Current Events in August 2019

Following up on the release of its Password Checkup extension for Chrome, Google reports there’s some good news and some bad.

The good news is that, since its launch, over 650,000 people have used Password Checkup, allowing Google to scan 21 million usernames and passwords. The bad news is twofold: a) 316,000 -- or approximately 1.5 percent -- of web users are still using log-in credentials that Google considers “unsafe;” and b) users ignored 25.7 percent (or 81,368) or all warnings sent their way.

Google’s report was released last week at the USENIX Security Symposium in Santa Clara, California.

“Our research shows that users opt to reset 26 percent of the unsafe passwords flagged by the Password Checkup extension,” the company said. “Even better, 60 percent of new passwords are secure against guessing attacks -- meaning it would take an attacker over a hundred million guesses before identifying the new password.”

Recklessly reusing passwords

Data breaches have become an almost everyday occurrence. And it’s a safe bet that many web surfers use the same usernames and passwords on several accounts. Hackers are betting on that and trying out every credential they have on a person to try and crack their way in.

“Based on anonymous telemetry reported by the Password Checkup extension, we found that users reused breached, unsafe credentials for some of their most sensitive financial, government, and email accounts,” Google stated. 

“This risk was even more prevalent on shopping sites (where users may save credit card details), news, and entertainment sites. In fact, outside the most popular web sites, users are 2.5X more likely to reuse vulnerable passwords, putting their account at risk of hijacking.”

Improving your protection is important

In ConsumerAffairs recent story about the 23 million-deep CafePress hack, HaveIBeenPwned’s Troy Hunt reminded consumers that guarding personal data with a variety of log-ins is much easier these days thanks to password management apps and sites.

Google’s Password Checkup is a definite move in that direction, too -- even going as far as making itself more available to the end-user via a “quick comment box” where users can report any issues they’re experiencing.

For those who are more concerned about Big Brother looking over their shoulder, Google is also handing back some of the keys to the user, including a way to opt-out of Password Checkup’s “anonymous telemetry.”. 

“By design, the Password Checkup extension ensures that Google never learns your username or password, regardless of whether you enable telemetry, but we still want to provide this option if users would prefer not to share this information,” the company said.

Target is introducing a new flagship food brand, dubbed Good & Gather, to all of its locations on September 15. 

The retailer says the products comprising its new grocery line were made without artificial flavors and sweeteners, synthetic colors, and high fructose corn syrup. Target has broken the items down into several different categories: kids, organic, seasonal, and signature. 

In addition to staples like eggs, milk, meats, ready-made pastas, there will be “trend-forward” products like avocado toast, salad kits, and beet hummus. The seasonal category will encompass items like pumpkin-flavored snacks. 

Replacing other Target grocery brands

“Our guests are incredibly busy and want great-tasting food they can feel good about feeding their families,” Stephanie Lundquist, executive vice-president and president of food and beverage for Target, said in a statement. “We saw this as a huge opportunity for Target to help.” 

“So our team got to work on our most ambitious food undertaking yet, reimagining our owned food brands to serve up convenient, affordable options that don’t cut corners on quality or taste. Good & Gather is our way of helping even the most time-strapped families discover the everyday joy of food.”

Eventually, the Good & Gather brand will replace Target’s Archer Farms and Simply Balanced brands and lead to a reduction in the number of Market Pantry brand offerings. Target says its new brand will include more than 2,000 products by the end of 2020. 

“The new owned brand launch builds on the company’s investments in its food and beverage business to enhance in-store presentation and assortment, increase product reliability and expand fulfillment options, such as same-day delivery,” the company said. 

Mastercard, one of the “big four” credit card issuers, is sticking its toe in the cryptocurrency waters.

In a recruiting post last week, the company said it is seeking employees “to work at the cutting-edge intersection of payments and cryptocurrencies.” Mastercard said applicants selected for these positions will “monitor cryptocurrency ecosystem trends” while developing new products.

That does not mean Mastercard is planning to produce its own cryptocurrency. Rather, industry experts predict the company will seek to be more involved in blockchain, one of the underpinnings of crypto, as it develops new products and services.

Mastercard is one of the stakeholders in Facebook’s recently announced Libra cryptocurrency. It joins other payment and technology firms on an advisory board that Facebook has established to guide Libra’s development.

Industry analysts immediately pronounced Mastercard’s movement into cryptocurrency as a smart move, positioning itself in the lead as payment systems continue to evolve. Mastercard Senior Vice President Seth Eisen told Marketwatch that the company is simply looking for new ways to create value.

“Looking at blockchains and cryptocurrencies is part of these activities,” he said.

In a series of tweets over the weekend, Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced that his company is relaunching its solar power program and giving consumers the ability to rent panels. 

Consumers in a half dozen states (Arizona, California, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New Mexico) will be able to rent solar power systems on a monthly basis. 

Prices for a small array of panels will start at $50 a month, or $65 in California. Tesla won’t be implementing a long-term contract, so consumers can cancel anytime. However, the company’s website notes that there is a $1,500 charge to remove panels. 

Decline in solar business

Tesla fueled its solar power business plan through the $2.6 billion purchase of SolarCity in 2016, but installations have declined in recent quarters and the electric automaker stopped selling the systems in Home Depot stores. 

Rebooting the program and adding rental offerings could boost sales by appealing to homeowners who are wary of the idea of a long-term contract. 

Musk says solar panels can cut costs so much that it's "like having a money printer on your roof." The initial cost includes panel installation, hardware, and ongoing maintenance.

Last month, Musk said he’s aiming to manufacture about 1,000 solar rooftops a week by the end of 2019.

Volkswagen got caught cooking the books on its diesel emissions. Since then, the company has paid millions of dollars in fines and announced a major electric car initiative. A federal judge says it’s time to move on.

Federal Judge Charles Breyer is asking why the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) waited two years to sue the automaker after the company had settled with other U.S. regulators. Last week he said he was putting off the SEC’s suit while he urged both parties to reach a settlement.

“I want you to spend the next month or so seeing if you can resolve this case,” Breyer told the two parties.

Breyer said he is putting a halt to proceedings until early October to give both sides time to work out a settlement.

“Whatever you work out today would be less expensive to everybody than what you would work out in the future,” Breyer said.

Suit filed in March

In March, the SEC sued Volkswagen and its former chief executive Martin Winterkorn, charging them with defrauding U.S. bond investors by not informing them of the scope of its diesel emissions scheme sooner.

"Volkswagen hid its decade long emissions scheme while it was selling billions of dollars of its bonds to investors at inflated prices," Stephanie Avakian, the co-director of the SEC's Division of Enforcement, said earlier this year.

Timing appeared to be a significant influence on Breyer’s request. He said he was “mystified” why the SEC waited so long to take action.

The “Dieselgate” scandal, in which the German automaker was found to have used illegal software to cheat U.S. pollution tests, first came to light in 2015. The SEC says Volkswagen issued more than $13 billion in bonds between April 2014 to May 2015.

The agency claims that senior executives at Volkswagen knew that more than a half million vehicles in the United States grossly exceeded legal vehicle emissions limits, exposing the company to massive financial and reputational harm.

In an effort to help kids better control their asthma, researchers found a new way for young asthma sufferers to go about their medication regimen. 

While most doctors give kids two inhalers -- one for on the spot treatment and one that works to prevent symptoms over the long term -- this new study suggests that taking both inhalers as symptoms arise could be a better alternative to persistent medication use. 

“We were pleased to find that as-needed treatment based on symptoms can deliver similar asthma control with less medication,” said researcher Dr. Kaharu Sumino. “Patients in the group that used both inhalers as needed used about one-fourth the steroid dose of the group that inhaled a prescribed daily amount. We also were pleased to see that the patients and families felt that they had more ownership over their asthma management when practicing as-needed treatment.” 

The case for as-needed medications

To see how taking asthma medications as needed affected kids differently than staying on the medication over the long-term, the researchers had over 200 African American children, who are disproportionately affected by asthma, participate in the study. 

The participants, all between the ages of 6 and 17, were divided into two groups: one that followed the more traditional course of treatment, which involved taking a prescribed dose of a steroid daily regardless of symptoms, in addition to a rescue inhaler as symptoms persist; and another group that took both the steroid and the rescue inhaler only when symptoms arose. 

While asthma symptoms and lung function were no better or worse for either group, the researchers did note one major takeaway from the study: the children taking their inhalers only as needed were using less medication over the long term. 

Steroids are beneficial in treating asthma symptoms, both on the spot and for prolonged treatment, but they do come with a number of side effects, which can be worrisome for parents. However, in taking the inhalers only as needed, the children were still able to control their asthma and dramatically reduce how much of the steroid they took on a regular basis -- which lowered the associated costs of the medication. 

“This as-needed steroid plus rescue albuterol strategy is now recommended in the Global Initiative for Asthma guidelines as one of the options for the treatment of mild asthma,” said Dr. Sumino. “Given the result of our study and others, primary care doctors may tell their patients with mild asthma that they have an alternative effective strategy other than taking the inhaled steroid every day, if they prefer not to do so.”

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has approved final orders settling charges with five companies that it said violated provisions of the Consumer Review Fairness Act (CRFA).

The FTC had charged the five firms, which included a flooring company and two timeshare marketers, with putting provisions in their form contracts that bar their customers from posting negative reviews about their customer experience.

The first three complaints were announced in May, and the other two came the following month. The complaints alleged that the companies violated the CRFA by requiring customers to agree to non-disparagement provisions that barred consumers from writing or posting negative reviews online or that imposed financial penalties for doing so. 

The CRFA gives consumers the right to publicly report their consumer experiences and forbids businesses from imposing any contractual language that would prohibit them from doing so. 

Right to review

“Contracts that prohibit honest reviews, or threaten legal action over them, harm people who rely on reviews when making their purchase decisions,” the FTC said in a guide to businesses. 

The agency points out that squelching negative reviews not only infringes on consumers’ rights but harms businesses that work hard to earn positive reviews.

Congress passed the CRFA in the wake of reports that some firms were trying to prevent consumers from posting honest reviews. A number of companies imposed contract provisions, including in their online terms and conditions, that allowed them to sue or penalize consumers for posting negative reviews.

Business rights

Businesses do have some rights, however, when consumer reviews cross the line. The law gives businesses the authority to prohibit or remove reviews that contain confidential or private information, such as trade secrets.

Companies also have leeway when it comes to responding to posts that are “libelous, harassing, abusive, obscene, vulgar, sexually explicit, or are inappropriate with respect to race, gender, sexuality, ethnicity, or other intrinsic characteristic.”

In the case of the five companies, the FTC settlement prohibits each firm from using non-disparagement provisions in form contracts for goods and services, and it requires them to notify consumers who signed such contracts that the prohibited language is not enforceable. 

Dog Goods USA is recalling Chef Toby Pig Ears Treats.

The Food and Drug Administration , the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and State partners are investigating a suspected link between pig ear pet treats and human cases of salmonellosis.

No illnesses have been linked to the products to date.

The lot codes of the non-irradiated bulk and packaged pig ears branded Chef Toby Pig Ears are:

• 428590, 278989, 087148, 224208, 1168723, 428590, 222999, 074599, 1124053, 226884, 578867, 224897, 1234750, 444525, 1106709, 215812, 230273, 224970, 585246, 327901, 052248, 210393, 217664, 331199, 225399, 867680, 050273, 881224, 424223, 225979, 431724, 226340, 880207, 334498

What to do

Customers who purchased the recalled products should return them to the place of purchase for a full refund.

Consumers with questions may call (786) 401 -6533 ex:8000 from 9am through 5pm (EST).

Rosemount Sales and Marketing is recalling Rosemount brand cooked diced chicken meat.

The product may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes.

The Public Health Agency of Canada is investigating an outbreak of human illness.

The following product, sold in the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Ontario and possibly nationwide, is being recalled:

• Rosemong cooked diced chicken meat, 4.54 kg, UPC: 2 06 20263 12454 7, PACKDATE: 01/21/19

What to do

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

Consumers with questions may call (800) 442-2342 (Canada and U.S.)

A group of LGBTQ creators has filed a lawsuit accusing YouTube and its parent company, Google, of discriminating against them by limiting the reach of their content and hampering their monetization potential. 

The suit, filed by a group called the Rainbow Coalition, alleges that YouTube applies its policies in a non-neutral way. LGBTQ creators say their content has been allowed to be labeled as “sexually explicit” and “shocking” while instances of hate speech have been allowed to remain on the platform. 

YouTube engages in "unlawful content regulation, distribution, and monetization practices that stigmatize, restrict, block, demonetize, and financially harm the LGBTQ+ Plaintiffs and the greater LGBTQ+ Community," the lawsuit says.

Allegations of discrimination

YouTube says it relies on an artificial intelligence system to regulate all content, but the suit claims the site’s algorithms hone in on the identity and sexual orientation of the video creator instead of the content itself. 

LGBTQ creators say their view counts and profits have plummeted under YouTube’s policies.

“Defendants’ control and regulation of speech on YouTube has resulted in a chaotic cesspool where popular, compliant, top quality, and protected LGBTQ+ content is restricted, stigmatized, and demonetized as ‘shocking,’ ‘inappropriate,’ ‘offensive,’ and ‘sexually explicit,’ while homophobic and racist hatemongers run wild and are free to post vile and obscene content on the pages and channels of the LGBTQ+ Plaintiffs and other LGBTQ+ content creators,” the lawsuit alleges. 

Criticism of YouTube’s policies

The lawsuit comes just a few months after YouTube faced criticism over its lag time in responding to a Vox journalist’s complaints that right-wing YouTube commentator had been persistently mocking him using homophobic language. 

"While we found language that was clearly hurtful, the videos as posted don't violate our policies," YouTube said in June. “As an open platform, it’s crucial for us to allow everyone–from creators to journalists to late-night TV hosts–to express their opinions w/in the scope of our policies. Opinions can be deeply offensive, but if they don’t violate our policies, they’ll remain on our site.”

In response to the lawsuit filed this week, a YouTube spokesperson said all content on the site is subject to the same policies. 

“Our policies have no notion of sexual orientation or gender identity and our systems do not restrict or demonetize videos based on these factors or the inclusion of terms like ‘gay’ or ‘transgender,’” the spokesperson said. “In addition, we have strong policies prohibiting hate speech, and we quickly remove content that violates our policies and terminate accounts that do so repeatedly.”

The lawsuit is seeking monetary compensation, as well as a court-ordered injunction to stop YouTube from “censoring, restricting, restraining, or regulating speech based on the discretionary use or application of discriminatory, animus-based, arbitrary, capricious, vague, unspecified, or subjective criteria, rules, guidelines, and/or practices.”

J.C. Penney, which has been forced to close many of its stores due to disappointing sales in recent years, reported smaller losses in the second quarter, as well as a new partnership with secondhand retailer ThredUp.

The retailer reported a loss of $48 million in the second quarter compared to a loss of $101 million a year earlier, according to Refinitiv. However, revenue was lower than analysts’ expectations of $2.69 billion -- $2.62 billion compared to $2.8 billion a year earlier. 

J.C. Penney and other struggling retailers have been changing their business plans in an attempt to increase foot traffic, which has declined under a sharp increase in online shopping. 

Earlier this year, J.C. Penney announced it would be ceasing sales of appliances and furniture and closing 24 stores as part of its course-correction plan. The decision to free up space in stores by removing appliances and furniture was intended to help it "better meet customer expectations, improve financial performance and drive profitable growth."

Now, the retailer will be carving out space for ThredUp shops at 30 of its stores, which may draw in younger consumers with an interest in sustainable fashion. 

A new in-store experience

“With the rise of online resale markets, there’s no doubt that demand for great value on quality brands is at an all-time high,” said J.C. Penney EVP and chief merchant Michelle Wlazlo during a second quarter conference call. “We’re excited about the prospect of creating a new in-store experience that makes high-end brands attainable, as well as catering to eco-minded consumers who want more sustainable options in their wardrobe.”

J.C. Penney CEO Jill Soltau said she feels “more confident than ever” that the changes the company is undergoing will “reinvigorate and rejuvenate this great company to sustainable, profitable growth."

“We are not simply running a business; we are rebuilding a business,” Soltau said. “The journey we are on will restore health back to our company.”

Macy’s also announced this week that it’s teaming up with ThredUp to offer secondhand women’s clothing and handbags at some of its stores.

The Bluetooth SIG, the organization that sets standards for Bluetooth communication technology, has issued a security advisory about a critical vulnerability that allows malicious actors to interfere with the Bluetooth pairing procedure. 

The Key Negotiation of Bluetooth (or KNOB) attack, as researchers have dubbed it, allows attackers to shorten the length of the connection’s encryption key, which they say poses "a serious threat to the security and privacy of all Bluetooth users."

Researchers at the Center for IT-Security, Privacy and Accountability (CISPA) found that it’s “possible for an attacking device to interfere with the procedure used to set up encryption on a BR/EDR connection between two devices in such a way as to reduce the length of the encryption key used,” Bluetooth SIG wrote. 

“In such cases where an attacking device was successful in setting the encryption key to a shorter length, the attacking device could then initiate a brute force attack and have a higher probability of successfully cracking the key and then be able to monitor or manipulate traffic,” the team wrote. 

Patching the flaw

The researchers who uncovered the flaw found that "all tested devices" from Bluetooth chips from manufacturers such as Intel, Broadcom, Apple, and Qualcomm were vulnerable to the KNOB attack. 

To mitigate the risk of attack, companies have been asked to update their devices to ensure a minimum length requirement of seven characters for encryption keys. 

“The Bluetooth SIG will also include testing for this new recommendation within our Bluetooth Qualification Program,” the group said. “In addition, the Bluetooth SIG strongly recommends that product developers update existing solutions to enforce a minimum encryption key length of 7 octets for BR/EDR connections.” 

Apple and Microsoft have already rolled out updates that protect against the KNOB vulnerability. Bluetooth SIG recommends that all users update their devices when a fix becomes available. 

Facebook woke up to another federal lawsuit on Thursday -- the fourth filed against the company so far this month. This go-around, a group of the social media platform’s users say the company neglected to inform its flock about a data breach and the potential risks of its single sign-on tool, the entry point for the hackers behind that breach. 

Adding even more egg to the company’s face, Reuters reports that the lawsuit claims that Facebook protected its employees from the same hazard.

In a nutshell, hackers ran off with access tokens -- digital keys that keep users logged in to Facebook so they don't have to repeatedly log-in -- that gave them access to Facebook users’ accounts. Originally, the estimated number of users taking a hit was 50 million. Facebook then rolled that back to 30 million.

“Facebook knew about the access token vulnerability and failed to fix it for years, despite that knowledge,” the plaintiffs said in the filing with the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. 

The lowdown of who, what, and how many

There’s two tiers to this hack. In one that covered 14 million users, the hackers ran off with personal profile details that included birth dates, employers, education history, religious preference, types of devices used, pages followed, and recent searches and location check-ins.

For 15 million other users, the breach was limited to just name and contact details. And for the remaining half-million or so, the hackers could spy on posts and lists of friends and groups that the user was connected to. According to Facebook, the cyber thieves did not steal personal messages or financial data and did not access users’ accounts on other websites.

Sleep apnea is a common condition that affects consumers’ airways while they sleep at night. While the condition is problematic in its own right, a new study found that women who have it could face other serious health risks. 

According to researchers from the University of Gothenburg, women who struggle with sleep apnea could be at an increased risk for developing cancer. 

“Our results indicate a cancer risk that’s elevated two- to three-fold among women with pronounced sleep apnea,” said researcher Ludger Grote. “It’s impossible to say for sure what causes underlie the association between sleep apnea and cancer, but the indication means we need to study it more in depth.” 

Understanding the risks 

To see how sleep apnea could increase the risk of cancer, the researchers utilized data from over 20,000 participants with sleep apnea who were enrolled in the European database ESADA. 

The researchers accounted for several health factors, including alcohol consumption, age, weight, and smoking status. Two percent of the participants had a cancer diagnosis at the start of the study. 

The study revealed that sleep apnea and cancer were closely related, as having sleep apnea increased the risk for the participants to later receive a cancer diagnosis. The researchers found that the risk was greater for female participants than males. 

The team explained that though the relationship between sleep apnea and cancer makes sense, as the two conditions share a number of risk factors, the opposite -- having cancer and then developing sleep apnea -- isn’t likely. While the researchers are unsure why women are at a greater risk than men, they did note that more research is being done into the gender disparity regarding the two conditions. 

“The condition of sleep apnea is well known to the general public and associated with snoring, daytime fatigue, and elevated risk of cardiovascular disease, especially in men,” said Grote. “Our research paves the way for a new view -- that sleep apnea may possibly be connected with increased cancer risk, especially in women.” 

A study by Student Loan Hero shows students are taking out fewer loans to pay for their college education. But that doesn’t mean they’ve taken jobs to pay for school -- the same study shows their parents are taking on more student loan debt.

Five years ago, students took out 85 percent of student loans. But in the 2017-18 academic year, they were 23 percent less likely to take on debt. Parents of undergraduate and non-degree students were 27 percent more likely to take out federal loans than they were five years ago.

The study cites data from the Department of Education that shows undergraduates borrowed $15.7 billion, a significant drop from the recent past when the outstanding loan total hit the $1.5 trillion mark.

The authors point out that some of the decline is because there were fewer students enrolled in the nation’s colleges and universities. Much of the millennial generation has passed beyond the typical age for college enrollment.

Parents are stepping up

But it appears parents are taking on more financial responsibility for their children’s education. The numbers show they borrowed $301 million more in 2017-18 than in 2012-13. At the same time, 5 percent of students had parents who took out Parent PLUS loans, a slight increase over five years ago.

But more parental debt may be just as troubling as rising student debt. The authors point out  that Parent PLUS loans aren’t nearly as borrower-friendly as Direct student loans. They carry higher interest rates, and they’re not eligible for most federal income-driven repayment plans.

So instead of young people struggling to repay student loans, that burden appears to be shifting to an older generation. The Pew Charitable Trust reports that about a third of American young people are currently paying off student loans.

As we reported this week, a survey by TD Bank found the average young student loan borrower is paying more than 20 percent of their take-home pay to service their student loan debt.

Cigarette smokers are probably aware of the health risks associated with smoking, but to drive home the point the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) proposes new graphic images for cigarette packages.

The agency has proposed a rule that would require warnings that include color images depicting some of the serious health risks of smoking, including a child breathing from an oxygen machine after becoming ill from second-hand smoke. If adopted, it would be the biggest change to cigarette packages in over three decades.

This isn’t the first time U.S. regulators have sought to force cigarette makers to display graphic anti-smoking images on their packaging. In 2011, tobacco companies sued the FDA when it pushed for full-color images, such as one showing a man breathing through a hole in his throat.

At that time, a federal judge ruled in favor of the tobacco companies, who had challenged the FDA action on First Amendment grounds. The judge granted a temporary restraining order against the government, saying the tobacco companies would probably win the case when it came up for trial.

Trying again

Eight years later, the FDA is trying again, saying the rule would fulfill a requirement in the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act.

“As a cancer doctor and researcher, I am well aware of the staggering toll inflicted on the public health by tobacco products, which cause cancer, heart disease, stroke, emphysema and other medical problems,” said Acting FDA Commissioner Ned Sharpless, M.D. “While most people assume the public knows all they need to understand about the harms of cigarette smoking, there’s a surprising number of lesser-known risks that both youth and adult smokers and nonsmokers may simply not be aware of, such as bladder cancer, diabetes and conditions that can cause blindness.” 

The FDA says the new proposed cigarette health warnings provide an “enormous public health opportunity” to increase the public’s understanding of the serious health consequences of cigarette smoking. 

‘Leading cause of preventable death’

“Given that tobacco use is still the leading cause of preventable disease and death in the U.S., there’s a lot at stake to ensure the public understands these risks,” Sharpless said. 

Despite the fact that cigarette smoking has declined sharply over the last two decades some 34.3 million U.S. adults and nearly 1.4 million U.S. teens still smoke. Smoking is also the leading cause of preventable disease and death in the United States, tobacco use. 

The FDA estimates cigarette smoking and secondhand smoke exposure kill about 480,000 Americans every year.

The scope of bullying has increased tremendously with the inception of the internet and social media. In a new study, researchers have found that the taunts and teases can have lasting impacts on young teens. 

The study, which included data from nearly 50 countries, showed that adolescents between the ages of 12 and 15 who experience bullying are more likely to attempt suicide. 

“Globally, approximately 67,000 adolescents die of suicide each year, and identifying modifiable risk factors for adolescent suicide is a public health priority,” said Dr. Ai Koyanagi. 

The severity of the issue

The researchers sampled students from all over the globe to get a better understanding of how pervasive the issue of bullying is, and how young kids are dealing with it. 

The study included responses from over 134,000 students to the World Health Organization’s (WHO’s) Global School-based Health Survey. The students hailed from 48 different countries and were all between the ages of 12 and 15. 

The survey revealed that over 30 percent of the students involved in the study had experienced bullying in the past 30 days. When compared with kids who weren’t bullied, those who were bullied were more likely to attempt suicide; those who were bullied most also made the most number of attempts.

Suicide attempts were three times as likely in students who experienced bullying at all, and students who reported bullying on two-thirds of the last 30 days were over 5.5 times more likely to attempt suicide. 

Dr. Koyanagi and her team hope these findings shed light on what’s happening among kids globally so that world leaders can create effective efforts for suicide prevention. 

“The high prevalence of bullying victimization and the substantially heightened dose-dependent risk for suicide attempts among adolescent bullying victims, across multiple continents found in our study, point to the urgent need to implement effective and evidence-based interventions to address bullying for the prevention of adolescent suicide attempts worldwide,” said Dr. Koyanagi. 

The price of gasoline continues to fall across most the the U.S. as growing supplies create more competition.

The AAA Fuel Gauge Survey shows the national average price of regular gasoline has fallen to $2.63 a gallon, five cents lower than last Friday. It’s down 16 cents in the last month. The average price of premium gras is $3.22 a gallon, down four cents in the last week. The average price of diesel fuel is $2.95, two cents lower in the last week.

Prices fell last week despite a huge increase in demand, suggesting motorists are driving more as the vacation season winds down. The latest report from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) shows demand for gasoline hit a new all-time high of 9.93 million barrels a day for the week ending August 9.

In fact, demand grew by nearly 300,000 barrels a day to hit the highest level recorded by EIA since it began recording that data in 1991. Demand is nearly 400,000 barrels a day higher than at this time last year.

“If demand increases amid falling stock levels in the week ahead, American motorists could see pump prices increase moderately ahead of Labor Day,” AAA said in its latest market update.

The states with the most expensive regular gas

These states currently have the highest prices for regular gas, according to the AAA Fuel Gauge Survey:

• Hawaii ($3.65)

• California ($3.60)

• Washington ($3.24)

• Nevada ($3.18)

• Oregon ($3.09)

• Alaska ($3.06)

• Utah ($2.90)

• Idaho ($2.86)

• New York ($2.83)

• Illinois ($2.82)

The states with the cheapest regular gas

The survey found these states currently have the lowest prices for regular gas:

• Louisiana ($2.25)

• Mississippi ($2.27)

• South Carolina ($2.29)

• Alabama ($2.30)

• Arkansas ($2.30)

• Oklahoma ($2.34)

• Tennessee ($2.35)

• Texas ($2.37)

• Missouri ($2.37)

• Kansas ($2.39)