorm, the college may provide some coverage, but it will vary from institution to institution. Also, if a college student is under 26 years old, enrolled in classes, and living in on-campus housing, the student may be covered under his or her parents’ homeowners or renters insurance policy.

President Trump has taken to Twitter to voice is displeasure with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for voting to block the merger of two media companies, Sinclair Broadcast Group and Tribune Media.

Sinclair, a politically conservative media company, has generally been more sympathetic to the White House in its coverage than many other media outlets.

"So sad and unfair that the FCC wouldn't approve the Sinclair Broadcast merger with Tribune," the president said in his tweet. "This would have been a great and much needed Conservative voice for and of the People. Liberal Fake News NBC and Comcast gets approved, much bigger, but not Sinclair. Disgraceful!"

Of course, a presidential tweet does not carry the force of law. The FCC action will stand, unless Chairman Ajit Pai, a Trump appointee, decides to bring it up again.

Unanimous decision

As we noted in our coverage last week, the vote of the FCC commissioners -- Republican and Democrat -- was unanimous in denying the merger. But politics apparently played little or no role in the decision. Democrats and Republicans on the commission were united in their concerns about the structure of the acquisition.

Pai said Sinclair's plans for divested stations would violate the law and recommended a “hearing designation order” (HDO) which would require Sinclair to appear before an administrative law judge and explain its offenses, a move that could kill the deal completely.

"When the FCC confronts disputed issues like these, the Communications Act does not allow it to approve a transaction,” Pai said last week. “Instead, the law requires the FCC to designate the transaction for a hearing in order to get to the bottom of those disputed issues.”

Sinclair sought to add Tribune's 42 TV stations to its group, raising its total ownership to 215 stations. In their application to the FCC, the combined companies said the new arrangement would reach 72 percent of U.S. television households and would own and operate the largest number of broadcast television stations of any station group.

Before broadcast ownership rules were changed, beginning in 1981, companies could own and operate only seven TV stations and none of them could be in the same or overlapping markets.

Alphabet’s Waymo is teaming up with five companies to expand consumer access to its fleet of self-driving vehicles, the company announced on Wednesday.

Google’s self-driving car arm will be partnering with Walmart, Autonation, Avis, DDR Corp, and Element Hotel. Waymo said that a pilot program with Walmart will pick up customers and drive them to and from stores to pick up their groceries.

For now, the service is only available in the Phoenix area, but Waymo says it plans to expand the service to other cities “down the road.”

“We’ve tailored our partnerships to meet the top rider needs,” Waymo said in a blog post. “While these are Metro Phoenix-specific partnerships today, these businesses are national and what we learn from these programs will give us a network of partners when we launch in new cities down the road.”

Customers in Phoenix who order groceries on Walmart.com will receive savings or deals on their orders, which will be put together at the store.

"The purpose of all of this: to learn," Tom Ward, vice president of e-commerce operations at Walmart, said in a statement. "While giving customers a unique experience with amazing technology, we're learning how we can make Walmart online grocery pickup even more convenient."

Transportation services

As part of its partnership with AutoNation, Waymo will offer rides to customers having vehicles serviced at AutoNation dealerships. At Avis, Waymo vehicles will drop off and pick up rental car customers at two locations in the Phoenix suburb of Chandler. Waymo will also offer its self-driving cars to customers who do business with DDR Corp. and Element Hotel.

Waymo’s pilot program in Phoenix will kick off later this week, while the other ride offers will begin over the course of the next several weeks.

News of Waymo’s new partnerships comes the same week that Amazon expanded the availability of its free two-hour grocery delivery service, Prime Now.

Walmart made another effort to compete with Amazon when it acquired Jet.com in 2016. For the service, Jet uses Parcel -- a last-mile delivery service that Walmart bought last year at an undisclosed price -- to deliver groceries to consumers’ homes.

General Motors is recalling 22,043 model year 2016-2018 Cadillac CT6s.

The inboard child seat anchorage bars may have had excess structural adhesive applied during assembly, which can interfere with the installation of a child seat.

If the child seat cannot be attached correctly to the anchorage bar, there is an increased the risk of injury.

What to do

GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect, remove any excess adhesive, and apply anti-corrosion primer to the inboard child seat anchorage bars, free of charge.

The manufacturer has not yet provided a notification schedule.

Owners may contact Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006. GM's number for this recall is 18228.

Pepperidge Farm is recalling four varieties of Goldfish crackers that may be contaminated with Salmonella.

No illnesses have been reported.

The following products, distributed throughout the U.S., are being recalled:

What to do

Customers who purchased the recalled products should not eat them, but discard them or return them to the place of purchase for a full refund.

Consumers with questions may contact the company at (800) 679-1791, Monday – Friday, 9AM – 7PM (EST), or online at www.pepperidgefarm.com/GoldfishUpdate.

Apple is in serious damage control over the new MacBook Pros that the company released last week -- the models the company pitched as "70 percent faster" and "ideal for manipulating large data sets, performing complex simulations, creating multi-track audio projects or doing advanced image processing or film editing."

As reviewers put the new machines to the test, one critic found an issue that caused the machines to unduly throttle when in those "advanced" situations like exporting video.

YouTube reviewer Dave Lee discovered that the new MacBook overheats when it’s operating at full speed for a certain period of time. According to Lee, performing a video export in Adobe Premiere took longer on a new MacBook equipped with the latest Intel CPU than it did on a 2017 MacBook using an older version of Intel.

"Power throttling and thermal throttling isn’t anything new -- we’ve seen them in MacBooks for years," Lee said. "We’ve seen it in lots of devices, including Windows, but this degree of thermal throttling is not acceptable."

Once Lee uncovered the problem, other reviewers and testers put the new MacBook through its paces and many replicated the throttling problem.

To Apple’s credit, it didn’t sit still when it heard about the problem. On Tuesday, the company released an update (macOS High Sierra 10.13.6 Supplemental Update for MacBook Pro) for its system software, one that the company hopes will address the bug once and for all.

An Apple spokesperson told CNET that a missing digital key which affects the laptop's thermal management systems was to blame for the issue.

So, buy or hold off?

While the issue raises concerns, it doesn’t appear to be something a typical user would encounter.

John Poole, Founder of Primate Labs, put the new MacBook through a "stress test" and offered his recommendation for the device. "If your work doesn’t involve long-running tasks that are CPU- and GPU-intensive (such as Premiere) then the new MacBook Pro should provide a considerable increase in performance," he said.

There don’t seem to be any other issues lurking for the new MacBooks. Apple went to great lengths to make sure the last bugaboos -- which included keyboard and battery issues -- were taken care of in the new models.

While Apple offered gratis fixes for those issues, getting a free repair isn’t a given. As most anything related to technology is wont to do, consumers are wise to consider extended warranties, especially if they plan on holding onto a unit for more than three years.

The women who stepped into Jason Gargac's Chevy had no idea that strangers were publicly rating their appearance from behind the comfort of a computer screen.

Gargac, an aspiring police officer in St. Louis, said he initially took a job driving for Uber to make ends meet. But not long after, he became a television host of sorts.

On Twitch, a live streaming platform, Gargac played to the camera between rides, thanking people for tuning in and sharing his own critiques of his passengers’ looks. The passengers, on the other hand, appeared to have no idea that they were being recorded as they stepped into his car and began talking.

In the approximately 700 rides that Gargac filmed, his passengers often embarrassed themselves -- or worse. The passengers would reveal their last names, addresses, crushes, family problems, and gripes with bosses, all while strangers mocked them online.

Uber and Lyft eventually cut ties with driver

Uber and Lyft initially downplayed the news that one of their drivers was making entertainment out of peoples lower moments, a discovery that was revealed by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch newspaper.

Gargac admitted to the newspaper that he purposely worked weekend nights because passengers were more likely to be intoxicated then.

Passengers who discovered that they had been filmed and complained to Uber about it said they were only offered a $5 credit and a promise to not be paired with Gargac again.

Both companies initially told the Post-Dispatch that Gargac was not breaking any laws because Missouri is a one-party consent state when it comes to recordings.

But after the local newspaper published an investigative report about Gargac’s livestream channel this past weekend, both companies changed course and said that they had cut ties with him completely.

Gargac, whom the Post reported did not want his own last name printed in their newspaper, was also kicked off Twitch. Until his channel went offline, it had amassed over four thousand followers, a figure that made Gargac feel “forever grateful,” according to a Tweet he sent out to his fans in June.

Meanwhile, passengers interviewed by the paper said they they felt deeply violated.

Recordings all too common

Ethics aside, secret recordings in Uber and Lyft cars are legally murky territory because it’s unclear whether they count as a private space, experts say.

But common sense dictates that passengers and drivers alike should expect to be filmed, as many Uber and Lyft users film rides for their own protection.

Still, drivers typically don’t air the footage unless the passengers become violent, as the infamous Miami doctor Anjali Ramkissoon did two years ago. Nearly three million people reveled in footage showing Ramkissoon attempting to hit her Uber driver and throw his possessions out of the window.

The footage elevated Ramkissoon, a neurologist, to the status of internet celebrity that the public loved to hate. Ramkissoon was fired shortly after the incident and said that she had to change her cell phone number because strangers would not stop calling to yell at her.

Drivers and passengers have also been captured engaging in sex acts in the car, using racist language, or simply behaving rudely. Uber’s own former CEO Travis Kalanick even proved that he wasn’t immune to the trap.

Last year, an Uber driver who realized he was transporting the company’s then-CEO confronted Kalanick about low wages and other problems that Uber drivers face. Kalanick dismissed the concerns as people not taking responsibility “for their own shit.”

Like other passengers caught in embarrassing moments, Kalanick later said he was ashamed of his behavior.

Consumers will soon be able to purchase items on eBay using a payment method other than PayPal. On Tuesday, the online retailer announced that it will soon accept Apple Pay as a form of payment from buyers.

Participating retailers will start accepting Apple Pay beginning in early fall, with the service slated for a larger scale rollout after that.

“Apple Pay is one of the most ubiquitous forms of payments and provides users with an easy, fast and secure way to pay,” Steve Fisher, senior vice president of payments at eBay, said in a statement. “Offering Apple Pay as a form of payment on eBay is the first step in providing more choice and flexibility in payment options to our tens of millions of buyers.”

New payment options

The online retailer has said managing the end-to-end payments flow on its platform is a “key initiative” for the company. In its announcement, the company hinted that additional announcements may be on the horizon as it continues to explore new payment systems.

Tuesday's announcement referenced a "payment initiative" that will continue into 2021.

"As we expand our new payments experience over the coming months, we look forward to offering our global customers many other forms of payments on our platform,” Fisher said.

eBay originally bought PayPal in 2002 for $1.5 billion, but it eventually announced in 2015 that it would be separating from the digital payments company.

When in place, Apple Pay will be an option for users of the eBay mobile app and the Safari web browser on desktop. Apple and iPhone users will be able to use Face ID, Touch ID (on iOS or macOS), and even an Apple Watch to authenticate payments through Apple Pay.

The service will initially be extended to a small group of Marketplace customers. The online retailer says it plans to add more customers -- and more payment options -- in the near future.

The news just keeps getting worse for your local cable company.

A new report from eMarketer shows consumers have stepped up their pace of “cord-cutting” by cancelling pay TV subscriptions and using streaming services instead.

The report projects the number of adults who have cancelled a cable or satellite TV service and will continue without it will rise 32.8 percent this year, to a total of 33 million.

A year ago, the number of cord-cutters was expected to grow by only 22 percent. The new forecast leaves pay TV services with about 186.7 million subscribers this year, down 3.8 percent from 2017.

Pay TV-OTT partnerships

To stop the hemorrhaging, Christopher Bendtsen, eMarketer's senior forecasting analyst, says most pay TV providers found ways to integrate the most popular over-the-top (OTT) streaming service, Netflix, into their systems.

“These partnerships are still in the early stages, so we don’t foresee them having a significant impact reducing churn this year,” Bendtsen said. “With more pay TV and OTT partnerships expected in the future, combined with other strategies, providers could eventually slow—but not stop—the losses.”

Meanwhile, the eMarketer analysis shows OTT streaming services are growing just as fast as pay TV is losing customers. It says viewership increases for YouTube, Netflix, Amazon, and Hulu are being fueled by increases in original video content.

Increasingly, OTT services have found ways to provide live TV channels, so that consumers can pair a couple of these streaming services together and have all the TV they want to watch, at much less cost than subscribing to cable.

For example, while the typical mid-tier pay TV package is normally around $100 a month or more, OTT subscriptions are typically between $10 and $15 a month. A consumer subscribing to two or three services can put together a customized viewing package at a huge savings – if they cut the cord.

Losing track of subscription costs

But consumers who continue to subscribe to pay TV, while adding OTT subscriptions to supplement their viewing choices, are adding to their monthly budget. A new report suggests many consumers are blissfully unaware of how much extra they are spending.

Researchers at Waterstone, a management consulting firm, asked consumers to estimate how much they spend each month on subscription services, including OTT video streaming services like Netflix.

They found the average consumer underestimates the total costs of monthly subscriptions by 197 percent.

“Clearly, most Americans are unaware of how much they spend on subscription services,” the authors write. “When pressed for a quick answer, they dramatically underestimate the amount.”

Since so many industries have moved to a subscription business model, the report concludes it makes it harder for consumers to keep track of their subscription costs, which tend to be small amounts but, added together, take a big bite out of the typical household budget

Amazon announced on Tuesday that it’s expanding its Whole Foods grocery delivery service to consumers in parts of New York City, as well as three cities in Florida.

The service is now available to Prime members in Fort Lauderdale, Miami, Palm Beach, Long Island, lower Manhattan, and Brooklyn. Additional New York City neighborhoods and cities across the U.S. will be added throughout 2018, Amazon said.

The service was initially launched in February of this year. In June, the service was rolled out to major cities including Boston, Chicago, Baltimore, San Antonio, Houston, and Minneapolis. It’s now available to shoppers in two dozen cities. You can find out if the service is available in your city here.

Amazon’s Prime Now program lets shoppers order items from Whole Foods -- including fresh produce, bakery items, dairy, meat and seafood, flowers, everyday staples, and select alcohol -- and have them delivered within two hours. Each two-hour delivery is free with a minimum order of $35, and a one-hour delivery costs an additional $7.99. Prime Now delivery is available from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.

This delivery option is a result of Amazon’s $13.7 billion acquisition of Whole Foods in June of last year. As part of its integration with Whole Foods, Amazon has started offering discounts to Prime members who shop at the grocery chain.

Last month, the company announced that Prime members across the country can receive 10 percent off certain sale items, as well as other discounts, at Whole Foods stores.

Ross Procurement of Dublin, Calif., is recalling about 2,300 bistro chairs.

The chair’s frame can break, posing a fall hazard.

The company has received two reports of the chair frames breaking, with two reports of minor injuries.

This recall involves Bronze Hammered bistro chairs measuring 37 inches tall with a round seat and a heart-shaped backrest.

SKU number 400167187741 can be found on a tag attached to the chair or on a sticker on the underside of the seat.

The chairs, manufactured in China, were sold exclusively at Ross stores nationwide between March 2018, and May 2018, for about $25.

What to do

Consumers should immediately stop using the recalled chairs and return them to any Ross store for a full refund.

Consumers may contact Ross toll-free at (877) 455-7677 anytime or online at www.rossstores.com and click on “Recalled Products & Legal Notices” on the bottom of the page for more information.

Volkswagen Group of America is recalling 6,633 model year 2013-2015 Audi S8s and A8s.

The fuel supply line for the high pressure fuel pump may become porous over time, resulting in a fuel leak.

A fuel leak in the presence of an ignition source can increase the risk of a fire.

What to do

Audi will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel line free of charge.

The recall is expected to begin August 21, 2018.

Owners may contact Audi customer service at 1-800-253-2834. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 20AV.

Crackers, cereal, fresh melon – no food, it seems, is safe from Salmonella, a foodborne pathogen that is making people sick and forcing companies to recall millions of dollars worth of products.

Pepperidge Farm is the latest to warn consumers that some of its products could be contaminated with Salmonella. As a result, it's recalling four varieties of its Goldfish crackers. The company said one of its suppliers reported that whey powder used in the crackers may be contaminated

A day earlier, Mondelēz Global said it was recalling Ritz Cracker Sandwiches and Ritz Bits sold in the U.S., including Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Again, whey powder is the suspected contaminant.

You can find the affected Ritz Cracker lot numbers here. Affected Goldfish lot numbers can be found here.

Centralized food chain

Salmonella is showing up in the U.S. food supply more and more, in part because of how centralized the food chain has become. Multiple food conglomerates increasingly obtain ingredients from the same source. When that source has a problem, it quickly spreads.

Salmonella has even found its way into pills. A Salmonella outbreak in February was linked to kratom. Some of the people who got sick took dietary supplements containing the tainted ingredient. Others were exposed to the product in powder and herbal form.

Earlier this month, Dr. Scott Gottlieb, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner, reported that as of the end of May, a total of 199 cases of Salmonella in 41 states had been linked to kratom consumption; 38 percent of those illnesses led to hospitalizations, he said.

Gottlieb also noted that most of the kratom imported into the U.S. comes from Southeast Asia, where he said “the plant is being grown, harvested, and processed in problematic conditions that readily create the circumstance for widespread contamination with foodborne pathogens.”

Hardy bacteria

While it might seem surprising that Salmonella shows up in processed foods like Kellogg's Honey Smacks, recalled last month, scientists say the bacteria is especially hardy and can thrive in a dry food.

But it's also a persistent threat in fresh food. Just last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said it was investigating a multistate Salmonella outbreak linked to live poultry raised in residential backyards.

Between June 8 and July 20, 88 additional people had become sick, bringing the CDC's total to 212 in 44 states.

To limit exposure to the bacteria, always wash your hands thoroughly after handling animals and animal food. If you or someone in your family gets sick after consuming fresh or processed food, report it immediately to your local health department.

Tesla reportedly asked some automotive suppliers to refund money the company has already spent in its effort to achieve profitability.

According to The Wall Street Journal, a memo sent to one of Tesla’s suppliers last week requested a “meaningful amount of money of its payments since 2016.” The memo, which was written by one of Tesla’s global supply managers, said that the money was “essential” to Tesla’s ability to continue operating.

Tesla has said previously that sales of its Model 3 sedan are critical to it becoming profitable. In recent weeks, it has appeared as though Tesla may achieve profitability after all. Tesla reached its 5,000 unit per week target during the last week of June, and a recent teardown of the Model 3 suggests that the vehicle might be more profitable than originally thought.

Asking for supplier refunds

In a statement, Tesla said that negotiation is a routine practice of working with suppliers. The company said that it asked fewer than 10 suppliers for a reduction in total capex project spend for long-term projects that began in 2016 but aren't completed yet. It said it continues to discuss future parts costs with suppliers.

“Negotiation is a standard part of the procurement process,” Tesla said in a statement. “And now that we’re in a stronger position with Model 3 production ramping, it is a good time to improve our competitive advantage in this area.”

However, some analysts have doubts.

“It’s simply ludicrous, and it just shows that Tesla is desperate right now,” manufacturing consultant Dennis Virag told The WSJ. “They’re worried about their profitability, but they don’t care about their suppliers’ profitability.”

Earlier this summer, Tesla laid off 9 percent of its staff as part of a broader reorganization effort aimed at achieving profitability. At the time, Chief Executive Elon Musk noted that Tesla has never made a profit in its 15-year history.

Tesla is currently trying to ramp up production of its Model 3 electric vehicle. Although the company slightly exceeded its production goal in the second quarter, experts say it remains to be seen whether the company can consistently produce 5,000 units per week.

Tesla shares fell 3 percent on Monday following reports that the electric car maker had asked some suppliers for money back.

Sales of existing homes fell for a third straight month in June, and Realtors say there is one overriding reason: there aren't enough homes to meet demand.

Completed sales in June fell 0.6 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.38 million units. Over the last 12 months, sales are down 2.2 percent, according to the latest report from the National Association of Realtors (NAR).

"There continues to be a mismatch since the spring between the growing level of homebuyer demand in most of the country in relation to the actual pace of home sales, which are declining," said Lawrence Yun, NAR's chief economist. "The root cause is without a doubt the severe housing shortage that is not releasing its grip on the nation's housing market.”

It might be easy to look at the declining sales numbers and conclude the housing market is in serious trouble. But Yun says homes coming on the market are going under contract very fast and in many cases, are drawing multiple offers.

Elevated home prices

“This dynamic is keeping home price growth elevated, pricing out would-be buyers and ultimately slowing sales," he said.

The problem facing the housing market is one of supply and demand. There are more buyers than sellers, and as a result, the price of available homes is going up much faster than incomes.

That means many people who would like to buy a home, have jobs and stable income, are getting priced out of the market, or can't afford the home of their choice.

The median existing-home price for all houses, including condos and townhomes, was $276,900, surpassing May as the new all-time high. It's up 5.2 percent from June 2017. The year-over-year median prices has now increased for 76 consecutive months.

Modest increase in inventory

There was one bit of good news in the June sales report. Total housing inventory increased 4.3 percent over May and posted the first year-over-year increase since 2015. But Yun said the modest increase isn't nearly enough to help buyers.

"Furthermore, it remains to be seen if this modest increase will stick, given the fact that the robust economy is bringing more interested buyers into the market, and new home construction is failing to keep up," he said.

The takeaway for prospective homebuyers is to be prepared to move quickly. In June the average home stayed on the market only 26 days before going under contract. Fifty-eight percent of homes sold in June were on the market for less than a month.

Chick-fil-A consistently tops customer satisfaction surveys, with consumers praising both its service and its food.

Soon, customers can leave with some of that food to prepare at home. Chick-fil-A will be the first fast food chain to sell branded meal kits featuring some of its recipes.

Starting August 27, Chick-fil-A will offer Mealtime Kits at 150 Atlanta-area locations. Customers can purchase the fresh, per-measured ingredients in the drive-through or at the counter, or order the kits using the company's app.

Chick-fil-A says its chef, Stuart Tracy, helped develop five different kit recipes, which include the Chick-fil-A chicken used in the brand’s products. The company says customer feedback will help determine whether the Mealtime Kits are rolled out to a nationwide market.

Next step in fast food

Michael Patrick, an innovation program lead at Chick-fil-A, who is leading the Mealtime Kits effort, says meal kits and fast food should go hand-in-hand.

“We know our guests are busier than ever and need a variety of convenient dinner options,” Patrick said. “We designed our offering so our guests don’t have to order ahead, subscribe to a service, or make an extra stop at the grocery store.”

During the test period, which will run through Nov. 17, Chick-fil-A will rotate five meal kit recipes: chicken parmesan, chicken enchiladas, dijon chicken, pan roasted chicken and chicken flatbread, offering two recipes at a time.

Each kit will make enough to serve two people and cost $15.89. Kits will have a “use-by” date and can be refrigerated at home for several days, depending on when they are purchased.

Popular concept

While Chick-fil-A is the first fast food chain to offer meal kits, it may not be the last. The concept has proved popular with consumers, and supermarkets have already jumped on the bandwagon. So far in 2018, both Walmart and Kroger have launched in-store meal kit offerings.

In March Walmart announced it will roll out its meal kit service to as many as 2,000 stores nationwide this year, following an initial test in some markets.

The meal kits feed two people and range in price from $8 to $15. Consumers can either buy kits in stores or order them online and pick them up later that day. Three different kinds of kits are available to choose from, depending on how much cooking shoppers want to do.

In May, Kroger announced the acquisition of meal kit delivery company Home Chef, which delivers its kits directly to homes. While the Home Chef kits will continue to be sold online, they will also be available in Kroger stores.

At the same time, Kroger said it would continue to offer its Prep+Pared meals that are currently sold in more than 525 stores.

Volkswagen Group of America is recalling 237,947 model year 2005-2008 Audi A4 Sedans, A4 Avants, S4 Avants & S4 Sedans, model year 2007-2008 RS4 Sedans, model year 2004 RS4 Cabriolets, model year 2007-2009 A4 Cabriolets & S4 Cabriolets, model year 2005-2011 A6 Sedans, model year 2006-2011 A6 Avants, and model year 2007-2011 S6 Sedans.

The vehicles have certain airbag inflators assembled as part of the passenger front airbag modules used as original equipment or replacement equipment.

In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger front airbag, these inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling.

An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

What to do

Audi has notified owners, and dealers will replace the passenger front airbag with an alternate remedy part, free of charge.

The recall began June 29, 2018.

Owners may contact Audi customer service at 1-800-253-2834. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 69R7.

Achieva Rubber is recalling 284 Innova Ultra Runner tires sizes 5.30-12-in., 6-ply & 4.80-12-in 4-ply with the date code rage of 0114 through 3917.

The tires fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 119, "New Pneumatic Tires - Other Than Passenger Cars."

Tires that fail to meet the strength test requirements may fail, increasing the risk of a crash.

What to do

Achieva will notify owners, and dealers will replace the affected tires with new tires, free of charge.

The recall is expected to begin August 6, 2018.

Owners may contact Achieva customer service at 1-310-328-8868.

Ford Motor Company is recalling 504,182 model year 2013-2014 Ford Escapes and model year 2013-2016 Ford Fusions equipped with six-speed automatic transmissions.

The bushing that attaches the transmission shifter cable to the transmission may degrade over time and cause the bushing to detach from the transmission.

The condition could allow the driver to move the shift lever to Park and remove the ignition key, while the transmission may not be in Park, with no warning message or audible chime.

If the vehicle is exited without the transmission being in Park and without the parking brake applied it may move unexpectedly, increasing the risk of a crash.

Owners should use the parking brake until the recall remedy repairs can be made.

What to do

Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the shifter cable bushing, free of charge.

The recall is expected to begin July 30, 2018.

Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 18S20.

Questions continue to be raised about the safety of amphibious duck boats, even as federal and state investigations begin into the sinking of one of the crafts in Missouri, claiming 17 lives.

The horrific accident occurred Thursday afternoon, when a severe thunderstorm swept across Table Rock Lake, near Branson, Mo. The boat, which has tires and can be driven on land like a truck, was unstable in the rough waves and high winds, taking on water and then capsizing.

An investigation team from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) arrived on the scene Friday afternoon. On Twitter, the agency asked for help from the public.

"If you have video or photos of the July 19, amphibious vehicle accident on Table Rock Lake near Branson, MO, or if you witnessed the accident, please contact the NTSB via email at witness@ntsb.gov," the agency said.

In fact, videos of the horrifying scene surfaced immediately after the accident, such as the one below.

Questions facing the investigation

Besides the NTSB, the U.S. Coast Guard will conduct an investigation into the accident, and whether the boats should have even been on the lake with a storm approaching.

In an interview with CBS News, Jim Patterson Jr., President of Ripley Entertainment, owner of the duck boats, said the storm that sank the boat was moving faster than expected.

But when pressed on whether the boat should have been in the water with a severe storm approaching, Patterson agreed "it shouldn't have been in the water, if what happened, happened."

Ripley Entertainment issued a statement saying it would do all it could to assist the families and is cooperating fully with the investigation.

Over the weekend a St. Louis-based private vehicle inspector told the Associated Press that he warned the company there were design flaws in the amphibious vehicles that increased their danger of sinking.

In a 2017 report, Steve Paul of Test Drive Technologies warned the craft's engines and pumps could be prone to failure in rough seas. Normally, the duck boats are operated on calm lakes.

Other accidents

Former NTSB chairman Jim Hall says duck boats should be banned. He told USA Today the vehicles aren't quite boats and aren't quite automobiles, so they escape regulation.

Attorney Robert J. Mongeluzzi of Philadelphia says this is not the first time passengers have died aboard duck boats in operation around the country. He said he brought a case where he successfully demonstrated flaws in the craft's engineering.

"There have now been more than 40 deaths associated with these inherently unsafe, novelty tourist rides," Mongeluzzi said. "Why would those boats, which ride very low in the water on a calm day, even be operating given the severe weather conditions and posted small craft advisories? It was unconscionable."

Mongeluzzi's partner, attorney Andrew Duffy, said a 2010 duck boat accident in Philadelphia that claimed two lives resulted in recommendations to make water craft safer.

He said the firm presented engineering experts who showed how the vehicles were actually engineered to fail in a water emergency, their canopies trapping passengers in their life jackets rather than allowing their escape.

"This danger was known as early as 1999 and the NTSB's direction to remove the canopies was, tragically, ignored," Duffy said.

Facebook has suspended the Boston-based analytics firm Crimson Hexagon after reports indicated that the company’s contracts with other countries -- including the United States and Russia -- violated Facebook’s surveillance rules.

“We don’t allow developers to build surveillance tools using information from Twitter or Facebook or Instagram,” a Facebook spokesperson said. “We take these allegations seriously, and we have suspended these apps while we investigate.”

Though no evidence has been found thus far indicating that any user data has been obtained, Facebook plans to investigate “whether the analytic firm’s contracts with the U.S. government and a Russian nonprofit tied to the Kremlin violate the platform’s policies.” Crimson Hexagon has also completed work for the Turkish government.

Though it isn’t against Facebook policy to use data from users for general insights, according to BBC,  “where Crimson would fall foul of Facebook’s rules is if the data was used to create tools for surveillance, though Facebook has never clarified how its policy works in practice.”

According to Crimson Hexagon’s Chief Technology Officer Chris Bingham, the company “only collects publicly available social media data that anyone can access” and “does not collect private social media data.”

Trying to right the ship

Facebook received a ton of backlash following news of the Cambridge Analytica scandal in March. The company is now being investigated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Justice Department, and the FBI for its treatment of the scandal.

Questioning in the investigation is focused primarily on how much Facebook knew in 2015 -- when it initially learned that Cambridge Analytica had improperly accessed the data of tens of millions of users. At the time, Facebook did not alert any shareholders or any of its users.

In an effort to prove to users that their privacy and security is of the utmost importance, Facebook then launched a series of privacy updates. The company has not only audited thousands of apps that had access to users’ data, but it also suspended 200 apps in the process. Facebook also drastically upgraded users’ privacy settings, putting control back in the hands of social media users.  

Members of the U.S. Senate have dropped their attempt to block President Trump from lifting trade restrictions on the Chinese telecommunications company ZTE.

Despite bipartisan concerns about national security, the U.S. lifted its trade ban on the company earlier this month. Under a new deal reached last month, ZTE has been allowed to resume doing business with private U.S. companies.

The deal required that the company pay a $1 billion fine and put $400 million in escrow to ensure it does not violate U.S. sanctions in the future. Additionally, the company agreed to replace its management team and will be monitored by a U.S.-chosen compliance team.

“The ZTE settlement represents the toughest penalty and strictest compliance regime the Department has ever imposed in such a case,” the Commerce Department said. “It will deter future bad actors and ensure the Department is able to protect the United States from those that would do us harm.”

National security concerns

ZTE was first hit with the ban in April after it violated the terms of 2017 agreement stipulating that it was not allowed to sell sensitive American technology to Iran and North Korea. In addition to violating the terms of the settlement, the company lied to the U.S. about reprimanding employees involved in the illegal actions.

In May, President Trump announced his intent to revive the embattled company. He said ZTE buys parts from U.S. companies and that the Commerce Department’s deal with the firm was “also reflective of the larger trade deal we are negotiating with China and my personal relationship with President Xi.”

A bipartisan group of senators introduced legislation that was meant to reinstate some of the penalties on ZTE. Last month, the Senate voted to approve those measures, citing national security concerns.

However, Senate Republicans have now decided to back off on the ZTE sanctions in exchange for more oversight for the Committee on Foreign Investment in the US (CFIUS).

Senators say the deal puts the country at risk

In exchange for abandoning ZTE restrictions, lawmakers agreed to give CFIUS -- an interagency committee that reviews deals between foreign investors and U.S. businesses for potential threats to national security -- more authority over deals between foreign investors and U.S. businesses.

Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), who was in favor of ZTE sanctions, tweeted that the deal was a “bad trade-off.”

“This deal on #CFIUS is good news. The bad news? They had to cave on #ZTE in order to get it. So chances that a #China controlled telecomm will not just stay in business, but do so here inside the U.S. sadly just went up. #BadTradeoff,” he said.

Senator Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said lifting the penalties on ZTE is another example of the president "being weak in the face of another nation's leader while the GOP just follows along."

“By stripping the Senate’s tough ZTE sanctions provision from the defense bill, President Trump — and the congressional Republicans who acted at his behest — have once again made President Xi and the Chinese government the big winners and the American worker and our national security the big losers,” Schumer said in a statement.

A small number of security lanes at London's Heathrow Airport are currently using new scanners which could one day lead to the removal of liquid restrictions, as well as keep passengers from having to remove items from their baggage before passing through security.

The computed tomography (CT) scanners allow airport security staff to see a detailed, three-dimensional, X-ray image of objects inside people’s luggage from every angle. The new technology is being tested over the next six to 12 months.

“We continue to look at new technologies that can both improve the passenger experience and strengthen our security,” a spokesperson for Heathrow said in a statement.

The UK’s Department for Transport (DFT) said the technology can also detect hidden explosives.

“If successful, this could lead in future to passengers no longer needing to remove items from hand luggage for screening,” the agency said in a statement.

Could end the liquid ban

During the trial period, some passengers at Heathrow will not have to remove their laptops or liquids from their luggage. However, the DFT stressed that the "rules remain the same -- passengers should expect to remove items if requested during the screening purposes."

If successful, the trial could possibly lead to the end of restrictions on how much liquid passengers can bring on board. Passengers were banned from traveling with liquids in their carry-on baggage in August 2006 following the discovery of a ‘liquid bomb’ plot, in which terrorists traveling from the UK allegedly tried to blow up 10 airliners using explosive material hidden in soft drink bottles.

Currently, passengers are allowed to take liquids in containers under 100 milliliters carried in a separate, transparent, resealable bag. The restrictions on liquid could be softened even further if the trials are determined to be a success and the technology is rolled out to more airports.

“It is the beginning of the end of the liquid ban, and it’s long overdue,” said Philip Baum of Aviation Security International magazine.

Similar scanners have also been tested at JFK Airport in New York and at Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam.

H-E-B is recalling two variety packs of Creamy Creations ice cream and sherbets in 3-oz., cups.

Broken metal was found in processing equipment during routine maintenance.

There have been no injuries reported to date due to this incident.

The following products, distributed to H-E-B stores in Texas, are being recalled:

The product code dates can be found on the back of the packaging.

What to do

Customers who purchased the recalled items should stop eating them and return them to the store where purchased for a full refund.

Consumers with questions or concerns may contact H-E-B customer service at (855) 432-4438 Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. – 6 p.m. (CST).

More Wells Fargo customers may be in line for refunds.

The bank, which was hit with huge fines in 2016 after it opened checking and credit card accounts for customers without their knowledge, has spent the last three years auditing the bank's marketing of add-on services.

The investigation has centered around credit monitoring and identity theft protection services some customers said they paid for but never received.

The Wall Street Journal, citing sources familiar with the issue, reports many customers who paid for pet insurance and other add-on services will receive tens of millions of dollars in refunds.

The matter is reportedly under investigation by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), which is trying to determine whether customers were deceived or knew how to cancel the products, for which they paid a monthly fee.

Under review

Wells Fargo told The Journal it is still “reviewing add-on products sold to consumers by the bank or its service providers and if issues are found during this review, we will make things right with customers in the form of refunds or remediation.”

A bank spokeswoman told the newspaper the bank is cooperating with regulators in an ongoing review.

This is just the latest challenge for Wells Fargo, which in 2016 was slapped with a $185 million fine from federal and state regulators for the unauthorized checking and credit card accounts, opened for 3.5 million unsuspecting customers.

The following year it was revealed that some Wells Fargo customers unknowingly purchased auto insurance they didn't need. The bank said the additional costs may have led to 20,000 defaults and car repossessions.

Financial advisors under scrutiny

Earlier this year, a whistleblower charged that the bank's financial advisor unit often made decisions with an eye toward compensation rather than what was best for the client.

Last month, Wells Fargo agreed to a settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), resolving charges that its advisers unit engaged in misconduct in the sale of financial products, known as market-linked investments (MLI), to small investors.

According to the SEC, the bank was able to charge huge fees by encouraging its retail customers to actively trade the products, even though they are designed to be held until they mature.

The SEC found that from 2009 to 2013, Wells Fargo Advisors improperly encouraged investors to sell MLIs before maturity, then invest the money in new MLIs. The bank assessed substantial fees on each transaction.

In an unanimous vote likely to quash the deal, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has voted against approval of Sinclair Broadcast Group’s purchase of Tribune Media Company.

In a nutshell, the FCC thought Sinclair’s plan was fraught with too many ifs, ands, or buts. FCC Chairman Ajit Pai’s disapproval of the merger is centered around the structure of the acquisition. Pai says Sinclair's plans for divested stations would violate the law and recommended a “hearing designation order” (HDO) which would require Sinclair to appear before an administrative law judge and explain its offenses, a move that could kill the deal completely.

"When the FCC confronts disputed issues like these, the Communications Act does not allow it to approve a transaction,” Pai said. “Instead, the law requires the FCC to designate the transaction for a hearing in order to get to the bottom of those disputed issues.”

The proposed merger between Sinclair and Tribune Media was quite a can of worms. In essence, all of Tribune's 42 TV stations would move to Sinclair, raising Sinclair’s total ownership to 215 stations. In their application to the FCC, the combined companies said the new arrangement would reach 72 percent of U.S. television households and would own and operate the largest number of broadcast television stations of any station group.

Too much influence?

Naysayers had been lining up in opposition to the merger. The ACLU, American Cable Association, National Hispanic Media Coalition, Free Press, Newsmax Media, and the Communications Workers of America all submitted thunderous objections.

“Our opposition to the Sinclair merger has nothing to do with where Sinclair sits on the ideological spectrum,” the ACLU wrote in a press release. “The problem is that Sinclair’s attempt to acquire Tribune Media would give it control over some 200 TV stations, virtually guaranteeing less viewpoint diversity in local news.”

The public wasn’t shy about its issues with the deal, either.

At a public protest outside Sinclair’s Hunt Valley MD headquarters where it was holding its annual meeting, Max Obuszewski of Baltimore held a sign that read “enough is enough.”

“I’m against the merger of bringing so many stations together, and I’d be opposed even if it was a more progressive diet of news,” Obuszewski told The Baltimore Sun. “Nobody should have so much concentration of the media. … And you have political messages disguised as news. I’m very offended by that.”

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced it is considering a change in its policy that would allow imports of certain prescription drugs in an effort to lower prices for consumers.

FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said the agency has formed a working group to look at options. He notes that when there is a shortage of drugs, it presents a public health hazard for patients.

By the same token, when there is a single source for medication, high prices can also make it unavailable for many patients who can't afford it. In some instances, Gottlieb says prices of old generic drugs have surged because it is available from just one company.

"We want to examine whether—under these narrow conditions—the additional market competition from the short-term importation of foreign versions of the drug may complement the FDA’s current efforts, and help meet near-term patient need in the U.S. until new competition is able to enter the domestic market," Gottlieb said in a statement.

Considerations

The working group will consider, among other things, how the FDA and the Department of Health and Human Services will evaluate the public health need for access to foreign-approved drugs in certain situations.

It will also consider how the FDA will protect patient safety through a secure drug supply chain and pursue enforcement against unsafe and illegal drug products.

Currently, it is illegal to purchase drugs from overseas, where many medications are available at much lower prices than in the U.S. Gottlieb says any change in policy to allow drug imports would be temporary until adequate competition levels out prices in the U.S.

Drug companies respond

The same day Gottlieb raised the possibility of importing lower priced drugs to the U.S., pharmaceutical giant Merck announced that it would limit price increases for several treatments.

The company said it is lowering the price of ZEPATIER by 60 percent, and several other medicines by 10 percent to reduce out-of-pocket costs for patients. It said it selected the products for price reductions based on a range of factors, including the gap between list price and actual discounted prices paid in the market.

"Going forward, we will continue to evaluate our portfolio of products to look for opportunities to further reduce costs for patients and the health care system," the company said in a press release.

Earlier this week, both Pfizer and Novartis announced they would freeze prices, after coming under a Twitter barrage from President Trump. Novartis CEO Vas Narasimhan told Bloomberg News the company thought freezing prices for the rest of 2018 "was the prudent thing to do."

Motorists will get an unexpected break at the gas pump this weekend as gasoline prices have declined three cents a gallon in the last few days.

The AAA Fuel Gauge Survey puts the national average price of regular gas at $2.85 a gallon, down from $2.88 just five days ago. The national average price of premium is $3.40 a gallon and the price of diesel is $3.16.

Prices softened at midweek when the Energy Information Administration reported a jump in U.S. oil production to 11 million barrels a day, spurred in large part by the recent run-up in oil prices. However, the news of increased domestic production sent oil prices lower.

At the same time, U.S. oil stockpiles also rose. Patrick DeHaan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, says he expects the increase in supply to be a one-off event, without a lasting impact on prices.

"It appears that a high level of imports, combined with refineries processing slightly less crude oil last week, were main factors," DeHaan told ConsumerAffairs. "I think the imports number is a bit high and isn't likely to be high next week."

Until the last day or two, AAA had noted an increase in gasoline prices in just about every state. At the beginning of the week, some states were paying a dime a gallon more since July 4, including Delaware, Florida, and Michigan.

Today, drivers in Michigan are enjoying one of the biggest one-week drops in gas prices in the nation, with a statewide average of $2.93 a gallon, down from $3.03 a week earlier.

States with the most expensive gas

Here are the states with the most expensive average gas prices, according to AAA:

• Hawaii ($3.78)

• California ($3.63)

• Washington ($3.42)

• Alaska ($3.39)

• Oregon ($3.30)

• Nevada ($3.21)

• Idaho ($3.12)

• Utah ($3.11)

• Connecticut ($3.07)

• Pennsylvania ($3.04)

States with the cheapest gas

Here are the states that currently have the lowest average gas prices:

• Alabama ($2.55)

• Mississippi ($2.55)

• South Carolina ($2.55)

• Arkansas ($2.59)

• Louisiana ($2.59)

• Virginia ($2.61)

• Tennessee ($2.62)

• Oklahoma ($2.62)

• Texas ($2.62)

• Missouri ($2.63)

Last month, a federal judge in Washington dismissed a suit from the Justice Department that sought to block the merger between AT&T and Time Warner. The judge allowed the deal to proceed without conditions.

The deal was completed not long after, and it was in place for a month before the government said it would be appealing the deal.

Now, the Justice Department wants the proceedings to carry out as quickly as possible. The deadline for the briefs is October 18th, and the Justice Department is looking to have the arguments start not long after.

The government is now arguing that by owning Time Warner, AT&T would have “both the incentive and the ability to raise its rivals’ costs and stifle growth of innovative, next-generation entrants that offer attractive alternatives to AT&T/DirecTV’s legacy pay-TV model -- all to the detriment of American consumers.”

Despite Judge Richard Leon’s decisive ruling in June, the government believes he has ignored basic economic principles.

“The government’s case is based on well-accepted and non-controversial economic principles of bargaining, but the district court effectively discarded those principles and their logical implication that the merged firm will raise prices to its rivals,” the Justice Department wrote in the motion. “In so doing, the Court committed multiple errors.”

Opinions from both sides

When Judge Leon gave the green light to the AT&T/Time Warner merger, he said that the government did not prove its case with either its arguments or witness testimony. Judge Leon knew the government would have the opportunity to appeal the deal, but he urged his contemporaries to allow the companies to proceed with the merger.

While both President Trump and Democrat Bernie Sanders were opposed to the deal -- Sanders told the Justice Department that the deal “represents a gross concentration of power that runs counter to the public good” -- AT&T referred to the deal as “vertical integration.” This would mean AT&T and Time Warner are not competitors -- which is one of the Justice Department’s main arguments against the merger.

Lawyers for AT&T argued that the companies are not competitors, and that their services simply overlap, which was eventually the argument that prevailed. The court’s decision to appeal was surprising to AT&T’s General Counsel David McAtee.

“The Court’s decision could hardly have been more thorough, fact-based, and well-reasoned,” McAtee said. “While the losing party in litigation always has the right to appeal if it wishes, we are surprised that the DOJ has chosen to do so under these circumstances.”

Win Opportunity Knocks, doing business as Ottomanelli Wholesale Meats of St. Petersburg, Fla., is recalling approximately 6,020 pounds of fresh and frozen, raw ground beef.

The products may be contaminated with Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) O45, O103 and O145.

The following fresh and frozen, raw ground beef products were produced from June 18, 2018, through July 11, 2018, are being recalled:

• 5-lb boxes of (20/4oz.) frozen, raw “Packers Plus Patties” with “Approved JUN 18 2018” through “Approved JUL 11 2018”
• 10-lb. boxes of (8-oz.) frozen, raw “Debren Foods Inc. BEEF PATTIES” with “Approved JUN 18 2018” through “Approved JUL 11 2018”
• 10-lb. boxes of (40/4-oz.) frozen, raw “Nu Vista Foods Group Inc. BEEF PATTIES” with “Approved JUN 18 2018” through “Approved JUL 11 2018”
• 10-lb. boxes of (40/4-oz, 30/5-oz, 28/6-oz) of frozen, raw “Ottomanelli Beef Patties” with “Approved JUN 18 2018” through “Approved JUL 11 2018”
• 10 lb. bulk bag of fresh raw “Beef Patty Mix Ottomanelli Wholesale Meats Inc.” with “Approved JUN 18 2018” through “Approved JUL 11 2018”

The recalled products, bearing establishment number “EST. 11167” inside the USDA mark of inspection, were distributed for institutional use in Florida.

What to do

Institutions that purchased the recalled products should not serve or sell them, but discard them or return them to the place of purchase.

Institutions with questions may contact Tommy Dietch at (727) 328-7020 or by email at Ottomanelliwholesale@gmail.com.

Hy-Vee of West Des Moines, Iowa, is recalling its Hy-Vee Spring Pasta Salad.

The product may be contaminated with Salmonella.

Approximately 20 illnesses in Minnesota, South Dakota, Nebraska and Iowa are potentially linked to customers consuming the salad.

The recall product includes Hy-Vee Spring Pasta Salads in both 1-pound (16-oz.) and 3-pound (48-oz.) containers produced between June 1, 2018, and July 13, 2018, and available from the deli service case.

The pasta salad, which comes in a plastic container with a plastic lid and an expiration date range between June 22, 2018, and Aug. 3, 2018, on the side of the container, was distributed to all Hy-Vee’s 244 grocery stores in Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, Minnesota and Wisconsin.

What to do

Customers who purchased the recalled product should dispose of it or return it to their local Hy-Vee store for a full refund.

Consumers with questions may contact Hy-Vee customer care at (800) 772-4098 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

A lawsuit filed by 20 states could have a huge impact on the millions of consumers who still have health insurance under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare.

While Congress has been unsuccessful in its attempts to repeal the law, the Trump administration has taken steps to dismantle parts of it.

The tax cut passed by Congress in December removed the fine associated with the individual mandate, the requirement that everyone have health insurance. That led to the lawsuit, currently making its way through the courts.

The states claim that ACA is now unconstitutional, since the Supreme Court upheld the law only because it said the individual mandate penalty was a tax. Now that the penalty is not being imposed, the states say the individual mandate -- forcing consumers to purchase something the might or might not want -- is unconstitutional.

But the government estimates nearly 9 million consumers are covered by an ACA policy, even though the law has been weakened and insurance premiums have skyrocketed.

In many cases, policyholders can't get insurance through their employers or couldn't afford health insurance before ACA was passed.

Preexisting condition protection at stake

Many who could afford policies were denied coverage because they had preexisting conditions. Under ACA, insurance companies can't deny coverage because of a preexisting condition, but public health advocates now worry that protection is in the crosshairs.

The National Patient Advocate Foundation (NPAF) says the Trump Administration's support of the states' lawsuit is worrisome.

"The Administration's decision to oppose existing federal law imperils millions of patients nationwide," said the group's CEO, Alan Balch. "Not only does it bring back uncertainty to individuals' lives, it also destabilizes the entire marketplace, driving up costs for everyone."

Balch says if the states win in their court battle to overturn the ACA, consumers will return to the time when health insurance was unaffordable -- and for millions of people with a preexisting condition, such as diabetes or high blood pressure, unattainable.

Back to the past

"By allowing insurers to discriminate against people with preexisting conditions, the Administration will thrust millions of Americans back into that life," Balch said.

As the states' lawsuit awaits action by the courts, the Trump administration continues to whittle away at the law, which it has vowed to abolish. This month it all but eliminated advertising to encourage enrollment. It also cut funding for "navigators," people to help consumers select the right policy, by 40 percent.

It also cut $10 billion in "risk adjustment" payments to health insurance companies that provide policies to the sickest customers.

U.S. tariffs imposed on a wide variety of imports will likely raise prices for consumers, and some of the price increases may come in unexpected places.

A coalition of car insurance industry groups is warning that if the U.S. imposes a 25 percent tariff on auto parts, an unintended consequence would be a rise in most consumers' car insurance rates.

In comments filed with the Commerce Department, the American Insurance Association, National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies and Property Casualty Insurers Association of America said insurance costs could rise an average of 2.7 percent.

That's because it will cost significantly more to repair vehicles that have been in accidents. Not only would the parts cost more, they could be harder to get. That could lead to repair delays, increasing costs for consumers.

More car thefts

“Motor vehicle theft rates could well rise, as many stolen vehicles are sold for their parts,” the groups said in their comment.

U.S. tire manufacturers warn of a ripple effect. In joint comments filed with the government, they say car owners facing higher expenses for maintaining their vehicles are more likely to put off replacing their tires, which could become a safety issue.

As yet, a tariff on auto parts is only under discussion. However, tariffs that have already been imposed are creating problems for some American industries.

Alcoa is calling U.S. tariffs on aluminum imports "a significant headwind" to its profits. In its 2018 profit projection, the company said it has already incurred $15 million in additional costs because it produces some of its aluminum in Canada and imports it to the U.S.

Worrying about tariffs

Just about everyone, it seems, is worried about rising trade tensions. In its latest Beige Book report, the Federal Reserve said it found growing concern about the potential impact of tariffs on business in all regions of the country.

“Manufacturers in all districts expressed concern about tariffs and in many districts reported higher prices and supply disruptions that they attributed to the new trade policies,” the report said.

The report found businesses have already faced higher costs for metals and lumber, but so far had not passed along those costs to consumers.

In spite of business concerns about tariffs, the Fed survey found moderate economic growth is occurring in 10 of the 12 regions of the U.S.

The exceptions were the Dallas District, where growth was described as "strong," and the St. Louis District, where growth was labeled "slight."

This morning, Comcast announced it will no longer be in the mix to acquire 21st Century Fox and its film and television assets. Instead, the company will focus on the acquisition of the European satellite provider Sky. The decision is likely to clear the way for Disney, who recently upped its bid to $71.3 billion -- split between cash and stock.

“Comcast does not intend to pursue further the acquisition of the Twenty-First Century Fox assets, and, instead, will focus on our recommended offer for Sky,” the company said in a statement.

Brian L. Roberts, Chairman and CEO of Comcast, said, “I’d like to congratulate Bob Iger and the team at Disney and commend the Murdoch family and Fox for creating such a desirable and respected company.”

Fox has currently set a shareholder meeting for July 27 to vote on the deal with Disney. If either Comcast or Fox’s acquisition of Sky has yet to be completed by that date, Disney would be forced to bid £14 a share for the 61 percent of Sky that Fox doesn’t own -- which is less than the £14.75 a share that Comcast offered last week.

History with Disney

Last December, Fox and Disney agreed to a $54.2 billion deal that would include control over many of Fox’s assets, including: the FX and Nat Geo cable channels, the 20th Century Fox film studio, and Fox’s stake in Hulu.

Then, just last month, Comcast came onto the scene with an “unsolicited” $65 billion offer.

That prompted Disney to raise its bid to $71.3 billion in late June. The new deal increases the value of Disney’s original offer from $28 a share at $52.4 billion to $38 a share at $71.3 billion -- plus a new cash component. At the time of the bid’s announcement, a Fox representative said the offer was “superior to the proposal” from Comcast.

Fox’s Executive Chairman Rupert Murdoch said a Disney-Fox merger “will create one of the greatest, most innovative companies in the world.”

“We are extremely proud of the businesses we have built at 21st Century Fox, and firmly believe that this combination with Disney will unlock even more value for shareholders as the new Disney continues to set the pace at a dynamic time for our industry,” Murdoch said.

Comcast and Sky

Now out of the bidding war for Fox, Comcast is looking to focus its efforts on acquiring Sky Network.

Early last month, 21st Century Fox was given the green light to proceed in negotiations for Sky Network, in an entirely different bidding war involving both Disney and Comcast. Initially, U.K. Culture Minister Matt Hancock was skeptical of the United Kingdom’s media losing its independence based on the Murdoch family’s influence. However, both Sky and Fox were pleased with the decision.

Comcast made a $29 million offer for the British broadcasting network, and acquiring the company would be a huge win. Sky currently has 23 million subscribers across five countries, and owns broadcasting rights that are particularly valuable in today’s market, such as English Premier League games, Formula One races, and other sporting events.

On Wednesday, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court upheld Philadelphia’s tax on sweetened beverages. The State Supreme Court ruled that the 1.5-cent-per-ounce levy, which took effect in January 2017, does not illegally duplicate another existing tax.

The 4-to- 2 ruling rejected a challenge to the soda tax by retailers and distributors. City leaders and supporters of the tax are counting the ruling as a victory, while opponents say they will continue to fight the “wildly unpopular” soda tax.

Last year, the Philadelphia soda tax raised nearly $79 million. The money was used to help fund Philadelphia’s pre-kindergarten program, libraries, parks, community schools, and recreation centers.

Raised millions of dollars

"5500 kids in Philly win today. Soda tax for pre-k is legal" tweeted Donna Cooper, executive director of Public Citizens for Children and Youth in the city.

Mayor Jim Kenney said the move will allow the city to move forward with its plans for the money that had been withheld while the issue was being pushed through the courts.

“These programs, funded by the beverage tax, will fuel the aspirations and dreams of those who have waited too long for investments in their communities,” Kenney said in a statement. “The City of Philadelphia will now proceed expeditiously with our original plans — delayed in whole or part by nearly two years of litigation — to fully ramp up these programs, now that the legal challenge has been resolved.”

In addition to funding the city’s pre-kindergarten and community programs, research has shown that the soda tax has been effective in promoting healthier habits.

Since the city began taxing sodas, energy drinks, and other sweetened beverages, its residents became about 40 percent less likely than residents of three nearby municipalities to have a soda every day, Drexel University researchers found. Philadelphians are also 64 percent less likely to drink an energy drink on a daily basis.

Not everyone is happy

The court’s ruling didn’t sit well with everyone. A group called Ax the Philly Bev Tax voiced its disappointment with the decision to uphold the soda tax, which adds about $1 to the cost of a 2-liter bottle of soda.

"This tax has cost nearly 12-hundred local jobs because consumers are fleeing to the suburbs. Why shop in the city when you can drive a few miles over the border and save a whole lot of money on your grocery bills Second, the tax isn't bringing in the revenue that was promised," said spokesman Anthony Campisi.

The group is pushing for a bill in the state legislature that would ban the tax.

"It is now up to our elected officials to listen to the concerns of their constituents and provide Philadelphians much needed relief by reversing this tax," Campisi said. “There is still an opportunity to go back to the City Council. The people of Philadelphia and Pennsylvania generally really don't like this tax."

In an effort to give more control over followers lists, Instagram is in the testing stages of a new feature that would allow users to easily remove followers without a notification.

Users with public accounts can’t stop anyone from checking out the updates on their feeds. However, users with private accounts always have the option to remove followers. Before this new feature, public accounts either had to block the user and then unblock them (a practice known as “soft blocking), block them completely, or set their accounts to private.

However, where blocking users is concerned, the person on the receiving end currently knows when they are being blocked. With the new “remove follower” feature, the follower in question will have no way of knowing they’re being removed.

The feature is only in the testing phases -- and solely for Android users -- as of right now. For users eager to see if they’ve been chosen to test out this new feature, they can head to their followers list and look for an icon with three vertical dots to the far right of a user’s name. If you tap on the icon, it will prompt the user to remove the follower.

A string of updates

Instagram has been releasing similar updates recently in an effort to give users the utmost control and privacy over their accounts.

In May, the platform introduced the “Mute” feature. Users that mute a follower’s account no longer see the posts in their feed, but they can still visit the account profile to see everything they’ve missed. Similar to the new “remove follower” function, the user that has been muted is not notified of the decision, and the option is always available to users to “un-mute” said follower.

Earlier this month, Instagram also began testing a new “Do not Disturb” feature. The update was designed to give users more freedom over when they received notifications from the app, as well as its sister companies -- WhatsApp and Facebook. On Facebook, the “Do not Disturb” feature can be activated for a set period of time, or until the user decides to manually turn it off.

The overarching theme is that Instagram wants to give its users complete control over their accounts, and ensure that it’s not driving users away -- whether from too many notifications or harassment from fellow users.

The first Republican House member has joined Democrats to support a rollback of the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) dismantling of net neutrality.

Rep. Mike Coffman (R-Colo.) has said he will support a measure to use the Congressional Review Act to overturn an FCC vote last December to change the policy, formalized in 2015 under the Obama administration.

In an op-ed piece, Coffman notes that the policy of barring internet service providers (ISP) from favoring one type of content over another was a longstanding practice before it was codified as official policy, and that it has Republican roots, from the George W. Bush administration.

“The Republican-controlled FCC unanimously adopted much of FCC Chairman Michael Powell’s 'four Internet freedoms,'” Coffman writes. “These four items broadly supported competition and the freedom of consumers to access all lawful online content.”

Coffman said the FCC under Obama took steps in 2010 and 2015 to “further solidify these net neutrality principles.” The FCC action under the Trump administration, he says, was a complete reversal.

At the same time, the Colorado Republican has introduced legislation that contains many of the net neutrality protections contained in the 2015 FCC regulation.

Lonely voice

At the moment, Coffman may be a lonely voice within his party, as most Republican lawmakers have not supported net neutrality. But among advocacy groups hoping to overturn the FCC's most recent action, Coffman's defection is a hopeful sign.

“The dam is breaking, as it should,” said Faiz Shakir, national political director of the American Civil Liberties Union. “Rep. Coffman’s support to undo FCC Chairman Ajit Pai’s repeal of net neutrality shows that public pressure is continuing to build on this issue and cannot be ignored this November.”

Shakir and others note that net neutrality has been observed from the beginning of the internet. Because internet connections used telephone lines, the same principles regulating telephone companies were applied to the internet.

Common carriers

Because they are deemed “common carriers,” telephone companies are required to treat all traffic the same. The FCC's 2015 regulation essentially classified the internet as a common carrier as well, applying those same restrictions.

Opponents of net neutrality point out that very little internet traffic moves over telephone lines these days and that companies investing in wireless and cable infrastructure should be free to control their networks.

Earlier this year, the Senate approved a Congressional Review Act measure to overturn the FCC's abolition of net neutrality. Even supporters acknowledge the challenges of getting the provision through the House, where Republicans hold a comfortable majority.

Based on a new study published by the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), researchers suggest that digital media use in teens could have an effect on ADHD symptoms. Findings from the study showed that more research is needed in this area to determine if symptoms are caused by digital media use.

“If we can determine if there is a potential cause link that is consistent across studies, then we can design interventions to curb media exposure,” said Adam Leventhal, a lead author in the study.

“Even simple educational information to let teachers, parents, and pediatric health professionals know that there could be an increased risk when they talk with their teens about digital media use might be helpful.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, ADHD affects five percent of all United States children, and is more common in boys than in girls. Symptoms of ADHD include hyperactivity, inattention, or impulsivity that is more debilitating, frequent, or severe than normal. Common treatment methods include medication, school accommodations, and behavior therapy.

“ADHD’s been linked with substance use disorders during adulthood and even involvement in the criminal justice system, and the symptoms are distressing for the person affected,” said Leventhal. “If we can identify any potential risk factor that is implicated in this disorder then that’s important, especially ones that are modifiable like digital media use.”

A look into the study

For the study, the researchers tested 2,587 high school students between the ages of 15 and 16 -- coming from 10 high schools across Los Angeles County in California. At the start of the study, the students had no significant ADHD symptoms.

Beginning in the fall of 2014 and continuing for two years, data was collected on the students’ behaviors in spring 2015, fall 2015, spring 2016, and fall 2016. Each time, the students filled out forms gauging their ADHD symptoms, including nine hyperactivity-impulsivity symptoms and nine inattention symptoms.

At the start of the survey, students completed questionnaires reporting how much time they spent engaging in 14 digital media activities, including: video chatting, online shopping, streaming videos or music, texting, social networking, playing digital games, and reading online content. When taking the survey, the students measured their digital media use in terms of high frequency (many times per day), or other frequency levels -- zero times a week, once a week, twice a week, or once or twice per day.

The study found that an average of 9.5 percent of the students who engaged in seven high-frequency activities reported ADHD symptoms, and 10.5 percent of those who engaged in all 14 digital media activities reported ADHD symptoms. Comparatively, 4.6 percent who didn’t report any digital media activity also reported ADHD symptoms throughout the study.

“Those percentages reflect the average rates across the four different follow ups,” Leventhal said. “So one of the things we noticed in the study was that the association between digital media and prevalence of ADHD symptoms was persistent across the follow-up period.”

Study limitations

Leventhal and the researchers urge people to regard the study’s results as “statistically significant but modest.”

Overall, the students who participated in the study were from one age group and one geographical region. More research is needed to determine if these statistics hold up in other parts of the country and with a wider age range of teenagers. Additionally, the study relied on the students’ self-reports of both digital media use and ADHD symptoms.

“We didn’t have clinicians involved in our study to actually give a proper diagnosis,” Leventhal said.

However, despite some limitations, Dr. Dimitri Christakis, a pediatrician and director of the Center for Childhood Health, Behavior, and Development at the Seattle Children’s Research, called the study “the best to date.”

“Even without a clinical diagnosis of ADHD, diminished attentional capacity is associated with poorer function both in childhood and in subsequent adulthood,” Christakis said. “We know that having a shorter attention span, regardless of whether or not you have a diagnosis of ADHD, is bad.”

Netflix, Hulu, Amazon, Apple, Sony Crackle, Google Play… and now, Walmart might be jumping into the video streaming game.

As if it’s not crowded enough as it is, Walmart seems primed to try and carve out a share of the 55 percent of American households that subscribe to at least one video streaming service, spending a whopping $2.1 billion a month.

According to The Information, Walmart sees an opportunity in the sub-$8 a month market, a price point that could sap competitors’ more price-conscious subscribers. Walmart is said to be considering an ad-supported free service as well.

“Discussions are still ongoing, and the retailer may eventually decide against offering a service,” The Information reported.

“But Walmart executives believe their customers, particularly in the middle of America, would be interested in a lower-cost option than what is currently available, the person said. Netflix and Amazon are seen as more popular with people on the East and West Coasts of the U.S., one of the people said.”

Research shows that there’s probably enough room for Walmart to enter the fray if it can find and offer enough original content.

In a recent research study, financial advisory service Deloitte found consumers seek out original, high-quality content, and are less willing to pay for packages containing programming they’ll never watch. Netflix reigns supreme in the original content field and its investment is paying off handily.

Deloitte’s study also found that video consumers demand the ability to watch content wherever they are -- mobile, phone, or on their computer. Furthermore, if a streaming service can’t make the consumers’ wishes come true, it’s likely to lose their business.

How bad does Walmart want this segment?

Walmart has to decide how bad it wants the video streaming consumer and how it can create a unique enough niche to sway consumers away from competitors.

Creating original content isn’t cheap. It’s estimated that Netflix ponies up as much as $4 billion a year to produce shows like ‘The Crown’ and ‘House of Cards.’ And, if Deloitte’s research is correct, Walmart will have to step up if it wants to play with the big boys.

The retailer certainly has the cash coming in. Walmart rings up sales totaling $36 million every single minute. Lately, however, the company has been shuttering both Sam’s Club and its own underperforming stores. To stay ahead of the pack, the retailer has little choice but to maintain Sam Walton’s business model of providing low prices for its customer base while preserving narrow margins on costs.

Unbeknownst to most consumers, Walmart began wading into the video streaming pool in 2010 when it spent $100 million to acquire Vudu, a movie rental service consumers have probably seen pop up as a channel when surfing through content on their smart TVs or PlayStations.

In a new update, Uber will be releasing a lineup of tools designed to not only make communication easier between drivers and riders, but also make pickups less of a headache.

Uber users can attest to the confusion that often ensues after requesting rides -- particularly in crowded areas or at night. In order to assuage some of that confusion, and eliminate the number of cancelled rides -- an action that Uber refers to as “wasted supply” -- the company has been researching ways to make pickups easier and more functional for both riders and drivers.

“When the driver has not yet arrived at the pickup location, there’s this resounding sense of stress on their part, because they don’t know what to look for necessarily,” said Ryan Yu, Uber’s product manager for rider experiences. “All they have is the pin and the address. We’re trying to give them more context.”

New features

For starters, Uber will be rolling out Spotlight. When users request rides, they are given the driver’s vehicle make and model, as well as the license plate number. However, when exiting a concert or sporting event when dozens of other people are also trying to hail down their rides, chaos and confusion often ensues for both parties.

With Spotlight, users’ phones can light up a certain color, and drivers will get a notification alerting them of what color to look for. Now, if users hold their phones in the air to try to wave down their rides, both driver and rider will know where to look.

The new Spotlight feature plays off the Beacon feature previously used by Uber. At the end of 2016, the company released Beacon -- a Bluetooth-enabled device shaped like the Uber logo that drivers could stick to the inside of their windshields. Users were able to choose which color they wanted the Beacon to light up with, thus ensuring they’d get in the proper vehicle. Uber hasn’t abandoned the Beacon, and will still honor it over the Spotlight feature, as it has now become available in 14 cities.

In another effort to match riders and drivers more efficiently, users can now also send brief messages in the Uber app to help identify themselves to their drivers. Users can tell their drivers about the color shirt they’re wearing, stores or points of interest they’re standing in front of, or choose from a list of stock messages like “Be right there.” The app will read the messages out loud so as not to distract drivers, and responding would require just a quick tap of the screen.

Finally, Uber is refining its pre-scheduled pickup feature and assuring customers that all reservations arrive on time. Now, Uber will give users $10 to use towards their next trip if their driver doesn’t arrive at the scheduled time.

Homebuilders cut back sharply on construction last month, a bad sign for the U.S. housing market, which is already struggling with record-low inventories of available homes.

The Commerce Department reports homebuilding activity fell to a nine-month low in June, while building permits – an indicator of future construction – fell for a third straight month.

The report showed housing starts plunged 12.3 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.173 million units, the lowest level since last September. The size of the decline was the largest since December 2016.

Making matters worse, May housing data was revised downward, showing slightly fewer starts than first reported. In June, housing starts were down in all four regions of the country.

Fewer building permits issued

There are also fewer homes in the pipeline, as the number of building permits issued fell 2.2 percent in June, also the lowest level since last September.

Declining homebuilding numbers are nothing new, they've been occurring regularly since the housing crash of 2008. During the housing bubble that preceded the crash, an annual rate of nearly two million units broke ground. Since the crash, housing starts have been at about half that rate.

The lack of new homes coming on the market has put more pressure on the existing home market. There are more potential buyers than available homes, often leading to bidding wars in particularly hot real estate markets.

Even though homes sell quickly, the overall number of homes being purchased is steadily declining. In partially explaining why pending home sales dropped a half percent in May, National Association of Realtors Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said there just aren't enough properties for sale.

Stalling sales

“Realtors in most of the country continue to describe their markets as highly competitive and fast moving, but without enough new and existing inventory for sale, activity has essentially stalled,” Yun said, noting the drop in May's pending sales was the fifth straight month of declines.

If there is a pent-up demand for new homes, why aren't builders providing them? Industry analysts give a number of reasons.

Building costs have gone up since the housing boom a decade ago. Skilled labor is harder to find and more expensive. Land prices have also risen sharply in the last decade.

That makes it less profitable for builders to offer entry level homes – the kind that are most needed. Instead, much of the residential construction that is taking place is providing more expensive homes, normally out of reach of a first-time buyer.

New Seasons Market of Portland, Ore., is recalling an undetermined amount of ready-to-eat sesame noodle chicken salad.

The product contains peanuts, an allergen not declared on the label.

There have been no confirmed reports of adverse reactions due to consumption of these products.

The following item, produced on July 13, 2018, is being recalled:

• 24-oz clear clamshell plastic containers with “NEW SEASONS SESAME NOODLE CHICKEN SALAD,” with a “BEST BY” date of “07/18/2018” on the label.

The company operates a kitchen exempt from USDA inspection and the products produced there do not bear a USDA establishment number on the packaging.

The recalled product was shipped to retail locations in Oregon and Washington.

What to do

Customers who purchased the recalled should not consume it, but discard it or return it to the place of purchase.

Consumers with questions about the recall may email New Seasons Market at talktous@newseasonsmarket.com.

Hain Celestial Canada is recalling Europe's Best brand Field Berry Mixes.

The products may be contaminated with Salmonella.

There have been no reported illnesses associated with the consumption of these products.

The following products, sold in retail stores throughout Canada, are being recalled:

What to do

Customers who purchased the recalled products should not consume them, but discard them or return them to the store where purchased.

Consumer with questions may contact the company at (800) 249-4614 or online at www.europesbest.ca/en/contact/.

Ford is the latest automaker to come to terms with consumers whose Ford vehicles are equipped with lethally-defective Takata airbags.

The company will pay $299.1 million to cover economic loss to approximately 6 million Ford owners who incurred expense when their vehicles became too dangerous to drive. The settlement is apart from any personal injury or wrongful deaths in connection with the airbag issue.

Millions of cars around the world have been recalled because their airbags are defective, prone to exploding and spraying tiny bits of metal throughout the vehicle's interior. At least 23 deaths around the world have been linked to Takata airbags, with two of the deaths occurring in Fords.

Six previous settlements

Ford is the seventh carmaker to agree to an economic settlement covering the airbags. Previously, Honda, Nissan, Toyota, BMW, Mazda, and Subaru reached settlements totaling $1.2 billion.

Attorneys representing the plaintiffs in the class action case said the settlement will speed up the removal of the dangerous airbags from Ford vehicles and compensate owners for things like missed work days, daycare expenses, rental car costs, and other out-of-pocket expenses.

“These settlements are proving to be vital in protecting consumers from dangerous Takata airbags, and this latest agreement with Ford is an important expansion of this effort," said Peter Prieto, court-appointed chair lead counsel for the plaintiffs. “All consumers deserve to drive without fear of injury, and the outreach, support and compensation programs in this settlement will undoubtedly make Ford drivers and passengers safer.”

The problem with Takata airbags surfaced in 2015. It was then that the company began recalling the defective airbags, but only under pressure from federal safety investigators. At the time, only six deaths and 100 injuries had been linked to the defect.

The latest settlement is subject to court approval. If preliminary approval is granted, Ford owners who are part of the class will receive more information about the terms. Once approval is granted, the claims process will open to eligible class members, pending any appeals that are filed.

Benefits

Benefits under the settlement include an outreach program, enhanced rental car loaner program, out-of-pocket claims process, customer support program, and residual distribution of remaining funds.

The outreach program is designed to speed up the recall remedy completion rate. Some recalled cars have gone years without being repaired.

The enhance rental car loaner program will provide a loaner car to any class member who requests one to drive while their recalled car is being repaired.

Uber is currently being investigated by the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) for alleged gender disparities in pay and hiring practices.

The probe by the EEOC began last August when the group began interviewing both former and current Uber employees and collecting pertinent internal documents for review. According to the EEOC, the commission doesn’t confirm or deny open investigations, and many of its inquiries don’t necessarily result in formal charges.  

Despite the allegations, Uber told TechCrunch that it has “proactively made a lot of changes in the last 18 months,” including creating and enforcing a new “salary equity structure,” involving more employees in diversity training, releasing diversity and inclusion reports, and revamping its system for performance reviews that emphasizes high-quality feedback.

Uber reportedly adjusted salaries last August in an effort to ensure all employees are paid fairly and equally based on tenure, job, and location -- regardless of gender or race.

Recent scandal  

This most recent investigation comes on the heels of a year riddled with scandals for Uber. CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, former CEO of Expedia, took over at Uber last August following a string of company-wide investigations.

Uber’s founder and former CEO Travis Kalanick was removed from his position last June after former engineer Susan Fowler described her experience with sexual harassment at Uber on her blog. Published in February 2017, Fowler wrote of how the company blamed her for her countless reports detailing gender discrimination, and how her superior received little more than a warning after a number of women reported sexual harassment.

At the time of the incident, then-CEO Kalanick said the situation was “abhorrent and against everything Uber stands for and believes in.” He also instructed the company’s chief human resources officer to “conduct an urgent investigation into these allegations.”

Additionally, last week, Uber’s head of human resources -- Liane Hornsey -- resigned from her post following an investigation into her handling of racial discrimination claims at the company. According to Reuters, an anonymous group of employees -- all people of color -- reported that Hornsey used “discriminatory language” and made “derogatory comments” about fellow Uber executives.

Earlier this month, Lyft announced its acquisition of the bike-sharing company Motivate -- the most widely used bike-share company in the United States. Now, the company is gearing up to fully incorporate bikes and scooters into its app. Though Lyft has yet to give a concrete date on when this will happen, it’s likely to happen soon.

“Soon you will be able to get real-time transit information, plan a multi-modal trip, and use Lyft Bikes and Scooters to connect to a local transit shop or shared ride pickup location,” the company wrote in a blog post.

Moreover, Lyft is offering incentives and discounts to users that utilize the new bike and scooter program, in an effort to promote the platform. The company says it will be considering “up to 100 [percent] discount on rides that start or end at designated transit stops such as MUNI, BART, or CalTrain.”  

The company’s goal is to make living without a personal car easier than ever, and also to eliminate cars from the roadways. By the end of next year, Lyft is hoping to take one million cars off the road. Just last year, Lyft reported that 250,000 of its members gave up their personal cars.

Lyft says it also will be investing $1 million in an effort to advance transportation equity to people in underserved communities. The company will be partnering with nonprofits like TransForm to develop programs to support low-income residents.

Additionally, the company is working to promote its ridesharing feature. In June, the company reworked its app in an effort to encourage more users to share rides. Currently, 35 percent of all Lyft rides are shared, though the company is hoping to push that to 50 percent by 2020. As Lyft is working to incorporate the bike and scooter feature into its app, the company is hoping to be better equipped to “bridge the first and last-mile gap.”

The booming bike-sharing industry

Lyft’s purchase of Motivate came after Uber purchased the dockless electric bike company Jump earlier this year. At the time of that purchase, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi explained that the company’s main goal is to “make it easier to live without owning a personal car.”

Lyft then acquired Motivate -- the most widely used bike-share company in the country -- for $250 million at the beginning of the month. Motivate is the company behind New York’s Citi Bike Program, Washington D.C.’s Capital Bikeshare, and Boston’s Blue Bikes -- as well as six other cities nationwide.

With Motivate, bike docks are activated by a credit card in strategic locations across major cities. The strategy appears to be working for the company, as New York City reported a major increase in bike commuters last year thanks in part to the Citi Bike program.

“Lyft and Motivate have both been committed for years to the same goal of reducing the need for personal car ownership by providing reliable and affordable ways to move around our cities,” said Lyft co-founder and president John Zimmer.

Apple MacBook lovers are enjoying Christmas in July as the tech giant’s new 13-inch and 15-inch models are out and Apple is hoping consumers find the new models better than ever.

The company touts seven upgrades to its MacBook line, including the ability to crunch code faster, adjust the color of the display to match a room’s ambient lightning, and the addition of a fingerprint ID sensor.

“The latest generation MacBook Pro is the fastest and most powerful notebook we’ve ever made,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing.

“Now with 8th-generation 6-core processors, up to 32GB of system memory, up to 4TB of super fast SSD storage, new True Tone technology in its Retina display and Touch Bar, the Apple T2 chip for enhanced security and a third-generation quieter keyboard packed into its thin and light aluminum design with all-day battery life, it’s the best notebook for pro users.”

Will this make Mac users happy?

While iPhones are Apple’s bread and butter by a longshot, MacBooks account for 80 percent of all the 100 million Mac computers out in the world.

MacBook users are a zealous bunch, but will the new models create lines around Apple stores waiting to get their hands on one?

Having “Siri” on board to answer users’ questions is likely to bring a smile. However, some Pro users might have to bite their tongue when it comes to the ports on the computers. MacBook Pros are devoid of HDMI and USB ports, and SD card slots which will probably frustrate those already equipped with those connections and sting a little more when they have to buy more dongles to recreate those connections.

The new True Tone technology is generating some buzz. With 500 nits of brightness (a nit is a unit of measurement of luminance), the new models are slightly brighter than an iPhone, but not as bright as, say, the newest TV screens. The new True Tone technology takes into account the color temperature of an environment and adjusts accordingly to created a more natural appearance.

While those enhancements might make some Mac aficionados happy, there are those who are unimpressed.

"I like the improvements to the new MacBooks, but they don’t fundamentally add any new black and white features prior Macs didn’t have," Patrick Moorhead, president and principal analyst at Moor Insights & Strategy told ConsumerAffairs. 

"What would have been most interesting would have been the addition of touch screen or even LTE for a fully mobile experience," he added. "These features are reserved for the iPad Pro, which is more strategic to Apple than the Macs."

About that keyboard

It was only last month when ConsumerAffairs reported that Apple had fessed up to issues with MacBook keyboards, offering free service to repair the issue on customers’ devices.

Apple seems to have taken great strides to make sure those issues don’t rear their ugly heads again. On the new MacBook Pro keyboards, iFixit discovered that Apple has built a silicone barrier under each key.

While the silicone muffles some of the clicking sound when a key is pressed, “This flexible enclosure is quite obviously an ingress-proofing measure to cover up the mechanism from the daily onslaught of microscopic dust. Not—to our eyes—a silencing measure,” reported iFixIt.

“In fact, Apple has a patent for this exact tech designed to “prevent and/or alleviate contaminant ingress.” but may also prevent dust and debris from getting underneath the keys and blocking the key mechanism.”

And the battery issues?

In April, ConsumerAffairs reported that a component in some of the 13-inch MacBook Pro laptops might fail and cause the computer’s built-in battery to expand. At the time of the finding, the company said that this was not a safety issue and offered to replace any affected batteries free of charge.

ConsumerAffairs reached out to Apple to find out if any improvements to the MacBook batteries were made in the new models, but as of press time, has not received a response.

Looking for a deal?

Along with the two new MacBook models, Apple is also offering a Back to School discount to students, parents, and teachers that includes a pair of Beats headphones and education pricing.

The average new car price is going up, thanks to increased purchases of trucks and SUVs. However, monthly payments on leases are going down.

Kelley Blue Book (KBB) recently reported the estimated average transaction price for light vehicles in was $35,511. That's an increase of $736 over the last 12 months and $118 higher than at the end of May.

At the same time, interest rates are also rising, meaning the average monthly car payment on a purchase is rising faster than in previous months. It's not the same story, however, for auto leases.

An analysis of auto lease deals for the month of July shows some hefty discounts on trucks and SUVs, which were highly popular last year when gasoline prices were lower. Many small and midsize models, out of favor when gas prices were cheap, have retained or increased their lease costs, according to online lease marketplace Wantalease.com.

Lowest payments

In July, the Nissan Sentra has the lowest monthly payment of all cars, costing just $129 per month. That's priced lower than the Ford Focus, which previously held that distinction with a lease payment of $150.

The Focus costs a little more this month, with the average payment rising 2.24 percent.

Consumers negotiating the purchase of a new vehicle this month are finding dealers are mostly holding steady on their prices, but are very willing to offer discounts on a variety of new trucks and SUVs, leading to some attractive lease deals.

The analysis found that the two biggest discounts were on the Chevrolet Equinox with a $73.38 decrease in price, and the GMC Canyon Crew Cab – down $58.33 decrease in price.

As a result, consumers are leasing the Equinox at just $179 per month, while the Canyon Crew Cab is priced at $249.

Summer discounts

“We’re seeing an increase in discounts and aggressive summer pricing beginning to permeate across trucks and SUV’s for lease deals,” said Scot Hall, executive vice president at Wantalease.com. “Consumers are increasingly searching for aggressive deals on everything from small trucks to large, as well as mid-size and luxury SUVs.”

For some vehicles, it costs more to negotiate a lease in July. The renewed popularity of small, fuel-efficient vehicles may partly explain why the monthly payment for a Ford Fusion is up nearly 11 percent. The Fusion is currently offered at the still fairly low monthly payment of $223.

It also costs more to lease a Honda Pilot, with the payment jumping more than 6 percent to $389.

Rents have surged in recent years, along with the price of homes. But the skyrocketing rents don't fall on consumers equally.

A new report from real estate marketplace Zillow shows the median African American family could only afford 16.2 percent of available rental properties last year. That was less than a third of the rental options for median white and Asian households.

Rent affordability is measured by the percentage of household income it takes to pay the rent each month. Economists generally agree that having to pay more than 30 percent of pre-tax income toward housing costs makes a home or apartment unaffordable.

Using median black household income of nearly $40,000 a year, an African American family would have to spend 45 percent of their income to afford 42 percent of available rentals.

Erodes financial freedom

The more a family pays in rent, the less financial freedom it has. The more a household is stretched to make the monthly rent, the harder it is to put aside money for savings on a monthly basis. Needless to say, it makes saving for a down payment to purchase a home that much harder.

"Perhaps more so than any other factor, income determines where and how we live in the United States today,” said Zillow Senior Economist Aaron Terrazas. "Income disparities across racial and ethnic groups in the United States have remained stubbornly persistent, and as a result, black and Hispanic families encounter far fewer affordable rental options than white and Asian families."

Terrazas says that can have a ripple effect. Households struggling to pay rent usually make sacrifices elsewhere, including healthcare.

“The desire to own a home is similar across all races, but the difference in homeownership rates between races is wide – a lasting legacy of the historical income gap," Terrazas said.

Supply and demand

Rents have risen in the last decade for the same reason home prices have – supply and demand. In the aftermath of the financial crisis, fewer consumers could purchase homes because of much tougher mortgage underwriting standards. That meant more people had to continue renting, competing for the limited number of rentals.

In the years since, apartment construction has increased, but not at the rate needed to meet the demand. Meanwhile, the rate of homebuilding is about half of what it was before the market crash, increasing the price of available housing.

Hispanic renters are also feeling the squeeze, with far fewer rental options than white or Asian consumers. Renters earning the median Hispanic household income of $48,210 could afford 27.3 percent of rentals last year, according to the Zillow research.

Adidas reported on Monday that it will be committing to only using recycled plastics by 2024.

The company pledged to stop using “virgin” plastic in all of its stores, warehouses, offices, distribution centers, and retail outlets, saving an estimated 40 tons of plastic per year starting this year. Eliminating “virgin” plastic also includes polyester, a material popular in tons of Adidas products -- everything from sports bras to t-shirts -- because it absorbs sweat.

Adidas also reported that its spring and summer 2019 apparel lines will contain over 40 percent recycled polyester. Additionally, the company is expecting an uptick in its Parley shoes -- shoes made out of plastic waste that’s been saved from ending up in the ocean. Despite representing only a small portion of global sales (with only one million pairs sold in 2017), the company is expecting sales to jump to five million pairs this year.

Adidas continues the fight for sustainability

The decision to use strictly recycled plastics shouldn’t come as a huge surprise to consumers, as last month Adidas made strides in the sustainability arena with the launch of its Parley Z.N.E. hoodie.

“Parley is a global network where creators, thinkers, and leaders come together to raise awareness for the beauty and fragility of the oceans and collaborate on projects that can end their destruction,” the company wrote in a statement last month.

“Adidas and Parley joined forces in 2015 and among the many activities supporting the implementation of the Parley AIR strategy, the two work together to transform plastic intercepted from beaches and in coastal environments into high-performance sportswear. Collectively, they spin the problem of marine plastic pollution into a solution, the threat into thread.”

The fight against plastic

Adidas is the latest company joining the global fight to reduce plastic waste.

Earlier this month, Starbucks announced it would be eliminating plastic straws entirely by 2020. The coffee chain will begin phasing plastic straws out of all of its stores, with the transition expected to be complete by 2020. The initiative will eliminate more than one billion plastic straws per year.

Instead of straws, the company will be using strawless lids for many of its cold beverages. While some beverages --including  many blended drinks -- will have dome lids, customers will be able to use straws made out of paper or compostable plastic, but only upon request.

“Plastic straws that end up in our oceans have a devastating effect on species,” said Erin Simon, director of sustainability research & development and material science at World Wildlife Fund. “We hope others will follow in [Starbucks’] footsteps.”

Additionally, McDonald’s will be eliminating plastic straws from its U.K. and Ireland stores by next year. Earlier this year, the fast food chain announced it would be using paper straws at many of its U.K. and Ireland locations.

The company said it would begin moving straws behind the counter and only offering them to customers upon request. The fast food giant has also set a goal to source 100 percent of its food packaging from renewable or recycled sources in all of its locations by 2025.

The Beautiful Pig of Longview, Wash., is recalling an undetermined amount of ready-to-eat and raw pork and beef products.

The products were produced, packed and distributed without undergoing inspection and were also under U.S. retention when shipped without approval.

There have been no confirmed reports of adverse reactions due to consumption of these products.

The recalled items, produced from June 2, 2017, through July 8, 2018, can be found here.

The recalled products, bearing establishment number “EST. 1098” inside the USDA mark of inspection, were distributed to retail locations in Oregon and Washington. The product labels do not include any identifying lot codes or use by dates.

What to do

Customers who purchased the recalled products should consume them, but discard them or return them to the place of purchase.

Consumers with questions about the recall may contact Christopher Leach by email at TheBeautifulPig11@gmail.com.

Mercedes-Benz USA (MBUSA) is recalling 399 model year 2018 Mercedes-Benz GLA250s and GLA250 4Matics.

The child seat top tether anchorage point on the center position of the rear seat may not have been installed.

If the anchorage point is missing, a child seat will not be able to be properly installed in the center rear seat position, increasing the risk of injury.

What to do

MBUSA will notify owners, and dealers will replace the rear seat backrest, free of charge.

The recall is expected to begin August 3, 2018.

Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-800-367-6372.

When faced with criticism, CEO Elon Musk has shown a tendency to lash out with defensive statements or claims about his critics, but none have quite reached the levels as this one.

Tesla shares reportedly fell more than three percent on Monday after Musk called one of the divers who helped save a youth soccer team trapped in Thailand’s Tham Luang cave complex a “pedo guy.” Analysts say that Tesla shares reached their lowest levels in six weeks.

Vernon Unsworth was part of a team of expert divers from all over the world who convened in Thailand last week to figure out a plan to rescue the 12 boys.

At the same time, the Tesla CEO had also traveled to Thailand. Musk told his followers on Twitter that he was talking to cave experts about a “tiny, kid-size submarine” that he had created that “might be safe enough to try.”

In the end, it was the team of divers who saved the children through a complicated rescue mission. Musk’s role in the rescue was initially unclear.

Asked in a CNN interview about what Musk did exactly, Unsworth, sounding annoyed, said that the submarine was a “PR stunt” and that the billionaire CEO did nothing to help.

Musk “can stick his submarine where it hurts,” Unsworth added.

In response, Musk wrote another post on Twitter on Sunday, promising to release footage of his submarine in action. “Sorry pedo guy, you really did ask for it,” Musk concluded. He later deleted the post.

“I believe he’s called me a pedophile,” Unsworth responded in an interview with the Guardian newspaper.

History of controversial claims

It’s not the first time that Musk has made baseless claims about critics.

Earlier this summer, the non-profit journalism website Reveal reported that the Tesla factory in Fremont had been leaving injuries off the books and firing or demoting workers who suffered debilitating, permanent injuries on the job. Tesla responded to the reporting with a statement calling Reveal an “extremist organization.”

Tesla has also criticized the driving abilities of customers who have publicly complained about its cars, as ConsumerAffairs reported in May.

One driver who said his wheel fell off without warning, for instance, was publicly lambasted by Tesla for living “down such a long dirt road that it required two tow trucks to retrieve the car,” neither of which the driver said was true.

The latest release of Google Chrome -- Chrome 67 -- is a good news, bad news story. The company has taken measures to beef up protection against cyber attacks like the recent one from Spectre, but the new version will take more of a user’s computer resources to run.

Google candidly admits that the new version of Chrome will eat up as much as 13 percent of your computer’s system memory thanks to the add-on of something called “site isolation.” Site isolation is a second-line defense designed to limit the ability of unscrupulous websites to access or thieve personal account information on other websites.

Owning 79 percent of the browser market, Google has little choice but to protect users from potential attacks. In a blog post, the company vows the trade-off is well worth the extra drag on a user’s computer.

“Site Isolation is a significant change to Chrome's behavior under the hood, but it generally shouldn't cause visible changes for most users," wrote Charlie Reis, a software engineer at Google.

“It simply offers more protection between websites behind the scenes," Reis said.

"Site Isolation does cause Chrome to create more renderer processes, which comes with performance trade-offs: on the plus side, each renderer process is smaller, shorter-lived, and has less contention internally, but there is about a 10-13 percent total memory overhead in real workloads due to the larger number of processes."

Reis promises his team “continues to work hard to optimize this behavior to keep Chrome both fast and secure;” but for the short haul, consumers are just going to have to grin and bear it.

What computers will be affected?

Chrome’s new feature is a cross-platform change and will affect Windows, Mac, Linux, and Chrome OS (operating system) users. Google says it’s exploring options to broaden Site Isolation coverage to Chrome for Android devices which also have supplemental security issues.

If Chrome users would prefer leaving Site Isolation turned off, Reis says they’re out of luck. Ninety-nine percent of all users will be impacted, with Google holding back one percent for the sake of monitoring and bettering the browser’s performance.

Earlier this year, Microsoft made a good neighbor move to make Chrome’s armor stronger with a new browser extension of its own called "Windows Defender Browser Protection."

On the ground, most of us are subjected to relentless sales pitches every day, from robocalls to pop-up ads on the internet.

But if you think taking an airline flight will give you a couple of hours of peace from the endless selling, you could be wrong. At least two major airlines are enlisting flight attendants to pitch the airline's credit card to a captive audience, buckled in at 30,000 feet.

United is the latest airline to turn its flight attendants into sales personnel. Beginning September 1, it will require flight attendants to offer a sales message to domestic and international passengers on the benefits of carrying the airline's credit card.

“We are introducing a new training program for our co-branded credit card that is especially designed for flight attendants, as this work group has the most engagement with our customers,” the airline said in a statement to the Los Angeles Times. “Our inflight crew are effective ambassadors, who can best communicate to our customers in the moment the benefits of the United Explorer card."

Lucrative for the airlines

United joins American as carriers that will use the cabin crew to pitch credit cards to passengers, offering financial incentives for each sale. For the airline, co-branded credit cards can be lucrative.

The banks that manage airline travel cards usually buy miles from the airline that are, in turn, used to reward cardholders who spend a certain amount using the card.

While travel rewards cards are not a good fit for most consumers, those who travel a lot may find them highly beneficial. An airline cardholder may get special perks, such as preferred seating, early check-in, and free checked bags, which could easily pay for the annual fee over a year of heavy travel.

VIP lounge access

Carrying an airline co-branded credit card may also give travelers access to the airline's VIP lounge, with more relaxing surroundings than an airline terminal gate and an offering of complementary food and beverages.

Not all are the same, however. Forbes and The Points Guy recently rated the top four airline credit cards for their access to airport amenities.

They include The Platinum Card from American Express; Citi /AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard; Delta Reserve Credit Card from American Express; United MileagePlus Club Card.

All four cards carry hefty annual fees of between $450 and $550, so the cards would probably only pay off for high-frequency air travelers.

Over the past two years, consumers have been benefiting from competition between wireless companies, as cell phone providers have been rolling out unlimited data usage and lower bills as a means of securing customers.

Now, with new consumer-price data, the continued hype over promotions seems to be fading out. According to the Labor Department, the consumer-price index -- an indicator of current offers from wireless providers -- showed a 0.3 percent increase in June from last year.

“In terms of promotional intensity, things have cooled quite a bit,” said Jeffrey Moore, lead researcher at Wave7 Research.

CTIA -- a telecommunications trade group -- reported that 95 percent of American adults now own cell phones. In all, they used 15.7 trillion megabytes in mobile data in 2017 -- up from 4.1 trillion in 2014. These numbers complicate the work of wireless providers that need to spend money to keep up with the ever-increasing demands of the industry, and also try to keep and win new customers.

Cutting back on discounts

Back in February, executives at Sprint and T-Mobile -- two companies that have been most aggressive in cutting prices -- revealed they would be cutting back on discounts for the remainder of the year. Though T-Mobile made a bid to acquire Sprint in April, the deal raised eyebrows in the Senate, as many Senators feared it would decrease competition for consumers and, ultimately, raise prices.

Former Sprint executive Matt Carter reported that both Sprint and T-Mobile have been leading the charge among wireless providers when it comes to offering discounted pricing plans in an effort to gain subscribers. However, doing so leaves the companies with less money to not only pay their debt, but also invest in network upgrades.

“At some point in time, you have to have some stabilization around your pricing plans to be able to meet all the various needs they have,” Carter said. He also noted that when Sprint and T-Mobile cut back on price discounts, it allowed “AT&T and Verizon to hold steady” on their pricing plans.

The fine print in wireless plans

Sprint recently announced a new wireless plan, offering customers a tiered plan that replaced its previous five lines for $100 option. Sprint’s new top tier plan with five lines will cost customers $22 per line per month -- a $20 increase from the previous promotion.

Like other wireless companies, Sprint is also offering customers plans with a choice of the video-streaming service Hulu and the music-streaming service Tidal, as well as a more basic unlimited plan.

“Including that kind of content is becoming important,” said Dow Draper, Sprint chief commercial officer. Draper also noted that customers’ bills are likely lower than before when factoring in the additional benefits of the new plans.

Similarly, AT&T has been offering customers subscriptions to DirecTV and HBO, while T-Mobile began offering access to Netflix with wireless plans.

Last month, Verizon unveiled a new -- but also pricier -- unlimited data plan entitled “aboveunlimited.” The new plan allows customers to select different tiers of unlimited data plans within one single plan. Despite the raise in price, Verizon executives are confident with the new plan, as it gives customers the opportunity to choose the plan that best suits their needs for every person in the family.

“I think it’s fair to say objectively based on our performance since some of our competitors changed their offerings, we’ve not seen any increase in our churn,” said Ronan Dunne, president of Verizon Wireless. “We’ve continued to see high levels of customer engagement and satisfaction.”

On Saturday, a Twitter spokesperson confirmed that the site had removed two accounts: @GUCCIFER_2 and @dcleaks. The accounts are believed to have been used to bolster Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign and damage Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton’s.

According to the indictment, the hackers went after the Democratic National Committee, Hillary Clinton’s campaign, and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

The move occurred just hours after the Justice Department -- led by Special Counsel Robert Mueller -- indicted 12 Russian intelligence officers on charges for election tampering. Mueller is continuing to investigate Russia’s interference with the 2016 election and whether President Trump’s campaign was involved in the incident.

A Twitter spokesperson told the New York Daily News that the accounts were suspended for “being connected to a network of accounts previously suspended for operating in violation of our rules.”

A look into the hack

According to the indictment, in early 2016, the group started a two-part operation that began with “spearfishing” efforts. In these early stages, the Russians were able to hit over 300 people involved in the Clinton campaign and Democratic group.

From there, the Russian agents allegedly started both a Facebook and Twitter page where they identified themselves as “American hacktivists,” while also creating a website called DCLeaks.com.

Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein indicated that there were no American citizens explicitly mentioned in the indictment, but the defendants “corresponded with several Americans during the course of the conspiracy through the internet.”

Rosenstein also said he believed cyber attacks on United States elections would continue to occur with even greater technological advances.

“The Internet allows foreign adversaries to attack America in new and unexpected ways,” said Rosenstein. “Free and fair elections are hard-fought and contentious, and there will always be adversaries who work to exacerbate domestic differences and try to confuse, divide, and conquer us.”

Twitter security

Late last week, Twitter announced it would be removing millions of suspicious accounts in an effort to clear the site of fake accounts.

The social media platform is trying to regain users’ trust, as many users have let fake or automated accounts follow them in the hopes of inflating their follower totals and generating the appearance of having social media influence.

“We don’t want to incentivize the purchase of followers and fake accounts to artificially inflate follower counts, because it’s not an accurate measure of someone’s influence on the platform or influence in the world,” said Del Harvey, Twitter’s vice president for trust and safety. “We think it’s a really important and meaningful metric, and we want people to have confidence that these are engaged users following other events.”

Tesla's Model 3 electric vehicle has yet to receive an official NHTSA safety rating, but a real-world account of its performance in a crash suggests the vehicle does an exceptional job of protecting its occupants.

A Reddit user shared details of his wife’s accident while driving a three-month-old Model 3. During the accident, the vehicle rolled over multiple times before ending upside down. Although the vehicle was totaled, his wife suffered only a compression fracture, friction burn from the airbags, and some bruises.

“I thought the car performed spectacularly from a safety standpoint,” he wrote on the Tesla subreddit. “The driver seat airbags protected her during the roll including one underneath the steering wheel for her legs which I didn’t even know was there.”

Only minor injuries

The vehicle’s cabin remained "completely intact" and prevented any serious injuries, he said. “The windshield and glass roof obviously shattered, but they did not intrude into the cabin at all.”

Rollover accidents in electric vehicles are rare because of the large battery pack installed at the bottom of the vehicle. But despite their low center of gravity, rollover accidents in EVs can still occur.

The way this accident ended suggests the company didn’t neglect to include potentially life-saving safety features in its frantic push to hit its production target. However, the result of this accident is by no means a replacement for official third-party crash test results. The IIHS is currently testing the Model 3.

Despite a string of incidents calling into question the trustworthiness of the electric car maker’s Autopilot feature, Tesla has maintained that safety is always its number one priority.

Last year, the company revealed in a letter to shareholders that early Model 3 crash tests yielded positive results.

“Initial crash test results have been positive, and all Model 3-related sourcing is on plan to support the start of production in July,” Tesla said.

On Sunday, a special committee of the board of directors of Papa John’s met to discuss the future of founder John Schnatter with the pizza chain. The group ultimately decided to remove Schnatter from his position at Papa John’s headquarters in Louisville, Kentucky.

“As previously announced, Mr. Schnatter is no longer a spokesperson for the company of the brand,” the company wrote in a statement. “The company has specifically requested that Mr. Schnatter cease all media appearances, and not make any further statements to the media regarding the company, its business, or employees.”

The company is also in the process of removing Schnatter from all marketing materials. Additionally, Papa John’s will hire an outside investigator to look into current company policies regarding diversity.

“The special committee also intends to oversee the external audit and investigation which the company previously announced that it will conduct of all the company’s existing processes, policies, and systems related to diversity and inclusion, supplier and vendor engagement and Papa John’s culture,” the company wrote.

Schnatter will remain on the board, and still owns 30 percent of the company’s shares.

Recent scandal

Schnatter first came under fire last week when Forbes reported the founder and public face of Papa John’s used the N-word in a conference call in May. Schnatter confirmed the incident, and promptly resigned from his position.

The call was between Papa John’s and the company’s marketing agency Laundry Service, and was supposed to be a role-playing exercise for Schnatter to prevent any future public relations incidents. Schnatter drew attention to his company when he got involved in the debate over football players kneeling during the national anthem, in which he called out the NFL for lower than normal sales at Papa John’s.

Schnatter was asked how he would distance himself from racist groups online, and in effort to distance himself from his NFL comments, said: “Colonel Sanders called blacks n------s.” He also remarked that Sanders never faced public backlash for his comments.

The comment led Schnatter to discuss his upbringing in Indiana, and was intended to express his antipathy towards racism. However, many people on the call found it to be offensive. Laundry Service owner Casey Wasserman decided to terminate his company’s agreement with Papa John’s following the call.

Schnatter admitted that his comments were true, and publicly apologized.

“News reports attributing the use of inappropriate and hurtful language to me during a media training session regarding race are true,” Schnatter said. “Regardless of the context, I apologize. Simply stated, racism has no place in our society.”

Within hours, shares of Papa John’s dropped 11 percent, with Schnatter losing $70 million. The company’s stock has dropped 29 percent since Schnatter’s comments in November, and shares fell five percent following the incident last week.

Since the Great Recession, homeownership rates for millennials have been lower than previous generations at the same stage in life, and a new report from the Urban Institute suggests several reasons why.

Millennials are getting married later, and while single people do buy houses, it is more common for couples to make that purchase together. Various studies have shown that fewer millennials are getting married -- and when they do tie the knot, they are older than previous generations.

The Urban Institute research suggests that is one of the main reasons homeownership among this group lags behind baby boomers and generation X.

Both of those generations had a 45 percent homeownership rate when they were between the ages of 25 and 34. The homeownership rate among millennials currently in this age bracket is 37 percent.

Fewer children

A growing family was also a reason for a couple to buy a home, but today couples are waiting longer to have children, if they even have them at all. The research shows the percentage of young married couples with children fell to 25 percent in 2015, from 37 percent in 1990.

The Institute reports the presence of a child in a household increases the chance of owning a home by 6 percent.

However, that's not to say millennials aren't buying houses. As the nation's largest generation, they made up the largest share of homebuyers in the National Association of Realtors' 2015 Generational Study.

It is only when compared to other generations, when they were in the same age bracket, that the disparity is evident. And the Urban Institute report suggests millennials face economic headwinds other generations did not.

Student loans

When baby boomers went to college, student loans were a rarity. The cost of a college education did not put students and their families in debt.

Since the turn of the century, many college students graduate with a student loan debt the size of a small mortgage. That makes it more difficult to qualify for a loan to purchase a home, a process that is already more difficult than it was for previous generations.

After the housing crash, mortgage lenders implemented highly restrictive standards for qualifying for a mortgage. As a result, fewer people who would like to purchase a home are able to do so.

Since the housing crash, homebuilders have produced new homes at about half the rate that they did before the crash. As a result, there is a growing housing shortage that has pushed up home prices, especially in urban areas – which is where millennials prefer to live.

Why it matters

Why does it matter? According to the Urban Institute, homeownership is highly beneficial to most families. It not only offers a stable place to live, but it provides a hedge against inflation and a pathway to building wealth.

The evidence can be found in a comparison of household wealth. The net worth of the average household that owns a home is $231,420, compared with the average renter’s $5,200.

Because of that, the report's authors say their findings should be of “great concern."

On Thursday, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted 3-1 to stop reviewing informal consumer complaints. Under the revised rules, informal consumer complaints will be sent directly to the telecom company in question.

If the matter isn’t resolved by the company, consumers will have to file a formal complaint in order to share their complaint with the FCC’s staff. Filing a formal complaint requires a payment of $225 to the FCC.

Although Democrats have voiced concern that the rule change could harm consumers by stifling their voices, FCC chairman Ajit Pai maintains that the change will simply streamline the Commission’s existing practices.

"Nothing is substantively changing in the way that the FCC handles informal complaints," Pai said. "We're simply codifying the practices that have been in place since 1986." The $225 fee required to begin the formal complaint process was in place before Pai became chairman.

Agency will forward informal complaints to companies

However, Democrats argue that the change essentially cuts the FCC out of the process of reviewing informal complaints.

"This is bonkers," said FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel, the Commission’s sole Democrat. "No one should be asked to pay $225 for this agency to do its job. No one should see this agency close its doors to everyday consumers looking for assistance in a marketplace that can be bewildering to navigate.”

“There are so many people who think Washington is not listening to them and that the rules at agencies like this one are rigged against them—and today's decision only proves that point,” Rosenworcel said in a statement.

She noted that the FCC has reviewed informal complaints in the past, and that it receives between 25,000 to 30,000 informal complaints a month.

"After they are filed, the agency studies the complaint, determines what happened, and then works with providers to fix consumer problems," Rosenworcel said. "For decades, this has been the longstanding practice of this agency. But for reasons I do not understand, today's order cuts the FCC out of the process.”

By implementing the change, the FCC becomes “merely a conduit for the exchange of letters between consumers and their carriers,” she said.

Pai denies real change in policy

The FCC says its revised rules for handling informal complaints are simply meant to streamline and codify the agency’s existing formal complaint process.

"The new rules make no changes to existing, long-standing procedures for handling informal consumer complaints," the FCC said in a press release.

During Thursday’s meeting, Pai pointed out that no commissioner had opposed the revised wording in the appendix of the rule dealing with informal complaints when it was open for public comment in September 2017.

Prior to the decision, Rosenworcel had requested that the provisions be pulled based on her concerns, the Washington Post reported on Wednesday, citing unnamed sources.

"I believed when I left this building last night that we had an agreement to fix this," Rosenworcel said. "They agreed to take out the language at my request and then rescinded that agreement."

On Friday, the U.S. Department of Commerce lifted its ban preventing China’s ZTE from receiving goods from U.S. companies.

The Commerce Department previously said it would remove the ban after China’s second-largest telecommunications equipment maker paid a $1 billion penalty and completed a $400 million escrow payment as part of a settlement reached last month.

“The ZTE settlement represents the toughest penalty and strictest compliance regime the Department has ever imposed in such a case,” the Commerce Department said. “It will deter future bad actors and ensure the Department is able to protect the United States from those that would do us harm.”

As of Friday, ZTE was no longer on the Commerce Department’s “denied persons list,” Reuters reported.

Senators have pushed back

Lawmakers have expressed concern that removing the company’s seven-year restriction on receiving parts from U.S. suppliers could pose national security risks.

Last week, a bipartisan group of senators introduced legislation that could reinstate some of the penalties on ZTE. Last month, the Senate voted unanimously to reinstate the ban on the company citing national security concerns.

ZTE’s revival was initially set in motion by President Trump, who vowed to help the company get “back into business” via Twitter back in May. He said ZTE buys parts from U.S. companies and that the deal was “also reflective of the larger trade deal we are negotiating with China and my personal relationship with President Xi.”

ZTE was first hit with the ban in April after it violated the terms of 2017 agreement stipulating that it was not allowed to sell sensitive American technology to Iran and North Korea. In addition to violating the terms of the settlement, the company lied to the U.S. about reprimanding employees involved in the illegal actions.

The ban stripped ZTE of its access to crucial U.S.-based suppliers, including Qualcomm. ZTE previously described the ban as a “death penalty” and has reportedly lost at least $3 billion since it was forced to halt major operations in April.

However, ZTE has followed through with the terms of the deal it recently struck with the U.S. by paying the hefty fine, firing its executive team, and appointing a new chairman.

In a statement regarding the ban’s removal, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said the department would “remain vigilant” in monitoring ZTE’s actions.

Facebook is currently under investigation from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Justice Department, and the FBI, as authorities from these agencies are working to uncover how much the social media giant knew about the misuse and improper gathering of users’ data during last March’s Cambridge Analytica scandal. Specifically, the investigation is focusing on whether Facebook gave investors enough advance notice of what was going on.

Questioning is primarily focused on what Facebook knew in 2015 -- when it initially learned that Cambridge Analytica had improperly accessed the data of tens of millions of Facebook users -- and why the company didn’t share that information with its users or investors at the time. The news didn’t become public until March 2018. Investigators will also look into the words and actions from Facebook executives -- including CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

Facebook confirmed having received questions from federal agencies and reported that the company and its representatives will be cooperating with the investigation.

“We are cooperating with officials in the U.S., U.K., and beyond,” said Facebook spokesperson Matt Steinfeld. “We’ve provided public testimony, answered questions, and pledged to continue our assistance as their work continues.”

Facebook’s recent scandal

The Cambridge Analytica data breach first became public last March, when it was revealed that a professor used Facebook login credentials to ask users to sign up for what was said to be a personality analytics tool that would be used for academic research.

According to Facebook, the professor then violated the terms of service by selling the data of millions of Facebook users to the political marketing company Cambridge Analytica -- a company using the data to target potential voters.

In the U.K., the company allegedly targeted Facebook users inclined to vote for Britain leaving the European Union, whereas in the U.S., it was targeting users to support the Trump campaign.

Facebook reportedly removed the app -- called “This is Your Digital Life” -- as soon as the company became aware of the data breach, though it learned that not all of the data was deleted, as was required. Facebook then moved to suspend Cambridge Analytica’s account.

“We are constantly working to improve the safety and experience of everyone on Facebook,” Facebook said in a statement. “In the past five years, we have made significant improvements in our ability to detect and prevent violations by app developers.”

Changes in privacy

Since the scandal, Facebook has taken measures to protect users’ privacy moving forward.

The platform has audited thousands of apps that had access to users’ data, and it has suspended 200 apps in the process. The company has also restricted access to data for all developers using Facebook and Instagram.

The social media platform also drastically changed its privacy settings, condensing much of the settings into one easy to navigate screen.

“People have also told us that information about privacy, security, and ads should be much easier to find,” said Erin Egan, Facebook’s chief privacy officer. “Instead of having settings spread across nearly 20 different screens, they’re now accessible from a single place.”

Facebook also modified the way users see and access advertisements, as they gave users more control over the ads they view.

The U.S. Justice Department says it will appeal a judge's decision that allowed AT&T to acquire Time Warner, even though the deal has already been completed.

The government tried to block the two companies from joining forces, claiming the pairing of a telecom giant with a major content provider would be too powerful and harm consumers. But in a lengthy opinion, U.S. District Court Judge Richard Leon ruled the government had failed to show that the deal violated antitrust laws.

Leon acknowledged the Justice Department could appeal the ruling, but the judge, in very strong language, urged the government not to seek a stay that would block the two companies from proceeding with their merger. The merger was completed in mid-June.

The next step will be a hearing before the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, where a three-judge panel will review the case and consider the government's argument that Leon's ruling be overturned. What isn't clear is how quickly that will take place.

AT&T has renamed Time Warner WarnerMedia, and it is busily integrating it into the company. If Leon's ruling is overturned, AT&T would have to divest itself of its recently-acquired asset, or appeal the ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court.

AT&T confident it will prevail

In his ruling, Leon told the Justice Department it does not have "a likelihood of success on the merits of an appeal." AT&T General Counsel David McAtee agrees.

"The Court's decision could hardly have been more thorough, fact-based, and well-reasoned,” McAtee said in a statement. "While the losing party in litigation always has the right to appeal if it wishes, we are surprised that the DOJ has chosen to do so under these circumstances."

By acquiring Time Warner, AT&T now owns HBO, CNN, TNT, TBS, and Warner Brothers Entertainment. It can draw on those media assets to provide a number of streaming services.

Shortly after completing the merger, AT&T announced a new video service called WatchTV, a skinny bundle of channels that will be available “on virtually any smartphone, as well as on certain streaming devices.”

AT&T said its new service will feature 31 TV channels, including recently acquired CNN, TNT, and TBS, as well as channels from AMC Networks, Discovery Communications, and Viacom.

Seven major fast food chains have agreed to cease using employee contracts that include “no poach” clauses. The restaurants include: Arby’s, Carl’s Jr., McDonald’s, Jimmy Johns, Auntie Anne’s, Buffalo Wild Wings, and Cinnabon.

These deals often kept low-wage workers confined to specific franchise stores, without the freedom of mobility to accept higher-paying jobs at different stores. However, the provisions didn’t stop workers from switching franchises entirely. For example, workers at McDonald’s would be prohibited from switching between McDonald’s locations but could freely move from McDonald’s to Jimmy Johns.

Now, under a new agreement with Washington State, these clauses will be removed from contracts with these franchises. In addition to Washington, the seven chains involved will be enforcing the end of the no poach deals nationwide, as the clauses will not be added to new or renewed contracts.

“My goal is to eliminate these provisions in all fast-food contracts in my state,” said Bob Ferguson, Washington state’s attorney general.

The effects of the clause  

Because most fast food chains are independently owned and operated, no-poach provisions are typically buried within the contracts between the chains and the franchisees. Workers tend to not even know the limitations of these clauses until they look to switch jobs.

From the perspective of the franchise owner, the clause helps protect the time and money spent training new employees. However, under the clause, employees are often unable to explore new -- and potentially more lucrative -- opportunities.

Based on research from Princeton economists Alan Krueger and Orley Ashenfelter, no-poach clauses affect nearly 70,000 individual restaurants in the United States, which is more than a quarter of fast food stores.

“I’m pleased that the research that Professor Ashenfelter and I did has shined attention on this issue,” Professor Krueger said. “I hope that either through judicial action or legislation or voluntary decision by the franchise chains, that these noncompetitive practices are dropped.”

The professors research showed that the no-poach clauses mainly limit turnover and competition in fast food chains, while also keeping wages low.

Recent investigation

Though Washington has now banned the no-poach clause, attorneys general from 11 states are currently investigating the practice as it pertains to all fast food chains.

“Non-poach agreements unfairly limit the freedom of fast-food and other low-wage workers to seek promotions and earn a better living,” said Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey.

The attorneys general will be investigating Arby’s, Burger King, Dunkin’ Donuts, Five Guys Burgers and Fries, Little Caesars, Panera Bread, Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, and Wendy’s. The states are demanding to see the franchises’ non-poaching provisions and other paperwork by August 6th.

​More than 100 people in Iowa and Illinois have been sickened from a parasite possibly found in McDonald’s salads, regulators from the two states said Thursday.

In Illinois, 90 cases of illness caused by the cyclospora parasite have been reported since mid-May. Iowa has reported 15 cases since late June. One quarter of patients with the parasitic illness had eaten a McDonald’s salad prior to showing symptoms of the illness, according to Illinois officials.

"The initial investigation indicates a link to consumption of McDonald's salads produced for McDonald's restaurants. Approximately one-fourth of Illinois cases reported eating salads from McDonald's in the days before they became ill," the Illinois Department of Health said in a statement.

Cyclospora illness

The agency is asking consumers who ate a McDonald’s salad since mid-May and developed diarrhea and fatigue to contact a health care provider about testing and treatment.

Symptoms of the illness usually begin about week after consuming food contaminated by the parasite and include diarrhea, with frequent, sometimes explosive, bowel movements, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Other symptoms can include loss of appetite, weight loss, stomach cramps/pain, bloating, increased gas, nausea, and fatigue. The illness can last a few days or up to several months.

McDonald's has said it’s decided to stop selling salads at impacted restaurants until it switches to another lettuce blend supplier.

"We are in the process of removing existing salad blend from identified restaurants and distribution centers -- which includes approximately 3,000 of our U.S. restaurants primarily located in the Midwest,” the fast food chain said in a statement.

"McDonald’s is committed to the highest standards of food safety and quality control," the company continued. "We are closely monitoring this situation and cooperating with state and federal public health authorities as they further investigate."

Cyclospora is also the source of a recent outbreak linked to recalled Del Monte Fresh vegetable trays. The outbreak has sickened more than 200 individuals in four states.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has wrapped up the first compliance sweep of automobile dealerships in a self-examination of the effectiveness of its recently revised Used Car Rule.

The updated version of the rule became official in January 2018 after nearly six years of the agency poring over public comments and working out all the ifs, ands, or buts.

The amended rule dictates that dealers have to display a revised window sticker called a “Buyers Guide” on each used car offered for sale. The guide contains consumer-focused items such as warranty information, how things like parts for the covered systems that fail during the warranty period will be taken care of, notices about recalls, and even suggestions to the consumer such as “ask the dealer if your mechanic can inspect the vehicle on or off the lot.”

How the FTC did its check-up

The compliance sweep combed 2,300 vehicles on the lots of 94 dealerships in 20 cities across the U.S. between April and June 2018. Those cities were Burbank, North Hollywood, Richmond, San Bruno, San Jose, San Pablo, and Van Nuys, California; Jacksonville, Florida; Chicago, Illinois; New York, New York (Queens); Brooklyn Heights, Cleveland, East Cleveland, and Cleveland Heights, Ohio; Arlington, Dallas, and Grand Prairie, Texas; and Lakewood, Puyallup, and Tacoma, Washington.

The results were promising -- inspectors found Buyers Guides on 70 percent of vehicles inspected -- but only about half of those displayed the revised Buyers Guide.

The FTC followed up with each dealership it surveyed with details of what the agency found and provided additional materials to help bring them into full compliance. If a dealer doesn’t satisfy the rule’s requirements, it can expect to write a check for up to $41,484 per violation. And, as CarMax found out, not being transparent about an automobile can also land a dealership in court.

Will the rule stick or is it just another piece of paper?

Michigan “Lemon Law” attorney Steve Lehto has mixed feelings about the new rule and suspects it could amount to little or no change in the marketplace.

“The Guide is one of the many documents car shoppers see in a flurry of paperwork and its importance is lost on most buyers,” Lehto told ConsumerAffiairs.

“Buyers routinely ignore the Buyer’s Guide. Strengthening the language was a good step, but a very small step in the bigger picture. Consumers need to be educated on their rights when it comes to used cars but sadly, most buyers don’t learn much from the Buyer’s Guide. This will probably be just as true now as it was with the previous Guide.”

The price of gasoline has remained stable over the last week, even as oil prices have remained volatile.

The AAA Fuel Gauge Survey shows the national average price of regular is $2.88 a gallon, up just two cents in the last seven days. Today's price is three cents cheaper than it was a month ago.

The national average price of premium, required by a growing number of high-performance engines, is $3.42 a gallon. The average price of diesel fuel is $3.17 a gallon.

Some of the most volatile gas prices can be found in Ohio, where the statewide average gained seven cents overnight, to $2.81 a gallon. That's still two cents lower than the price seven days ago.

While gasoline prices tend to drift lower toward the end of the summer driving season, AAA warns that this year could be different. The Energy Information Administration this week reported a huge drop in oil stockpiles -- the largest since October 2016.

According to the report, U.S. oil stockpiles are roughly 90 million barrels lower than they were at this time last year. At the same time, the government reports U.S. exports of oil and gasoline rose in the last week, even as domestic demand increased. Refineries are operating at 96.7 percent of capacity.

Heading into the weekend, motorists may find the lowest gas prices of the summer, as market forces may put upward pressure on prices, precisely at the time they have historically declined.

The states with the highest gasoline prices

• Hawaii ($3.76)
• California ($3.66)
• Washington ($3.43)
• Alaska ($3.40)
• Oregon ($3.31)
• Nevada ($3.24)
• Idaho ($3.14)
• Utah ($3.13)
• Connecticut ($3.08)
• Pennsylvania ($3.05)

The states with the lowest gasoline prices

• Alabama ($2.55)
• Mississippi ($2.57)
• South Carolina ($2.57)
• Louisiana ($2.60)
• Arkansas ($2.61)
• Virginia ($2.62)
• Tennessee ($2.63)
• Missouri ($2.65)
• Texas ($2.65)
• Oklahoma ($2.65)

MyNicNaxs of Deltona, Fla., is recalling all lots of various dietary supplements that were distributed nationwide.

The products contain active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) Sildenafil, Sibutramine, Diclofenac and/or Phenolphthalein not declared on the label.

The presence of these APIs render the products unapproved drugs for which safety and efficacy have not been established.

The following products, sold from January 2013, to December 2017, though the company website http://www.mynicnaxs.com, are being recalled:

What to do

Customers who purchased the recalled products should not consume them and discontinue use of the products immediately.

Consumers with questions may contact Mike Banner at (407) 791-3597 or Chevonne Torres ate (386) 337-8142, Monday – Friday, 9:00am – 5:00 pm, (ET).

General Motors is recalling 66 model year 2016-2018 Chevrolet Malibus.

During servicing, a Passenger Presence System (PPS) may have been installed that was not correctly calibrated to the vehicle's seat type.

As a result, the PPS may not properly identify an adult passenger from a child passenger in the front passenger seat, potentially causing the airbag to not deploy when it should, or to deploy when it shouldn't.

In the event of a crash, improper airbag deployment can increase the risk of injury.

What to do

GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger PPS seat service kit, free of charge.

The manufacturer has not yet provided a notification schedule.

Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is 18208.

On Wednesday, Senators overwhelmingly voted in support of a resolution that would require Congress to give approval before President Trump imposes trade barriers on other nations.

The move comes a day after Trump escalated his trade war with China by publishing a list of $200 billion in Chinese goods that the White House says would be subject to a 10 percent tariff.

The non-binding resolution represents the first effort by Senators to push back against Trump’s tariffs. Lawmakers have previously expressed concern that retaliatory tariffs from China, the European Union, and elsewhere could take a toll on farmers and manufacturers and increase costs for consumers.

Symbolic resolution

However, the resolution -- which focused on Trump’s decision to levy steel and aluminum tariffs on Canada, Mexico, the European Union, and others -- was mostly symbolic.

Under the resolution, Congress would need to approve future tariffs issued under section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962. This section requires national security concerns to be the main reason for imposing the tariffs.

"This is a vote for Congress to assume its rightful role," said Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn, who led the resolution. “It’s a baby step.”

“This is not being imposed for national security reasons,” Corker said of the administration’s recent decisions. “This is an abuse of presidential authority.”

Although the resolution was voted on by a majority, 11 senators voted against it, including Sen. David Perdue, R-Ga. Purdue contended that the measure would stifle Trump’s freedom to negotiate, adding that Trump is working toward a larger goal of leveling a trade imbalance with U.S. trading partners.

“This is about making sure America is treated fairly,” Purdue said.

Corker concluded that the vote indicates “strong support” for giving Congress a larger role on tariffs. He said he will seek a binding vote.

A former Tesla employee, accused of sabotage by the company after he went public with a number of allegations, has now reportedly filed a "whistleblower tip" about Tesla with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

An attorney representing Martin Tripp told various news media outlets that his client has reported allegedly "dishonest" statements by Tesla concerning Model 3 production.

Tesla declined to comment but in late June sued Tripp, claiming the former employee hacked company systems and revealed confidential information to outside sources.

The suit accuses Tripp of writing software to hack into the company's system so he could transfer reams of data to “outside entities.” Among the information taken from the company, the suit alleges there were "dozens of confidential photographs and a video of Tesla's manufacturing systems."

Waste and safety issues

According to Tripp's attorney, his client has information about waste and safety issues occurring at Tesla's Nevada facility and wants to present it to the SEC.

Under the SEC's whistleblower program, an eligible whistleblower is "a person who voluntarily provides the SEC with original information about a possible violation of the federal securities laws that has occurred, is ongoing, or is about to occur."

The information provided by a whistleblower must lead to a successful SEC action resulting in an order of monetary sanctions exceeding $1 million. Eligible whistleblowers are entitled to compensation of between 10 and 30 percent of the fine.

Tesla has struggled to meet production goals for the Model 3, the company's popularly-priced electric car, starting at around $35,000. Last month the marketing firm Second Measure reported that Tesla had refunded the deposits that nearly a quarter of Model 3 customers had paid because the orders had been cancelled.

The company recently dropped the requirement that Model 3 customers place a refundable deposit to reserve their place in line. Instead, all Tesla customers will make an initial payment once production begins on the car they ordered.

Calling out critics

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has raised eyebrows on Wall Street recently by lashing out at analysts who have placed sell recommendations on Tesla stock, and at journalists who have written critical articles. After Business Insider wrote a series of articles based on information Tripp provided, Musk took to Twitter to suggest reporter Linette Lopez had paid Tripp for the information.

"Absolutely not," Lopez told CNBC on Wednesday. "I prefer to talk about the reporting and it's up to shareholders to decide whether the CEO of a $50 million company should spend his time yelling at reporters on Twitter."

Lopez said her reporting suggests that the lofty corporate mission of Tesla is not quite in line with the company's manufacturing policies.

California, the most populous state in the nation, has hit its 2020 target for cutting back on greenhouse gas emissions.

The California Air Resources Board released data this week that showed greenhouse gas emissions dropped to 424.9 million metric tons in 2016 -- below the target of 431 million metric tons for 2020. In 2015, the total was 441.4 million metric tons throughout the state. The greenhouse gas emissions dropped by 2.7 percent in 2016 and is on the right track to meet its goal of 40 percent reduction by 2030.

These numbers are less than the 431 million metric tons the state produced in 1990. When California’s greenhouse gas emissions levels peaked in 2004, regulators passed a law requiring  the state’s emissions to return to 1990 levels by 2020. Since the peak in 2004, emissions have dropped 13 percent.

“California set the toughest emissions targets in the nation, tracked progress, and delivered results,” said Governor Jerry Brown.

Former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed the law in 2006 that committed California to setting such rigorous goals for 2020.

“Surpassing our 2020 emissions goal ahead of schedule while our economy grows by a nation-leading 4.9 percent and our unemployment rate is at a historic low should send a message to politicians all over the country: you don’t have to reinvent the wheel -- just copy us,” Schwarzenegger said.

How California did it

When looking at the state’s greenhouse gas emissions, the data has been broken up into seven different categories: transportation, industrial, agriculture, electric power, high GWP, commercial and residential, and recycling and waste.

Industrial and electrical power dropped the most since the state enacted its green initiative. The combination of an uptick in solar electricity and hydroelectric power led to a 15 percent decrease in using natural gas for electricity.

However, despite the positive steps, some categories continued to rise. Greenhouse gas emissions increased from passenger vehicles. Drivers in California are buying more gas-powered cars, despite the benefits and incentives of buying electric-powered vehicles, which is likely due to the higher prices of electric-powered vehicles.

Regulators say the report shows that states are capable of pursuing their own paths towards reducing greenhouse gas emissions. In order for California to reach its 2030 goal, greenhouse gas emissions must continue to drop as much as they did in both 2015 and 2016.

Uber has laid off its self-driving car operators in Pittsburgh, as the company continues to work on fine-tuning its autonomous vehicle program.

The company informed close to 100 autonomous vehicle operators that they’d be losing their jobs, though it is encouraging those employees to apply for other positions within the company.

Vehicle operators typically monitor Uber’s self-driving cars, and though the position will no longer exist, the company will be replacing these jobs with 55 “mission specialists.” According to Quartz, the specialists will provide more technical feedback to self-driving car developers and train in both on-road and advanced test-track operations.

“Our team remains committed to building safe self-driving technology, and we look forward to returning to public roads in the coming months,” Uber said in a statement.

Recent troubles with self-driving vehicles

The decision to terminate these positions comes after a fatal accident in Tempe, Arizona where one of Uber’s autonomous vehicles struck and killed a woman. The car had a human driver but was in autonomous mode at the time of the accident.

Following the accident, Uber shut down its self-driving vehicle operations in Arizona. At the time of that decision, the company laid off 300 employees across the state and began to focus its attention on self-driving car operations in other cities -- San Francisco, Toronto, and Pittsburgh.

The move to shut things down in Pittsburgh is especially significant because it is not only where Uber’s Advanced Technology Group is headquartered, but it’s also where testing began in September 2016.

Uber’s Arizona facility was the company’s largest testing ground, and similar to Pittsburgh, vehicle operators were the most affected by the shutdown.

Samsung announced on Thursday that it’s building a “customer care center” in Greenville, South Carolina as part of its continued effort to emphasize connectivity between its products and services.

The 34,928 square foot facility will help the company in its goal of creating what it calls “continuous user experiences.”

“The way consumers are using technology devices is changing. We are entering a world in which the way consumers use and switch technology products is constant and seamless,” said Michael Lawder, senior vice president of Customer Care at Samsung Electronics America.

“Today’s announcement goes beyond our commitment to providing superior care for Samsung products, and ensures that Samsung customers are able to receive world-class education, training and support to connect their products and maximize their use however and whenever they would like.”

Improving customer support

The new customer care center will create 400 additional jobs in South Carolina by 2020, 200 of which will be generated by the end of 2018.

The center will have two advanced training centers for agents, a display of the latest Samsung products, and a secure video chat support center. There will also be a “connected living lab” with products from both Samsung and its direct competitors to allow for on-site testing and comparisons.

Samsung’s new facility will focus on emphasizing how the company’s various products and services can interact and work together in a consumer’s home.

Today, nearly 71 percent of American households own at least one Samsung device, and nearly a third of households across the country own three or more Samsung products. As the company grows more popular, officials say they are striving to provide the customer service needed to advance the way customers use its products.

“At Samsung, our goal is to provide Samsung Galaxy owners with a customer first care experience that is as innovative as our products,” Lawder said.

Delta Air Lines has decided to pull back on its flight schedule starting this fall thanks to rising fuel costs.

In the wake of a $2 billion bump in its 2018 fuel bill and a $183 million dip from the June 2017 quarter, the company is hoping its short-term cuts will have a healthier impact long-term.

“We have seen early success in addressing the fuel cost increase and offset two-thirds of the impact in the June quarter,” said Ed Bastian, Delta’s Chief Executive Officer.  “With strong revenue momentum, an improving cost trajectory, and a reduction of 50-100 bps (base points) of underperforming capacity from our fall schedule, we have positioned Delta to return to margin expansion by year end.”

“Accelerating the recapture of the recent fuel price increases is the number one focus for our commercial team,” added Delta President Glen Hauenstein.

Mother Nature also played a hand in Delta’s revenue plunge when the January 2018 Nor’easter forced the airline to cancel more than 400 of its flights.

How does an airline turn something like this around?

No one’s saying whether Delta will try and recoup some of its losses by raising airfare, but fliers shouldn’t be surprised if it does.

Airlines have other course correction options, too. For example, an airline could establish routes to places where higher fares are a given and cut back on the smaller income-producing routes.

That may be Delta’s play here if its plans for global expansion are kept intact. The company began its global inroads in May when it launched a joint venture with Korean Air and instantly found its way into more than 50 Korean Air-operated markets.

The company also has plans in place for new service from Los Angeles to Paris and Amsterdam, Indianapolis to Paris, and Atlanta to Lisbon. Nonstop service between the United States and Mumbai, India; Osaka, Japan; and Seoul, South Korea are also penciled in for 2019.

The global market is a smart play as the middle class continues to grow in emerging economies like India and China, giving rise to an upswing in the number of fliers.

“It is believed that the global aviation industry will reach up to 33.8 billion US dollars in profits in 2018, up from only 8.3 billion US dollars in 2011,” wrote Statista.com in its review of airline profits. “Between 2017 and 2036, the number of airline passengers is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.7 percent.”

Tech billionaire Elon Musk has pledged to fund the securing of clean water for any homes in Flint, Michigan that still have contaminated water.

“Please consider this a commitment that I will fund fixing the water in any house in Flint that has water contamination,” the Tesla and SpaceX CEO said in a tweet Wednesday. “No kidding.”

Musk followed up with another tweet acknowledging that many homes in Flint have safe water; however he said he would organize an effort to add filters to houses that are still dealing with foul water.

“Most houses in Flint have safe water, but they’ve lost faith in govt test results,” he said. “Some houses are still outliers. Will organize a weekend in Flint to add filters to those houses with issues & hopefully fix perception of those that are actually good.”

The Flint water crisis

Musk called on Flint residents to reply to his tweet with test results showing contamination above the recommended limits. "Creating email flint@x.com, but I'm in China so that won't be working until tomorrow," he added.

The Flint water scandal unfolded four years ago when lead leached from old pipes after the city began using the Flint River without adding corrosion-control chemicals.

Earlier this month, Musk supported a program to give bicycles to children in Flint. Musk’s latest effort to help residents of Flint with lead-tainted water comes days after his attempt to help a Thai youth soccer team that was trapped in a cave.

On Thursday morning, Musk tweeted that he will call Flint’s mayor on Friday to discuss the city’s specific needs.

Millions of Amazon Prime members are preparing for the retailer’s annual Prime Day, which has turned into one of the major shopping days of the year.

Things get started on Monday, July 16 at noon PT, running through July 17. In addition to the deals from Amazon, Prime members can also find savings on food products at Whole Foods.

Kimberly Palmer, NerdWallet's personal finance expert, says Amazon counts on the shopping day to build Prime membership as much as it does to sell things. For that reason, she says savvy shoppers may find some loss-leaders among the items being offered. But she says there are a few things consumers should keep in mind.

"Shoppers must have Amazon Prime, which costs $119 a year and is also available as a 30-day free trial, to get the deals," Palmer said in an email. "Returns to Amazon often require you to pay shipping, so be aware of this cost when ordering items you aren’t sure about."

Better deals than Black Friday

BestBlackFriday.com mostly focuses on the holiday shopping season, but company principal Phil Dengler says it also pays close attention to Prime Day, since there are so many deals available.

Dengler says the company's analysis shows that last year, 76 percent of Prime Day prices were better than those on Black Friday. In 2016, 77 percent of Prime Day offerings had lower prices than on the official kickoff to the holiday shopping season.

Dengler also says Amazon will use Prime Day 2018 to heavily promote its own line of electronic devices and smart speakers. In particular, he points to the Echo Show, Amazon's video smart speaker, which regularly sells for $229.99 but is on sale now through Prime Day at $129.99.

Predictions

Dengler also predicts shoppers will be able to purchase the second generation of the Echo for $69.99, instead of $99.99; and the Fire 10 tablet for $89.99, down from $149.99.

"In addition to the above-predicted prices, Amazon is likely to package many of these items together for further discounts," Dengler writes in a company blog. "You are also likely to see bulk discounts when purchasing two or more of select items."

To take advantage of Prime Day, Dengler advises members to make sure their account is in good standing. Also, make sure the account has accurate personal information and current payment information.

"Every second counts on Prime Day, and running around the house looking for your credit card could cause you to miss a deal," he said.

Palmer, meanwhile, says consumers should not overlook Amazon's competitors next week.

"As in previous years, we expect to see other big retailers, including Target, Walmart, and Best Buy, offer similar 'Black Friday in July' sales to compete with Prime Day," she said. "Consumers will be able to score deals on items ranging from electronics to clothing."

Afandina Halal of Long Island City, N.Y., is recalling an undetermined amount of raw poultry products that did not undergo federal inspection.

There have been no confirmed reports of adverse reactions due to consumption of these products.

The following raw chicken items, produced and packaged from May 14 through June 22, 2018, are being recalled:

• 40-lb. bulk boxes containing “Afandina, Halal Wholesale Chicken, Boneless Leg Meat”
• 40-lb. bulk boxes containing “Afandina, Halal Chicken, Whole chicken Legs”
• 40-lb. bulk boxes containing “Afandina, Halal Chicken, Chicken Cutlets”

The recalled products, bearing establishment number “P-51183” inside the USDA mark of inspection, were shipped to retail locations in New York City.

What to do

Customers who purchased the recalled products should not consume them, but discard them or return then to the place of purchase.

Consumers with questions about the recall may contact Saeed Hassanein at (718) 433-4402.

Chrysler (FCA US LLC) is recalling 1,837 model year 2018 Dodge Journeys and RAM 1500s, 2500s and 3500s.

The backup camera may experience a loss of image display while backing up, increasing the increase the risk of a crash.

What to do

Chrysler will notify owners, and dealers will replace the rearview mirror, free of charge.

The recall is expected to begin August 3, 2018.

Owners may contact Chrysler customer service at 1-800-853-1403. Chrysler's number for this recall is U56.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) wants to change its rules for handling informal consumer complaints, and Democrats in Congress are concerned that the proposed changes could harm consumers.

On Thursday, the FCC will vote to finalize a proposal that will "streamline and consolidate the procedural rules governing formal complaints.” Under the revised rules, informal consumer complaints would be sent directly to the company with which a consumer has a telecommunications-related issue.

If the issue isn’t resolved in the way the consumer hoped, they can file a formal complaint. However, they will have to pay $225 filing fee in order to share their opinion with the FCC’s staff.

“At a time when consumers are highly dissatisfied with their communications companies, this abrupt change in policy troubles us,” Democrats on the Energy and Commerce Committee wrote in a letter addressed to FCC chairman Ajit Pai.

Democrats “deeply concerned”

The letter, written by Reps. Frank Pallone of New Jersey and Mike Doyle of Pennsylvania, pointed out that the revised rules could potentially harm consumers by stifling their voices.

"As the chief communications regulator, the FCC plays a critical role in ensuring consumers -- including families, small businesses and struggling Americans -- get fair and honest treatment from their service providers," the representatives said in the letter.

"We worry that the proposed change signals that the FCC no longer intends to play this role, and will instead simply tell consumers with limited means and time that they need to start an expensive and complicated formal legal process."

FCC officials maintain that the revised rules won’t affect the informal complaint process; the changes will simply streamline the agency's formal complaint system.

"The item would not change the Commission's handling of informal complaints," an FCC spokesman told CNET. "The Democrats' letter is based on a fundamental misunderstanding of the draft order."   

The agency has previously faced accusations that it deliberately spread misinformation about supposed cyberattacks on its comment systems.

Digital rights advocacy group Electronic Frontier Foundation has uncovered evidence that a chain of California malls is sending data about shoppers to a company that contracts with Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

The Irvine Company owns 46 malls across California. On its website, the chain alerts consumers that some of its mall locations utilize Automated Licence Plate Recognition (ALPR), a controversial technology that scans license plates with surveillance cameras.

That license plate data is then sent to Vigilant Solutions, which “allows law enforcement agencies to access the ALPR System directly,” the company admits.

The exact law enforcement agencies aren’t named, but a contract that the Verge uncovered earlier this year indicates that Vigilant Solutions counts Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) among its law enforcement clients.

According to the Electronic Frontier Foundation, ICE is just one of 1,000 law enforcement agencies nationwide that Vigilant Solutions shares license plate data with. The firm also contracts with financial lenders, debt collectors, and insurance companies.

In a statement, the Irvine Company told the Verge that the license plate data only gets sent to local police agencies, not federal agents. But the Electronic Frontier Foundation says that Vigilant Solutions provides no guarantees of that, noting that the company admits to retaining license plate data “as long as it has commercial value.”

Busting their own customers

The revelation is just the latest in a series of recent discoveries by consumers that some corporations appear to be helping law enforcement bust their own customers.

Earlier this year, the Phoenix New Times reported that two corporate-owned Motel 6 locations admitted to sharing guest lists with ICE, which then used the information to conduct immigration raids. The motel chain recently settled a lawsuit filed by civil rights advocates over the revelation.

Passengers on Amtrak trains and Greyhound buses have also described or recorded video depicting immigration agents boarding and requesting passengers’ proof-of-citizenship.

In the case of Greyhound, information about passengers, as well as access to the checked luggage compartment, is also sometimes provided to the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), as ConsumerAffairs recently reported.

However, Customs and Border Patrol (CBP), the agency whose workers have been filmed boarding Greyhound buses and asking for proof of citizenship, denied that they receive information about passengers ahead of time, as the DEA apparently does.

Greyhound declined to answer specific questions about its relationship with law enforcement agencies and instead sent ConsumerAffairs a statement claiming that federal law leaves them no choice but to let CBP aboard, which the American Civil Liberties Union says is not true.

The Trump administration has published a list of Chinese goods that may be subjected to 10 percent tariffs. The list includes over 6,000 goods, including fish, electronics, propane, toilet paper, and more. The goods have an annual trade value of about $200 billion.

“The $200 billion figure we're looking at is roughly equal to their exports to us,” a senior administration official said.

The suggested new tariffs will not be implemented until after a public comment period, which runs through August. A hearing is slated for Aug. 20-23.

The preliminary list of new tariffs comes days after the U.S. initiated 25 percent tariffs on $34 billion in Chinese goods. China immediately retaliated with tariffs on its own list of $34 billion worth of American goods.

The tariffs could lead to higher prices and job losses in a range of industries. Chinese tariffs have already impacted U.S. exports such as soybeans.

"They are a vital trading partner, and we need to continue to do business with China without the sting of these tariffs,” said American Soybean Association President John Heisdorffer in a news release. “It is imperative that we maintain the robust market we have worked so hard for decades to establish with China.”

Escalating trade war

Trump has said the tariffs are intended to punish China for using unfair trade practices. On Friday, China accused Trump of trade bullying and setting off a chain of possible adverse effects for U.S. consumers, as well as those abroad.

“This act is typical trade bullying,” a spokesperson for China’s Ministry of Commerce said in a statement. “It seriously jeopardizes the global industrial chain, … hinders the pace of global economic recovery, triggers global market turmoil and will affect more innocent multinational companies, general companies and consumers.”

The President’s latest maneuver in the escalating trade war between the world’s two largest economies prompted Republican leaders to rescind their support of the Trump administration’s trade policy.

"Although I have supported the administration's targeted efforts to combat China's technology transfer regime, tonight's announcement appears reckless and is not a targeted approach," said Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, chair of the Senate Finance committee.

"We cannot turn a blind eye to China's mercantilist trade practices, but this action falls short of a strategy that will give the administration negotiating leverage with China while maintaining the long-term health and prosperity of the American economy," Hatch said in a statement.

The FBI has arrested a former engineer at Apple on charges of stealing company secrets on behalf of a Chinese start up.

A complaint, filed in federal district court in California, says Xiaolang Zhang, who worked on Apple's autonomous car project for two and a half years, was taken into custody over the weekend as he attempted to board a plane for China.

The complaint charges that Zhang downloaded proprietary data before resigning in May, telling Apple he was returning to China to care for a family member. At the same time, he disclosed to his former employer that he planned to take a job with Xiaopeng Motors, a new electric car company affiliated with Alibaba, China's counterpart to Amazon.

“Apple takes confidentiality and the protection of our intellectual property very seriously,” the company said in a statement.

Downloading sensitive information

Apple said it is cooperating with federal prosecutors and will do all it can to make sure anyone found guilty of stealing trade secrets is held accountable for their actions. The company said Zhang's job at the company involved designing and testing circuit boards for Apple's autonomous car project.

The complaint notes that Apple became suspicious after Zhang told his superiors about his plans. When he appeared evasive during questioning, the complaint says, he was asked to turn over his work-related electronic devices.

The company says a forensic examination revealed that Zhang's network activity surged in the days before his resignation, including “bulk searches and targeted downloading copious pages of information.”

Surprise revelation

While the incident may play into the current hot topic of the trade war, and the Trump administration's charge that China routinely steals intellectual property from U.S. firms, CNBC said it found an even more significant take away.

The business news network said that buried deep within the complaint is the fact that more than 5,000 Apple employees are currently working on the company's autonomous vehicle project, many more than previously thought.

The complaint reveals that about 3.7 percent of Apple's 135,000 employees are working on the top secret project. That suggests Apple's autonomous car project is much larger than first thought.

Earlier this year, when tech site ZDNet ranked the top autonomous car projects, it placed General Motors at the top of the list, followed by Waymo. Apple did not crack the top 10.

Today, 7-Eleven stores are offering consumers a free small Slurpee between the hours of 11 a.m. and 7 p.m. in celebration of being in business for 91 years. The company said it’s “inviting millions to the party” with the giveaway.

Seven Eleven anticipates giving away an estimated 9 million Slurpees through the one-day promotion, which it first introduced in 2002.

“Free Slurpee day may be the most anticipated day of the year for millions of 7‑Eleven customers and new customers alike,” said Raj Kapoor, 7‑Eleven senior vice president, in a press release.

“7‑Eleven Day is a celebration, not only of our birthday, but more importantly, of our customers.”

A week of deals

Consumers can stop in and pick up a free small Slurpee in any flavor from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time on Wednesday, July 11.

The chain is also offering several other freebies this week, including:

• July 12: Free 7-Select Pure Water with the purchase of any Bodyarmor sports drink.

• July 13: Free Big Gulp with the purchase of a share-size Snickers.

• July 14: Free popcorn with the purchase of a 20-ounce Smartwater.

• July 15: Free Reese's with the purchase of a share-size bag of 7-Select gummies.

• July 16: Free 20-ounce Coke with the purchase of any package of Cheez-Its.

Walmart, the country’s largest retailer, has long been absent from the country’s largest city -- New York. The chain has not had one retail location within the city’s five boroughs -- but that’s all about to change.

The company’s Jet.com subsidiary will be moving to the Bronx this fall in an effort to start a grocery delivery service in the Big Apple.

“We are excited to bring hundreds of jobs to the greater New York City area through the opening of the Bronx Fulfillment Center this fall,” said Simon Belsham, president of Jet.com. “This is a key building block that is part of Jet’s strategy focused on urban centers.”

With Jet.com’s headquarters across the river in Hoboken, New Jersey, this is the company’s first big push to make its way to New York City. Set to open later this year, the facility will be designed to deliver fresh grocery items, consumable goods (toothpaste and paper towels), and other merchandise to NYC addresses with either same-day or next-day delivery. The warehouse will only stock items sold on Jet.

Walmart’s quest to compete

Walmart acquired Jet.com in 2016 for $3.3 billion, as the company sought to reach a younger demographic. Since then, the retailer has expanded its digital sales, with an increase of 33 percent last quarter. Additionally, the company has been able to reach shoppers in bigger, wealthier cities -- a market base where Walmart has statistically had a limited presence.

To deliver groceries under this new service, Jet will use Parcel -- a last-mile delivery service that Walmart bought last year at an undisclosed price. Acquiring Parcel allowed Walmart to compete with the likes of Amazon Prime and Amazon Prime Now -- services that offer customers same-day and next-day delivery.

According to Business Insider, the “last-mile” problem -- figuring out how to deliver packages to consumers who don’t have porches or doormen -- is a recurring problem for online retailers -- particularly in cities like New York. However, Parcel’s vans read: “No doorman? No Problem,” a sign to consumers that it’s addressing this issue.

As grocery shopping continues to evolve, consumers are flocking to services that deliver their orders straight to their doors -- and all but instantaneously. This move by Walmart signals an effort to compete in this new arena with fellow retailers like Amazon (which acquired Whole Foods and offers competitive delivery options), InstaCart, MaxDelivery, FreshDirect, and most recently, Target.

As any motorist will tell you, gasoline prices have hit their highest point in years, cutting into many consumers' budgets.

Because of that, some economists have begun to worry that the economic expansion, which began at the end of the Great Recession in June 2009, may be close to an end.

The Wall Street Journal reports that, at this point at least, consumers have been able to weather the price rise without too much difficulty. But should prices climb even more in the months ahead, all bets may be off.

Airlines have already adapted to higher fuel costs by raising ticket prices. Over time, other industries might be affected, and respond by slowing hiring. According to the Journal report, 3M and Whirlpool have cited higher costs affecting corporate profits.

Gas prices just one factor

Economist Joel Naroff, of Naroff Economic Advisers, doesn't think higher gasoline prices alone will be enough to throw the economy into recession. But there is no question that they can add to inflation and raise interest rates, both of which increase consumer costs.

“Worse, they come as the impacts of the tariffs are starting to hit, also raising both business and consumer costs,” Naroff told ConsumerAffairs. “While tax cuts have added to household income, the rising expenses are offsetting those positive effects.”

As gasoline costs rise, they may also negate the benefits lower and middle income consumers received from what Naroff sees as fairly modest tax cuts.

“Put simply, the rise in gasoline prices and the impacts of tariffs are negating the tax cuts for many households, slowing growth,” he said.

It's happened before

Those with long memories may recall that oil speculators bid up the price of oil in 2008 to well over $100 a barrel, causing gasoline prices to exceed $4 a gallon. The explanation was that worldwide economic growth was fueling the price rise, not speculation.

However, the world was actually in a recession at the time, culminating with the financial crisis in September 2008. Almost immediately afterward, the price of gasoline plunged to below $2 a gallon.

Today, the national average price of regular gasoline, according to AAA, is $2.87 a gallon, 61 cents a gallon more than at this time last year. Consumers purchasing 25 gallons in a typical fill-up are paying $15 more per fill up than they did last year.

But some consumers are paying a lot more than that, since $2.87 is just the national average. Drivers in western states are paying a lot more.

In California, the statewide average is $3.66 a gallon. It's $3.43 a gallon in Washington.

In May, Americans quit their jobs at the fastest rate in almost two decades. According to MarketWatch, the shift shows a growing confidence in the economy, as many people are choosing to leave one company for another.

Based on government statistics, 2.7 percent of employees in the private sector willingly left their jobs -- up from 2.5 percent -- while the quit rate is up to 2.4 percent -- up from 2.3 percent. Both of these numbers are the highest they’ve been since 2001.

Despite job openings dropping from 6.84 million to 6.64 million, the boom in the economy is most likely to be the driving force behind many Americans feeling comfortable enough to leave their jobs. Additionally, many people who leave their jobs by choice end up with better pay and better benefits in their new positions.

It’s also important to note that hirings were up in May, peaking at 5.75 million hires. That figure is up by 170,000 people from April and is also the highest it’s been in 17 months.

A look to the future

According to the Department of Labor’s report, nearly 5.5 million people lost their jobs in May. However, the majority of the decline was seen in the Northeast, where the population tends to be higher than in other areas. Additionally, job openings dropped in areas like arts and entertainment, media, and public relations.

However, because of the incredibly low unemployment rate, companies are hiring new employees to try and keep up with the demands of the surging economy.

The rising quit rate shows employees’ general confidence in acquiring new jobs with higher wages. According to MarketWatch, this could lead companies to raise wages faster in hopes of holding onto their best employees -- and attracting new ones.

While this trend appears to be heading in the right direction for the general public, it could raise some eyebrows at the Federal Reserve, which is keeping a close eye on inflation.

“The rise in the job quits rate points to wage growth accelerating to three percent by the end of the year,” said Michael Pearce, senior U.S. economist at Capital Economics.

The government's Producer Price Index (PPI), a measure of inflation for goods and services at the wholesale level, rose 0.3 percent in June after rising 0.5 percent in May.

On a year-over-year basis, costs at the production level are up 3.5 percent, the highest since 2011. Price increases at the production level are usually passed on to consumers in the form of higher retail prices.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports most of the June increase came in the form of higher costs for services.

Prices for services rose 0.4 percent in June, the largest gain since a 0.5 percent rise in January. In June, half of the broad-based increase in the index for services took the form of trade services, where acute labor shortages have recently been reported.

Higher oil costs a main driver

Not surprisingly, more than 40 percent of the price increase in services can be traced to a 21.8 percent jump in fuels and lubricants. With the steady rise in oil prices over the last couple of months, refiners have faced higher costs in producing gasoline and diesel fuel.

But inflation wasn't limited to energy. The June Index shows rising prices for hospital outpatient care; health, beauty, and optical goods retailing; truck transportation of freight; automobiles and automobile parts retailing; and food retailing.

However, there were some notable price declines last month at the production level for apparel, footwear, and accessories retailing. The indexes for inpatient care and airline passenger services also decreased last month.

The producer prices for actual goods barely moved higher last month. The biggest increase came in the wholesale price of motor fuels. But that was largely offset by a large drop in the cost of food products, which fell 1.1 percent.

Costs at the production level usually get passed on to consumers, but not always. In competitive areas, like food and apparel, some wholesalers absorb small price increases if they think consumers will be unwilling or unable to pay them.

Ford Motor Company is recalling 25 model year 2017-2018 Ford Edges and model year 2017 Lincoln MKZs.

On vehicles with 2.0L gas engines and six-speed automatic transmissions, the torque converter weld studs may have been inadequately welded.

If the torque converter weld studs fail, the torque converter will not be connected to the engine flexplate and the vehicle will lose the ability to move, increasing the risk of a crash.

What to do

Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the torque converters, free of charge.

The recall is expected to begin in July 2018. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 17S16 (S2).

On the day of its official release, technology security gurus are raising a red flag over Apple’s new security feature, USB Restricted Mode.

The feature was designed to shield iPhone users against passcode-cracking devices used by law enforcement, essentially immobilizing any attempts at accessing the device after it’s been in locked mode for an hour.

Computer security forensics firm ElcomSoft has found a $39 device -- one Apple sells on its on website -- that runs contrary to Apple’s instructions, fooling the restricted mode and giving access to anyone using the device.

“What we discovered is that iOS will reset the USB Restrictive Mode countdown timer even if one connects the iPhone to an untrusted USB accessory, one that has never been paired to the iPhone before (well, in fact the accessories do not require pairing at all),” wrote ElcomSoft’s Oleg Afonin in a blog post.

“In other words, once the police officer seizes an iPhone, he or she would need to immediately connect that iPhone to a compatible USB accessory to prevent USB Restricted Mode lock after one hour. Importantly, this only helps if the iPhone has still not entered USB Restricted Mode,” Afonin commented.

Making sure its research is as inclusive and objective as possible, ElcomSoft says it plans to test as many USB adapters as possible and found that one, the Apple Lightning to 3.5mm jack adapter ($9), does not work to defeat USB restrictions.

The reaction

The Twittersphere was bristling with news of the workaround with tech watchers like Mashable agreeing that Apple’s new security feature was “painfully easy to hack.” Another site tweeted a step-by-step on how to trick the feature.

Needless to say, the issue raises a number of questions.

Why is Apple’s USB Restricted so easily fooled? Can Apple patch its own security hole? The answers are uncertain, but critics are making it clear that Apple has an issue with its Lightning communication protocol.

“The ability to postpone USB Restricted Mode by connecting the iPhone to an untrusted USB accessory is probably nothing more than an oversight,” summed up Afonin.

“We don’t know if this behavior is here to stay, or if Apple will change it in near future. According to our tests, both iOS 11.4.1 and iOS 12 beta 2 exhibit similar behavior; however, this can change in subsequent versions of iOS.”

In a statement to ConsumerAffairs, Vladimir Katalov -- CEO, co-owner, and co-founder of ElcomSoft -- added that a small adjustment on Apple's part could go a long way towards making some consumers more comfortable.

"What we want to see is more granular control over what can and what cannot trigger the USB Restricted Mode. There are people who'd prefer unlocking their phones every time someone connects an accessory to the Lightning port instead of being subjected to the flawed restrictions. Apple already took care of the people who don’t want the new feature, so we’d like to see some love for those of us who just can’t have too much security," he said.

Whole Foods, the Amazon-owned grocery store, announced today that it will be offering customers a $10 credit to use during Prime Day. Customers will receive the credit after spending $10 or more at Whole Foods from July 11 through July 17.

Whole Foods will also be offering additional deals to customers. From July 14 through July 17, Amazon Prime Rewards Visa cardholders will see their cash back bonus double from five percent to 10 percent. First-time Amazon Prime Now delivery customers will not only receive $10 off their first orders, but an additional $10 off for a future order.

Prime members will also see discounts on frequently purchased grocery items leading up to Prime Day. From July 11 through July 17, boneless chicken and self-serve cookies are 40 percent off and Honey Nut Cheerios and Allegro bagged coffee will be buy-one get-one free.

Customer benefits

Since Amazon’s acquisition of Whole Foods last June, customers have been reaping the benefits of the merger. What started as a slow progression has now led to a nationwide rollout of Amazon Prime members receiving Whole Foods discounts in stores.

Since the merger, Amazon has been looking for ways to attract loyal Whole Foods customers to its Prime membership. Incorporating these deals in advance of Prime Day is one such way of doing that. Amazon is hoping the discounts and special offers on delivery will entice Whole Foods customers to purchase the $119/year Prime membership.

“Amazon has a relationship with [about 60 million households] in the U.S., and [these people] are definitely big consumers,” said Michael Pachter, an analyst at Wedbush. “Why not drive that traffic into Whole Foods?”

Prime Day 2018

Amazon accidentally leaked the date of this year’s Prime Day in late June after a banner was found on Amazon’s U.K. site.

Amazon started Prime Day back in 2015, and the event offers customers the biggest selection of discounted items -- going above and beyond what’s offered on Black Friday.

This year, Prime Day 2018 will start midday on July 16th and run through midnight on July 17th. This will be the first Prime Day that Amazon incorporates Whole Foods into its day of discounts.

President Trump has renewed his on-again, off-again criticism of prescription drug prices.

The president took to Twitter to call out Pfizer and others after the Financial Times reported last week that the company had increased the prices of more than 100 medications, including Viagra. It was the second round of price hikes on at least eight drugs so far this year.

"Pfizer & others should be ashamed that they have raised drug prices for no reason," Trump tweeted. "They are merely taking advantage of the poor & others unable to defend themselves, while at the same time giving bargain basement prices to other countries in Europe & elsewhere. We will respond!"

As a candidate, Donald Trump slammed drug makers for what he called excessive prices, echoing similar criticisms voiced by Democrats Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders.

As president, Trump introduced a plan in May to roll back some prescription drug prices. The policy, heavily reliant on voluntary actions, drew mostly scorn from health-focused consumer groups, which predicted the policy would have little effect.

Not hurt by criticism

So far, most drug makers appear unharmed by the presidential criticism. In May, the Kaiser Health Foundation noted that despite being called out by the administration for allegedly stalling generic competition, major pharmaceutical firms have hiked their prices by double-digit percentages in the last six years.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has taken some small steps, however. The agency has compiled a list of drug companies that, according to generic producers, don't let them purchase samples needed to develop low-cost, generic versions.

A Kaiser Health Foundation analysis shows that major pharmaceutical firms, many of which may have engaged in what FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb called “shenanigans” to delay the entrance of cheaper competitors onto the market, have raised drug prices and cost consumers and taxpayers more money over time.

Attorney generals from 11 states are investigating the fast food industry’s practice of barring employees from switching jobs within a franchise.

So-called “non-poach” clauses have been used by the fast food industry for years, preventing a worker at one McDonald’s in Florida, for instance, from even being considered for a better-paying job at a different McDonald’s.

While employers have claimed that non-poach or no-hire policies are necessary to retain the investment that they made in training and hiring new people, workers’ groups and attorneys say that workers typically aren’t even told of such policies until they try to apply for a better job within the same company.

Workers say that they instead find themselves trapped in the original store where they were hired, unable to move-up within the company or change locations.

‘‘Non-poach agreements unfairly limit the freedom of fast-food and other low-wage workers to seek promotions and earn a better living,’ Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey, who is leading the probe, said in a statement.

Barring promotions and upward mobility

The attorney generals announced on Monday that they would be investigating eight fast-food chains -- Arby’s, Burger King, Dunkin’ Donuts, Five Guys Burgers and Fries, Little Caesars, Panera Bread, Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, and Wendy’s. The states are demanding to see the companies’ non-poaching provisions and other paperwork by August 6.

The use of non-poach agreements is extremely common, with more than half of major franchises now requiring them of workers. Looking strictly at the fast food industry, that figure reaches 80 percent, according to Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan.

While such agreements may prevent upward mobility within a single company, some industries have tried to take the practice a step further.

Several years ago, Jimmy John’s was forced to eliminate a contract provision that banned former workers from taking jobs from any business considered to be a competitor of the chain. But the company ditched the non-compete agreement for departing workers after New York’s then-Attorney General publicly warned that he considered the practice to be illegal.

It’s not just fast food or retail workers that may find themselves limited by anti-competitive agreements. One survey conducted by economic researchers in 2014 found that one in five employees in the entire country was bound by non-compete clauses. And employment lawyers say that lawsuits related to workers who didn’t honor their non-compete clauses have tripled since 2000.

“Companies of all sorts use them for people at all levels,” an employment attorney told the New York Times last year.

Once upon a time, airline passengers almost always got a free meal with their flight. Then came cost-cutting, and food options were literally reduced to peanuts.

But starting August 1, you won't get peanuts on Southwest Airlines flights. The carrier announced on Twitter that it will stop handing out packets of peanuts, out of consideration for passengers who might have severe peanut allergies.

While other airlines added peanuts to their snack packs when they phased out meals, peanuts have a long history with Southwest. In its earlier days as an airline that only flew between Texas cities, Southwest had associated itself with peanuts, advertising its low “peanuts fares.”

Pretzels still available

Southwest says its passengers won't go hungry while in the air. The airline will continue to hand out free packages of pretzels. On longer flights, the carrier says passengers will have a few more snack options, including cookies.

Southwest is not the first airline to discontinue peanuts. Some other carriers took that step to avoid a situation in which a passenger suffers a life-threatening allergic reaction at 30-thousand feet. Potential allergens remain a hot-button topic for many.

Last year, the nonprofit advocacy group Food Allergy Research and Education filed a lawsuit against American Airlines to obtain pre-boarding privileges for fliers with food allergies. The suit said it is important that these travelers board early to ensure that their seating area is clean and free of allergens.

At the time, Dr. James Baker, CEO and chief medical officer of the group, stressed that the suit did not seek to stop American from serving peanuts; it simply wanted to remove the pre-boarding restriction for people with food allergies.

Other airlines' policies

According to TravelSort.com, some airlines are better about dealing with food allergies than others. It says Delta will not serve any peanut products on your flight if you notify the airline beforehand of your food allergy.

Air Canada and JetBlue do not serve peanuts but, as of 2017, JetBlue did serve snacks containing tree nuts. JetBlue says it does not include any kinds of nuts in its free snacks.

It says if passengers with allergies notify the airline in advance, they will be seated two rows away from any passenger who is consuming nuts.

Last month, the International House of Pancakes (IHOP) made news when it announced a name change to promote its new burger menu -- IHOb.

After less than a month as IHOb, the popular pancake joint announced that it will be going back to its roots to once again be known to the masses as IHOP.

In addition to reclaiming its pancake roots, IHOP will also be offering customers a discount on its signature meal in honor of the company’s 60th birthday.

“We’re giving away 60¢ short stacks on July 17th from 7am-7pm for IHOP’s 60th birthday,” the company wrote on Facebook. “That’s right, IHOP! We’d never turn our back on pancakes (except for that time we faked it to promote our new burgers).”

The initial change

IHOP first announced the change early last month, informing customers that the infamous P would soon be flipping to a B. The company left customers without answers for about a week before revealing the emphasis on the restaurant’s new burger menu.

“Burgers are a quintessential, American menu item so it makes perfect sense that IHOP, one of the most iconic, all-American comfort-food brands in the world, would go over the top to create a delicious line-up of quality burgers that hit the spot any time of day,” said Nevielle Panthaky, Head of Culinary at IHOP.

According to IHOP President Darren Rebelez, the chain famous for its pancakes spent over a year trying to enhance its burger menu as it worked to boost sales outside of breakfast.

“We had to make a bold move to get people to be willing to talk about us for something other than breakfast soon,” Rebelez said.

Response to IHOb  

All but instantly, the change from IHOP to IHOb lit up social media. Both customers of the restaurant and other food chains took to Twitter to question IHOP’s decision to change its name.

Wendy’s certainly wasn’t intimidated by IHOP’s decision to focus on burgers, tweeting, “Not really afraid of the burgers from a place that decided pancakes were too hard.” Then, when IHOP announced the change as a marketing decision, a customer asked Wendy’s to weigh in, touting IHOb as a joke. Wendy’s response? “Of course it was.”

Despite some backlash, IHOP’s name change certainly sparked a conversation among consumers.

According to YouGov BrandIndex data, IHOP’s “word of mouth” score skyrocketed following the switch to IHOb. Before the switch, 19 percent of adults said they had talked about the restaurant chain in the past two weeks. After, that number jumped to 30 percent -- the highest score since 2012.

Rebelez wants customers to remember that the name change was never meant to be permanent, and the company wasn’t trying to eliminate its signature dish.

“The pancakes haven’t gone anywhere… They’re still there,” he said. “They’re on the cover of the menu. Just because we have pancakes doesn’t mean we can’t do anything but pancakes. That’s what we’re after: giving more people more reasons to come to IHOP more often.”

Uber is investing in an electric scooter company called Lime as part of a $335 million financing round led by Alphabet’s venture arm, GV (formerly Google Ventures), Bloomberg reports.

San Mateo, California-based Lime is part of the burgeoning scooter business, which is valued at $1.1 billion. The new partnership will make Lime’s lightweight electric scooters available to rent on Uber’s mobile application. Uber also plans to put its logo on some of the company’s e-scooters.

“Uber will work with us as a strategic partner in the electric scooter space to offer people a greater variety of transportation modes at their fingertips and make it increasingly easy to live without a car,” Lime said in a blog post about the investment.

“As electric scooters grow in popularity and become a more beloved way to travel short distances, the partnership adds to Uber’s vision of becoming a transportation platform for people around the globe.”

Lime’s scooters can be easily rented and left on the sidewalk for the next person to pick up. The service is already available in more than 70 markets across the U.S. and Europe. Cash from the new deal will enable the company to grow its fleet of e-scooters by tens of thousands.

News of the partnership comes just a few months after Uber acquired dockless bike-share company Jump Bikes for more than $100 million. It also follows news that Lyft acquired Motivate, the largest bike-share operator in the country.

Expanding transportation options

Uber has said it wants to become a “one-stop shop” for consumers’ transportation needs.

“Our investment and partnership in Lime is another step towards our vision of becoming a one stop shop for all your transportation needs,” said Rachel Holt, the former head of Uber’s North America ride-hailing business, in an interview with Bloomberg.

“Lime already has an expansive footprint, and we’re excited to incorporate their scooters into the Uber app so consumers have another fast, affordable option to get around their city, especially to and from public transit.”

Many consumers take multivitamins or supplements as a quick and easy way to improve their health. However, a growing body of research suggests that popular supplements do little to improve health.

A new study, which analyzed information from 18 previously published studies examining the link between multivitamins and mineral supplements and the risk of certain cardiovascular problems, suggests that vitamin and mineral supplements do nothing to prevent heart disease.

After tracking more than two million people in five countries for an average of 12 years, the researchers concluded that multivitamins did not prevent heart attacks, strokes, or death from heart disease.

Do not promote heart health

Findings from the new study are in line with guidelines from the American Heart Association, which doesn’t recommend using multivitamins or mineral supplements as a way to stave off cardiovascular disease.

Despite these recommendations, up to 30 percent of U.S. consumers take these products. Some people reportedly use them to prevent heart disease, the researchers noted.

"It has been exceptionally difficult to convince people… to acknowledge that multivitamin and mineral supplements don't prevent cardiovascular diseases," study lead author Dr. Joonseok Kim, an assistant professor of cardiology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, said in a statement.

"I hope our study findings help decrease the hype around multivitamin and mineral supplements and encourage people to use proven methods to reduce their risk of cardiovascular diseases — such as eating more fruits and vegetables, exercising and avoiding tobacco," Kim said.

Healthy diet can lower risk

The new findings come on the heels of prior studies which showed that supplements have few, if any, health benefits. In May, a separate study concluded that three popular supplements provide no consistent health benefits.

Kim and his team stressed that consumers shouldn’t rely on pills to boost their overall health. Engaging in daily physical activity, not smoking, and following a healthy diet are still among the best ways to lower heart disease risk, the researchers said.

"We know that fruit and vegetable intake improves cardiovascular health," Kim said.

"Although multivitamin and mineral supplements taken in moderation rarely cause direct harm, we urge people to protect their heart health by understanding their individual risk for heart disease and stroke, and working with a healthcare provider to create a plan that uses proven measures to reduce risk," Kim said.

The new research has been published in the journal Circulation.

Tesla has opened up its Model 3 Online Design Studio to everyone in the US and Canada, including those who haven’t plunked down a $1,000 deposit for a reservation, Elektrek reports.

Last month, the electric car maker updated its Model 3 online configurator with new options and pricing.

Tesla was able to trim the cost of the Model 3 Performance by making many of its features optional instead of standard. Now, a base Model 3 Performance will start at $64,000 (down from $78,000). Features such as a white interior or premium paint are now optional add-ons.

At the same time it announced the changes to its design studio, Tesla also invited all reservation holders to place an order for all versions except for the standard battery pack, which is still not in production.

Dropping the reservation process

Now that reservation holders have been able to access the design studio, Tesla will open up the configurator to consumers without a reservation. However, the company still plans to prioritize the orders from reservation holders.

“For example, reservation holders hanging on for the standard battery pack, which is not planned to enter production until the end of the year, are still going to be able to order based on when they placed their reservation, which could have been over 2 years ago at this point,” Electrek noted, citing sources.

Tesla stores are also expected to get Performance Model 3 vehicles by the end of the month.

News of Tesla’s updated design studio and expanded accessibility follows a struggle by the company to achieve its goal of producing 5,000 Model 3 vehicles a week by the end of the second quarter.

The company ended up meeting its production target, albeit a few hours late. Tesla sent the 5,000th Model 3 car out of the Fremont, Calif. factory just five hours after midnight. Prior to achieving its goal, Tesla had encountered many delays and setbacks, including bottlenecks on the assembly line and battery issues.

Tesla has now opened up its online design configurator to everyone, including those without a reservation. Anyone in North America can now pay a $2,500 deposit to place an order for a custom-designed Model 3 vehicle.

If dropping the reservation process results in more orders, the company will face even greater pressure to ramp up its production output. Although Tesla recently hit its production target, experts say it remains to be seen whether the company can consistently produce 5,000 Model 3 vehicles per week.

If you subscribe to HBO, get ready for some changes. AT&T, the new owner, has served notice that the premium content provider, acquired in the Time Warner merger, is going to have to contribute more to the bottom line.

The New York Times, which obtained a recording of a town hall meeting with HBO employees, reports John Stankey, now heading AT&T's new Warner Media division, is setting an ambitious goal of producing more content and attracting more viewers.

“It’s going to be a tough year,” Stankey said. “It’s going to be a lot of work to alter and change direction a little bit.”

Lately, HBO has been known for producing a limited amount of quality programming, like Game of Thrones and Westworld. HBO is most often marketed to cable and satellite TV customers as a premium tier.

Fighting for smartphone viewers

Going forward, Stankey told employees the network will have to change, producing more content to compete with providers that distribute through smartphone apps.

The AT&T executive set out the twin goals of expanding HBO's subscriber base and increasing the number of hours consumers watch HBO content.

“We need hours a day,” Stankey said during the presentation. “It’s not hours a week, and it’s not hours a month. We need hours a day. You are competing with devices that sit in people’s hands that capture their attention every 15 minutes.”

HBO currently spends about $2 billion a year on content, much of it critically acclaimed. Since there has yet to be any discussion of increasing HBO's budget – AT&T went significantly into debt to purchase Time Warner – the assumption is the network must do more with its current budget.

Could lead to a dip in quality

Both Stankey and HBO CEO Richard Plepler, who hosted the session, admitted that increasing the amount of content the network produces could lead to a dip in quality. But Stankey said producing more content is a key strategy in attracting more subscribers and convincing them to watch longer.

Stankey said HBO needs to change from being a boutique network, with an emphasis on its Sunday night line up, to “something bigger, broader.” He didn't say “like Netflix,” but there is little doubt that's what he meant.

Netflix has become the dominant streaming service with a massive increase in original content, not all of it award-winning. However, it spends more to produce it than other content providers.

In the session, Stankey signaled AT&T's willingness to invest more in HBO to help it compete in the ever-shifting media landscape.

In an effort to prevent users from uploading and spreading false information in times of crisis, YouTube is rolling out a new plan to help the public get accurate information.

Recently, whenever there’s a breaking news story, a slew of videos full of misinformation start circling around YouTube. While many individuals are just looking for the news, these misleading videos leave many misinformed and confused. However, the trend is set to end soon.

“We’re making changes to put more authoritative content in front of people,” said YouTube Chief Product Officer Neal Mohan.

Changes ahead

Moving forward, YouTube is striving to show users the importance of being an ally to news reporters. The platform has outlined a number of new investments and improvements that it will be implementing.

According to Mohan, YouTube’s recommendation engine has been altered to allow news-related videos from reputable outlets to appear first. He referenced a recent issue of conspiracy theory videos cropping up on the website following incidents like school shootings and other tragedies.

“It’s very easy to quickly produce and upload low-quality videos spreading misinformation around a developing news event,” Mohan said.

Mohan also noted that it’s harder to produce accurate videos in that short a timeframe. To combat this issue, YouTube will be releasing a “new information panel.” This will appear at the top of the search results and show developing news stories. Mohan said this new feature will “be activated in the immediate aftermath of the event.”

To make sure users are getting the most accurate information, YouTube’s new algorithm won’t show a video first. Instead, users will first be directed to a news article sourced by Google News. The results will also feature a banner informing users that the story is still in the developing stages and that information is “subject to change.”

The new feature is currently available in 17 countries, and Mohan said that YouTube is looking to expand, as the company hopes to “double that number” in the coming months.

Staying connected

As Google is YouTube’s parent company, these changes come as part of a three-year, $300 million Google News initiative. According to YouTube, $25 million will go to “innovation funding” grants for news organization, as well as for more support staff.

According to Robert Kyncl, YouTube’s Chief Business Officer, the efforts are designed to set up “long-term sustainable skills” for web videos. Additionally, Kyncl discussed YouTube’s new “working group” for executives and representatives of news outlets to “help shape the future of news on YouTube.”

Ford Motor Company is recalling 5,645 model year 2018 Ford Expeditions, F-150s, and Lincoln Navigators equipped with 3.5L GTDI V6 engines.

The vehicles have high pressure fuel pump assemblies with welds that can fracture, which may cause an oil or fuel leak.

A fuel leak in the presence of an ignition source may increase the risk of a fire.

What to do

Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the high pressure fuel pump and associated components, free of charge.

The recall is expected to begin July 16, 2018.

Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 18S17.