Current Events in January 2023

Earlier this month the White House felt compelled to address reports that the Biden administration was open to a ban on the use of gas stoves in U.S. households. The White House says it is not.

“The president does not support banning gas stoves,” White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters. “And the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), which is independent, is not banning gas stoves. I just want to be very clear on that.”

The subject came up after Republicans pounced on comments by Richard Trumka Jr., a member of the CPSC, who called gas stoves a “hidden hazard” during an interview with Bloomberg News.

Gas stoves have been used in American kitchens for 100 years but in recent months have become somewhat controversial. Natural gas is a fossil fuel and Democrats generally frown on it. 

But chefs, both professional and amateur, seem to prefer gas ranges for their ability to finely tune heat. As of 2020, about 38% of the country’s households were using natural gas for cooking, according to U.S. Census data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Popular in Democratic states

In four states — New Jersey, California, Illinois and New York — approximately 60% to 70% of homes cook with gas. Since all four states are “deep blue,” it makes the gas stove controversy a political hot potato for Democrats.

Who would want to ban gas stoves? Republicans say environmentalists are behind it, part of a campaign to discourage the use of all fossil fuel. In his interview, Trumka seemed to lay his cards on the table. 

“We need to be talking about regulating gas stoves, whether that’s drastically improving emissions or banning gas stoves entirely,” he said. “I think we ought to keep that possibility of a ban in mind, because it’s a powerful tool in our belt, and it’s a real possibility here.”

Trumka said gas stoves can release dangerous levels of toxic chemicals, even when they aren’t being used. In a tweet in response to the controversy his remarks triggered, Trumka said the CPSC would “consider all approaches to regulation.”

The Sierra Club, a major environmental group, is in Trumka’s corner on this one. The group claims that gas stoves are a major contributor to childhood asthma. 

The group cites a recent study it says shows nearly 13% of all asthma cases in children in the U.S. can be linked to indoor air pollution caused by the burning of fossil gas in kitchens. 

With two more NFL playoff games to go this weekend, and the Super Bowl two weeks after that, many football fans will seek the hottest ticket in town. But be careful – ticket scammers are out in full force.

WGRZ-TV in Buffalo reports a local woman lost $700 when she thought she was buying tickets to the Buffalo Bills divisional playoff game against the Cincinnati Bengals on Facebook. 

Nancy Standish told the station that she had purchased tickets that way before without any issues. She now says there were red flags that she should have recognized – mainly the tickets cost much less than other tickets being offered.

Actually, consumer advocates warn that purchasing tickets – and anything else – on Facebook is very risky. You know very little about the person selling them and have no recourse if something goes wrong. In Standish’s situation, she paid money through Venmo but got no tickets.

To avoid a scam, the Better Business Bureau suggests:

• Purchase directly from the venue. 

• Check out the seller. 

• Watch out for fake websites. 

• Always make online purchases with your credit card, which has much better fraud protection.

How to purchase tickets

This weekend the San Francisco 49ers travel to Philadelphia to play the Eagles for the NFC Championship while the Bengals are on the road to play the Kansas City Chiefs for the AFC title and the chance to go to the Super Bowl.

Tickets to both games will be highly sought-after and fans should be careful when making a purchase. The Eagles say tickets to the NFC title game can only be done through Ticketmaster and there is a four-ticket per household limit.

The Chiefs say tickets to their game with the Bengals can be purchased online at www.chief.com/tickets. Tickets to both games went on sale Monday.

Consumer advocates say purchasing tickets any other way online is dangerous and is the same as buying them from a stranger on the street.

Supplemental heating devices such as space heaters are good to have when the weather turns frigid and you need a little something extra to warm up that room.

But the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) wants you to know that there can be danger associated with these devices if you're not careful.

CPSC urges consumers to take safety precautions while keeping their home warm this winter.

Portable Heaters

Portable heaters – including electric space heaters – according to CPSC estimates -- were involved in an average of 1,700 fires per year, from 2017 to 2019, resulting in an average of 70 deaths and 160 injuries annually.

In this case, size really does matter.

Mallory Micetich, Home Expert at Angi – formerly Angie's List – says you need to be sure the heater is compatible with the size of your room. A space heater that is too large for the room, carries the risk of starting a fire.

“You should also consider the placement of your space heater,” she advises. “Keep it far away from any combustible materials to reduce the risk of fire.”

Placing them too close to combustible materials, such as drapes, furniture or bedding, raises that risk, so she recommends keeping them at least three feet away from these materials.

Fire isn't the only concern with space heaters.

Using space heaters in smaller rooms can dry and dehumidify a room too much, which can lead to respiratory issues.

CEO Tim David of Airlucent, which deals with HVAC/Heating/Air Quality issues, says that when air becomes too dry, “it can cause dryness in the nose and throat, leading to irritation and making it more difficult to breathe." “

This is especially bad for people with conditions such as asthma or allergies.

"You should consider using a humidifier if you are susceptible to these dry air conditions,” David adds.

Generators

If your power goes out in the midst of a winter blast, that presents another problem.

If you have a gasoline-powered generator be wary. Generators can produce as much carbon monoxide (CO) as hundreds of cars, according to CPSC.

The agency estimates that more than 800 people died from CO poisoning associated with generators from 2011-2021 -- over 103 in 2020 alone.

Portable generators should be used outside only, and at least 20 feet from the home with exhaust pointed away from any nearby building. Never use a generator inside a home, basement, shed or garage.

When does “approved” or “pre-approved” mean just that?

In a ConsumerAffairs review of Credit Karma's credit card offers, Emily, of Macon Ga., said she found there were quite a few hoops to jump through. She said the loans the company pitched her as “approved” required filling out an application that promises it won't hurt your credit scores as well as APR and monthly payments which look great up front but turn out to be “crazy high.”

And what Emily experienced, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) apparently found happening across the entire consumer credit landscape with Credit Karma. Following a public comment period, the agency finalized a consent order settling charges that Credit Karma deployed “dark patterns” to misrepresent that consumers were “pre-approved” for credit card offers – pre-approved as in as much as a 90% sure shot of getting a good deal on a loan. 

Unfortunately, many of the people who applied for the credit offers weren’t as credit-worthy as they should be and wound up with nothing unless they wanted to bite off more than they could chew on monthly payments. 

However, the FTC said Credit Karma benefited because it was able to gather over 2,500 data points on each consumer, including credit and income information. Credit Karma then used that information to send targeted advertisements and recommendations for financial products, like credit cards.

Credit Karma disagrees, but will pay a fine. Is that good enough?

The FTC’s consent order requires the company to pay $3 million that will be sent to consumers who wasted time applying for these credit cards. It also agreed to stop making deceptive claims.

“We fundamentally disagree with allegations the FTC makes in their complaint, but we reached this agreement to put the matter behind us so we can maintain our focus on helping our members find the financial products that are right for them,” a Credit Karma spokesperson told ConsumerAffairs.

But as recently as December 2022, consumers were still complaining about the company’s pitches.

“Got an offer for a guaranteed approval on a product where they would pay me $50 if I was not approved. So, I applied, hard inquiry made on my credit within seconds, and I was not approved,” Jason, of Media Ohio wrote. 

But that’s where he felt Credit Karma failed to follow through on its offer. 

“I then contacted them to get my $50 and they told me that I could not receive it because I did not qualify and that they could not find any applications for credit, he said. 

It’s important for consumers to complain when they feel like they were wronged

Jason doesn’t have the same clout as the FTC, but his finger-waving is what the FTC wants to hear about. It asks anyone and everyone to let it know when they run up against something that doesn’t seem fair and honest by submitting a concern at its complaint website.

Not only is it worth doing it for the sake of protecting other consumers, but in Credit Karma’s case, the ones who complained will share in that $3 million fine. 

The U.S. housing market started 2023 in a much different place than it did in 2022. Then, home prices were reaching record highs and 3% mortgage rates made them affordable.

Now, mortgage rates are over 6% and home sales have fallen for 11 months in a row. In some markets, prices have fallen but on average, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) reports the median home price went up in December.

To get a gauge of the housing market, you have to look at individual cities and look at prices, time on the market, and how many sellers are cutting the price. We consulted experts with insight into these five markets:

• San Francisco

• Austin

• Nashville

• Richmond

• Milwaukee

San Francisco, Austin and Nashville were three of the nation’s hottest housing markets in 2021. Richmond and Milwaukee saw mostly moderate gains in comparison. So where are they now?

San Francisco

Ying He, a Realtor with Barb Co in San Francisco, says the market is facing a “high degree of uncertainty,” in part because of its dependence on Big Tech. She says the recent round of layoffs has hurt buyers’ confidence in the market. But the market has actually gone from overheated to more balanced.

“We had a market correction in the second half of 2022,” He told ConsumerAffairs. “My analysis says by the end of the year, the prices were down about 15% from the peak in spring 2022. Since the New Year, there has been very little inventory on the market. So far in 2023, it looks like we will have low inventories, more moderated prices, and far fewer bidding wars.”

Alex Capozzolo, the co-founder of Brotherly Love Real Estate, agrees that sales have slowed in the San Francisco metro in the last few months and prices have come down by double-digits. Still, he says the median home value in the market is north of $1.5 million while rents have moderated.

“Overall, despite the city's high cost of living rental properties seem to be more viable and could remain so for the foreseeable future,” he told us.

Austin

Ari Rastegar, the CEO of the Rastegar Property Company, says Austin is one market that, while perhaps not still on fire, is still pretty hot. He says the presence of two tech giants, Apple and Tesla, is still driving growth.

“So, we're seeing prices begin to come up again, rents on apartments begin to grow again and I think that whatever you see improving on a national level, in Austin it'll be wildly exaggerated in a positive sense as well, and Tesla and Apple really tell that whole story," he said.

Jasen Edwards, chair of the Agent Editorial Board, has a more cautious view of the Austin market. He expects the market will continue to shift toward buyers this year.

“The median home price in Austin has dropped by 3.7% but still reached a new all-time high of $503,000 in December 2022,” Edwards told ConsumerAffairs. “Austin home sales have declined 18.3% compared to the same period last year.”

But he concedes that may simply lead to a more stable market in 2023, with an increase in available homes for sale.

Nashville

The Nashville housing market was already growing before the Covid pandemic hit. In 2020 and 2021 it was among the nation’s hottest. Joe Hafner, a broker and owner of Hafner Real Estate in Nashville, sent us some interesting data.

In the second half of 2022, closed sales were down 26% compared to 2021, with year-over-year drops of 40% in November and 38% in December. Normally, prices would decline as well, but Hafner said that didn’t happen.

“In the same July to December time window, the median sales price per square foot has actually gone up 14%, including year-over-year rises of 8% in November and 10% in December,” Hafner told us. “Days on the market (DOM) have also been on the rise, averaging 23 days in November 2022 vs. 11 days in November 2021 and 25 days in December 2022 vs. 12 days in December 2021. All of those numbers remain well below the traditional average of 60-90 DOM.”

Richmond

When markets like Nashville were booming during the pandemic, Richmond’s housing market was moving at a slower pace. The Virginia Association of Realtors says sales slowed in 2022 but prices haven’t given up much ground.

Shri Ganeshram, CEO of Awning, a firm assisting real estate investors around the U.S., says there are very good reason’s why Virginia’s capital has maintained a steady housing market.

“The area's strong economy, low unemployment rate, and proximity to major cities like Washington, D.C. and Baltimore are attracting more buyers to the market,” he told us.

Milwaukee

Of the five housing markets, Milwaukee may be the one offering buyers the best opportunity. Midwestern markets tend to be less expensive than California and the Sunbelt. Ganeshram says the recovery from the pandemic has been slow but the market regained some stability last year.

“However, the market still faces challenges from a high unemployment rate and a limited number of affordable housing options,” he said.

That said, money buys more house in Milwaukee. According to Redfin, the median home price in the market last year was $167,000 – 1.5% below 2021 and well below the national average.

Photo (c) Andrei Stanescu - Getty Images

Amazon’s latest push into the healthcare market has taken another turn. Six years after beginning its quest, the company announced that RxPass – a Prime membership benefit that offers consumers affordable, generic medications that treat more than 80 common health conditions – is now available in most U.S. states.

It’s not free, but it does meet the definition of affordable. With RxPass, Prime members can receive all of their eligible medications for a flat $5 monthly fee, plus have those prescriptions delivered free of charge. The company promised that there are no hidden fees and no markups to the $5 per month subscription. 

Who this will benefit

The company said that Prime members who pay more than $10 a month for their eligible medications will see their prescription costs drop by 50% or more by signing up for RxPass.

“Plus they save time by skipping a trip to the pharmacy,” said John Love, vice president of Amazon Pharmacy. “We are excited to offer our customers surprisingly simple, low pricing on the eligible medications they need each month.”

Enrolling in RxPass is pretty simple for existing Prime members. To sign up, members can go to the RxPass website.

From there, it’s a pretty easy sign-up process that verifies a person’s eligibility and prescription information. The company said that if customers have questions during the enrollment process or even after a prescription arrives, Amazon pharmacists are on hand 24/7 to help – be it coordinating with a customer’s doctor or helping with refills.

Will other retailers follow suit?

Don’t expect others to sit idly by while Amazon grabs up consumers trying to save money on prescriptions. In 2021, Walmart added prescription discounts to its Walmart+ membership program and invested considerable time in 2022 beefing up the number of Walmart Health locations. 

As PYMNTS noted earlier a couple of weeks ago, CVS is apparently planning to expand its healthcare offering, too, by acquiring Oak Street Health, a company centered on helping older adults stay healthy.

And to make sure rural America is taken care of, Dollar General is also seeing what it can do to bring affordable healthcare to consumers living outside larger cities. Taking a cue from the old mobile library van model, it’s partnering with DocGo to set up mobile clinics in Dollar General's parking lots where people can get preventative care services like vaccinations and immunizations and more immediate care services that address situations like the flu and COVID-19 or caring for a wound.

There seems to be no limit to the number of digital subscription services that consumers have – whether they’re for streaming, ordering food, or even trying to meditate. 

With the new year nearly a month underway, it can be a good time for consumers to take stock and consider which subscriptions to keep and which ones to dump. 

The results from a recent Forbes Advisor survey may help with that. 

Entertainment takes the top spot 

Forbes Advisor surveyed over 1,000 adults across the country about their digital subscriptions. One of the primary goals of the survey was to better understand which services consumers were most likely to keep throughout 2023, and which ones they were most likely to cancel. 

Ultimately, entertainment-based subscriptions were found to be the most loved. These included streaming services, like Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, or HBO Max, as well as subscriptions for music, like Spotify and Apple Music. The survey found that 90% of respondents were subscribed to a streaming service, while 60% had a music subscription. 

In addition to streaming and music, video game subscriptions and delivery services came in close to the top. While 30% of respondents reported subscribing to video game services like xBox Game Pass or PlayStation, over 70% have subscriptions to delivery platforms like Amazon Prime or Walmart+. 

Overall, the top 10 subscriptions are: Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, Disney+, HBO Max, Spotify, iCloud Storage, Apple TV, Walmart+, DoorDash DashPass. 

Wellness comes in at the bottom

While entertainment was popular, wellness-related subscriptions were less so. 

Just 3% of respondents reported having any of the following subscriptions: Men’s subscriptions (Dollar Shave Club, Harry’s), Wellness (Calm, Headspace), Women’s subscriptions (IPSY, Birchbox), and Dating subscriptions (Tinder, Bumble). 

When it comes time to cut subscriptions, those surveyed mentioned many of these options could be on the chopping block. 

Tips for smart subscribing in 2023

Mike Cetera, editor-in-chief at Forbes Advisor, shared his best tips with ConsumerAffairs to help consumers make the most of their subscriptions throughout 2023. 

“The first thing consumers should do is review all their current subscription services to ensure they are getting value out of their current subscriptions,” Cetera told us. “Our survey found that a vast majority of consumers -- 83% -- do not conduct a routine, comprehensive review of all their subscriptions, instead choosing to review them one at a time as needed. Many consumers also believe that subscription services are quiet about renewals in hopes customers don’t notice and stay subscribed. It’s best to manage your current subscriptions and eliminate any services that you don’t use or that serve the same purpose to save on cost.” 

Budgeting is also key. Cetera said: “Our survey found that the average customer spends $51 per month on digital subscriptions and has about five subscriptions at any time. If this price range is outside of your budget consider the following options:

1. Look to see if there are cheaper plans available

Every subscription service is different, however many offer tiered pricing. These lower-priced options are often more budget-friendly for those looking to cut back on their subscription service spending.

2. Look for price breaks for annual subscriptions

Some services offer discounts for paying for the full year instead of paying monthly. Prioritize the services you plan to use for the long haul and contact them to see if they offer a discount by paying for the full year upfront.”

Many people in their 20s find they can eat and drink just about anything and not gain much weight. But when you hit 40, that changes quickly.

In fact, aging tends to slow down metabolism and the older you get, the harder it is to shed pounds. So, if you’ve resolved to lose weight in 2023, will speeding up your metabolism help? The jury is still out on that one.

Health experts at the Mayo Clinic say the best way to lose weight is to increase activity and reduce calories. But since metabolism is the process your body uses to convert food into energy, speeding up that process can’t hurt. 

“Supplements claiming to boost your metabolism may have little or no benefit and may contain substances that have serious side effects,” the clinic’s experts wrote. “How much you weigh largely depends on the choices you make about food and how much physical activity you get.”

Is there a way to safely speed up your metabolism? The ConsumerAffairs research team looked into it and found several natural ways to do it. And what we found may seem counter-intuitive: To speed up your metabolism you need to eat.

What to eat

The experts we consulted suggest eating breakfast and eating throughout the day. And you must eat the right kind of food.

They say you should start by eating more whole foods, which they describe as a simple way to improve your overall health and speed up your metabolism. That means cutting back on convenience foods.

Have a home-cooked meal with real ingredients once or twice a week. Add a couple of servings of whole fruits and vegetables to your daily diet and drink lots of water.

While altering your diet, get plenty of exercise to convert that food into energy. A combination of aerobic exercise and resistance training steps up fat burning and leads to an increase in metabolism.

Finally, cut back on caffeine and alcohol. According to the experts we consulted, both influence insulin output, glucose metabolism, and liver function and can slow metabolism.

Shoot for ‘normal’

If you’re in your 50s or 60s, you may find that even with these steps your metabolism isn’t going to return to the rapid rate of your 20s. Instead, it may return the rate to what is normal for your age.

If you're concerned about your weight or you think your metabolism is too slow, Dr. Donald Hensrud of the Mayo Clinic says you should discuss it with your doctor. 

“Your doctor can check for medical causes and help you adopt healthy lifestyle changes to aid your weight loss,” he said.

If you have an iPhone, you can move on for now, but if you have an Android phone, you should pay close attention – particularly if you are a customer of Chase, Citibank, Bank of America, Capital One or Wells Fargo.

There’s a new piece of malware called “Hook” that is being spread through fake banking apps claiming to be from some major bank brands (here’s a complete list of banks).

Once Hook gets on your Android device, hackers can take over and remotely control your phone from anywhere in the world, pulling off normal functions like unlocking the device and taking a screenshot.

The new ‘Hook’ malware is the stuff of nightmares for Android users, boasting the power to pillage mobile files, ransack WhatsApp accounts or even send money from a user’s phone,” Marijus Briedis, a cybersecurity expert at NordVPN, told ConsumerAffairs.

And Hook is one bad dude, too. Briedis said that it’s a cut above most of the weaponry in a hacker’s arsenal. Because it’s so good at what it does, bad actors are paying as much as $7,000 a month to subscribe to the software so they can make some serious bank of their own from the comfort of their basement.

When a hacker subscribes to Hook, they also get access to a special console that uses the same virtual network technology many workers have to access their office computer from home.

“This means your device can be taken over even while you’re holding it,” Briedis said.

How you can stop Hook from getting its claws on your phone

Defending against Hook ruining your life is doable, but you have to pay attention. Briedis said that it’s important for Android users to keep their system software updated regularly – an easy task on most Android smartphones.

All you have to do to check for system updates is go to Settings and if an update is available, there should be a prompt to download and install it.

For those of you who have newer Android phones, system updates should happen automatically. But, for those with older phones, you should be aware that malware loves older operating systems that don’t know how to fend off ilk like Hook.

Briedis’ recommendation for those users is to make sure to only download banking apps from an official marketplace like the Google Play Store and check how often it has been reviewed and downloaded before you install it yourself. 

A decline in the average mortgage rate last week brought a little hope to homebuyers but purchasing a home in this environment is still challenging. 

In its monthly report, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) said sales of existing homes fell for the eleventh straight month. Sales plunged 1.5% from November and were 34% lower than in December 2021.

“December was another difficult month for buyers, who continue to face limited inventory and high mortgage rates,” said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. “However, expect sales to pick up again soon since mortgage rates have markedly declined after peaking late last year.”

Last week the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage was sharply lower but was 6.23% - still more than double than a year ago. 

Declining inventory is another challenge. Not only are there fewer choices for buyers, but it also is keeping prices from going down. In fact, NAR reports the median existing-home price for all housing types in December was $366,900, an increase of 2.3% from December 2021, with home prices rising in all areas of the country. It marks 130 consecutive months of year-over-year increases, the longest-running streak on record.

But there are still deals

That said, all real estate is local and varies from market to market. Where the market is softer – with more properties than buyers – Eddie Martini, the strategic real estate investment advisor at HouseCashin, says there are deals to be had.

“I have experienced buyers being able to close at below asking price, with closing credits as well as sellers buying down mortgage rates,” Martini recently told ConsumerAffairs.

According to NAR, total U.S. housing inventory at the end of December was 970,000 units. That’s a 13.4% drop from the previous month.

Despite the challenging conditions, first-time buyers were more active in the market in December than in November. NAR says first-time buyers accounted for 31% of sales, compared to 28% in November.

Are you looking for the location for your kid’s next birthday party? You may need to look no further than your local Lowe’s store. 

The home improvement store has announced that it will begin hosting kids’ birthday parties. The goal is to expose kids to building from a young age, while also supplying parents with everything they need for a successful birthday party. 

“Home improvement is about the whole family and that’s why we have Weekending at Lowe’s events every Saturday at our stores, including our kids’ workshops that help us feel connected to our littlest DIYers,” said Jen Wilson, senior vice president, enterprise brand and marketing at Lowe’s. “And this launch is a natural extension of that relationship – not only do we want to inspire future builders, but we want DIY – and Lowe’s – to be an integral part of family milestones and memories.” 

Getting creative with kids 

Lowe’s will kick off its Build a Birthday series in 10 markets across the country: 

• Franklin, TN

• North Peoria, AZ

• Orem, UT

• Central Dallas, TX

• Brooklyn, NY

• Naperville, IL

• Eastlake, CA

• North Bergen, NJ 

• Huntersville, NC

• Noblesville, IN

The parties are designed for kids ages five and older and can accommodate as many as 20 kids. The base party packages are for parties of 12 kids, and parents have the option to upgrade to include 20. 

Every child gets some Lowe's swag

Every child in attendance will receive a DIY project kit and a party favor from Lowe’s, which includes backpacks, water bottles, or t-shirts. Parents will have the opportunity to book their children’s birthday parties on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays, and they can upgrade their party package to include pizza, dessert, and drinks from Domino’s

The DIY projects include race cars, wooden castles, or even custom shelves, and all kids will receive the proper safety equipment to help prevent any potential injuries.

The group will also be assisted by a Lowe’s employee to guide them through the building project and teach them the ins and outs of these activities. 

For more information, click here. 

Artificial intelligence (AI) has been a part of many aspects of modern life for years, but in the last few weeks the sudden arrival of ChatGPT, a publicly accessible platform, has made AI the next big thing.

So the question we ask is this: “How big of an impact – both good and bad – will AI have on our lives in 2023? Richard Gardner, CEO of Modulus, says some of the biggest changes will be in banking – mostly for the better.

“More and more, banks and other financial institutions are increasing the resources put into AI for the purposes of fraud detection and reduction,” Gardner told ConsumerAffairs. “In particular, it can be used to quickly perform complex risk assessments, ably tagging potential cases of fraud, money laundering, or terrorist financing so that humans can quickly engage with the transactions and perform deeper evaluations.”

Sandy Fliderman, CTO at Industry FinTech, sees AI bringing big changes this year to transportation and trucking, helping to keep supply chains operating smoothly.

Improved supply chain

“I believe that the trucking industry will be the first to benefit from this as it is using AI to map the roads and behaviors for driving long haul trucks which mostly consist of highway driving and are much easier to navigate,” he told us.

AI is already being used in healthcare settings. Eldad Postan-Koren, co-founder and CEO at WINN.AI, sees that trend gaining momentum this year.

“AI-powered diagnostic tools and virtual assistants are expected to improve the efficiency and accuracy of medical diagnoses and treatment plans,” Postan-Koren said. “Additionally, AI-powered robots and drones may be used to deliver medicine and supplies to remote areas.”

“However, health systems need to be sure they are investing in the right technology - they have many options now, said Sanjeev Agrawal, president of Lean TaaS, a firm supporting the healthcare industry. “As this is a significant investment, health system decision-makers must be sure AI-driven technology actually addresses the roots of their problems, while minimizing the lift on users and IT staff in adoption and ensuring this investment isn’t just trendy or buzzworthy.”

Matt Benton, CEO of Trenchless Information Center, says businesses large and small will harness the power of AI to increase efficiency and profitability.

“The ability to predict patterns and make predictions based on data will be a major part of how businesses operate,” he said. “This will allow them to be more profitable and efficient than they were before.”

Bumps in the road

But there will be bumps in the road and some have already appeared at the beginning of 2023. Max Thake, the co-founder at peaq, a blockchain network, says there is plenty of regulatory uncertainty.

"For example, Getty Images just announced they would be suing Stability AI, the makers of Stable Diffusion, and we can expect more legal battles like that when it comes to datasets used to train the generative models,” he told ConsumerAffairs. “Copyright will also be squarely in the spotlight, as it usually only extends to human-made intellectual property, which makes ownership over AI outputs — and even AIs themselves — an interesting problem to tackle.”

A recurring theme is promoting efficiency. Mihae Ahn, vice president of Marketing at ProServe IT, says marketers can use the technology to improve results for clients.

“Another way we have used AI is to understand the market needs better and address the gaps when building our technology solutions,” Ahn told us. “In addition to hearing directly from our own customers, we have used ChatGPT to collect additional information. AI is powerful and is getting more powerful.”

Michael Gibbs, CEO of Go Cloud Careers, believes one of the most immediate impacts of ChatGPT will be the disruption of many tech and journalism careers.

“ChatGPT can write and write well,” Gibbs said. “ChatGPT can write blogs in seconds and in many cases better than the average person. This will eliminate the positions of basic bloggers and writers. Now the magic happens when you take an excellent writer and give them ChatGPT! In this manner, an excellent writer could create 40 to 50 1,500-word articles per day!”

But here’s the downside

But while AI holds out the possibility of improving life for many, in the short term it could pose a severe threat when it falls into criminal hands. James Lee, chief operating officer at the Identity Theft Resource Center, says humans are great at innovating but struggle to identify the unintended consequences of their creations.

“We’re already seeing ChatGPT’s AI engine improve phishing attacks and write malware in just a matter of minutes,” Lee told us. “Consumers struggle now to identify phishing lures – imagine how difficult it will be to determine what’s real and what’s not under an AI-centric attack.”

Dominic Chorafakis, founder of the cybersecurity firm Akouto, agrees. The emergence of platforms like ChatGPT has opened AI’s use to anyone with a keyboard.

“With the current capabilities, the biggest threat for 2023 is the use of AI to improve social engineering attacks, which is manipulating people into transferring money or sharing information like banking details and passwords, and phishing attacks, which is tricking people into clicking on links or opening harmful email attachments, Chorafakis told ConsumerAffairs. 

He makes this additional point: currently many scam communications are given away by the scammer’s poor spelling and lack of command of English. When AI is crafting those messages, he says scams will be much harder to spot.

This is a pretty easy bet: 99 out of every 100 people who read this article have a subscription of some sort -- Netflix, Amazon Prime, Adobe Creative Cloud, and the list goes on and on.

And it’s good business for subscription companies, too. Once they sign someone up, the cha-chings are there every month until a subscriber remembers they’re paying for something they’re not using or doesn’t have value anymore. And if someone cancels a subscription, there's enough of a churn to keep their bean counters busy.

However, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) thinks that some subscription services – specifically those offering “negative option” subscription services where they automatically renew unless the consumer affirmatively cancels, or trial marketing programs that charge a reduced fee for an initial period and then automatically begin charging a higher fee – have gone too far. The agency wants consumers to know the tricks used by companies to confuse and deceive consumers enrolled in subscription services.

“Consumers shouldn’t have to jump through hoops to cancel subscriptions they don’t want, and they shouldn’t have to worry about a trial marketing offer turning into an unwanted monthly charge,” said CFPB Director Rohit Chopra. “The CFPB has made it clear that misleading consumers about products or subscription services they don’t want is not only dishonest but also a violation of the law.”

It started with Transunion

The straw that broke the subscription game’s back was when the CFPB took action against Transunion for repeatedly breaking the law by allegedly violating a CFPB consent order and for deceptive marketing when selling credit scores, reports, and credit monitoring products. 

“I got on the Transunion website to access my free credit report. But because of their deceptive website, I ended up signing up for a subscription that costs $25 a month without realizing it,” wrote Janissa from Wayan, Idaho, in a review submitted to ConsumerAffairs.

Once it had Transunion in its grasp, the CFPB sued ACTIVE Network for allegedly tricking consumers into enrolling in a costly membership club through the use of digital dark patterns. The CFPB has also entered into consent orders with numerous credit card issuers for allegedly deceptively marketing optional “add-on” products that charged recurring fees until consumers affirmatively canceled. 

Watch out for this

The agency says that consumers need to stay vigilant of three things that a subscription service might be trying to sneak into their deal:

A failure to disclose: “Companies likely violate the law if they misrepresent or fail to disclose information likely to inform a consumer’s decision about whether to enroll in a negative option service, including the amount of all charges and the fact that charges will continue unless the consumer takes affirmative steps to cancel,” the agency said.

Failing to obtain the consumer’s informed consent: There’s a small bit of responsibility on the consumer’s end to make sure they read all that’s required in signing up for a subscription, but by and large, the CFPB is telling companies they need to ensure that consumers genuinely agree to the terms of a negative option program. 

“The CFPB has found or alleged that companies engaged in unfair, deceptive, and abusive acts and practices when companies misrepresented or failed to disclose that they were offering negative option programs, which resulted in consumers not understanding that they were enrolling in services with recurring charges.” Again, painfully poring through that fine print could save you money and headaches.

Misleading or impeding consumers wishing to cancel: The CFPB says that it’s fairly common for bad actors to make consumers jump through complicated hoops to cancel subscription products or services, such as being forced to talk to customer service agents repeatedly, or for unreasonably long times, before granting a request to cancel.

One quick insight in dealing with a subscription cancellation -- many companies will go to the mat to try and save a subscription. If a customer service representative says they’re transferring you to the company’s “customer retention team,” beware. The love you’re given isn’t there to make you feel good as much as it is for the company to keep your little revenue stream flowing to its bank account.

If you have a subscription problem…

…don’t give up. Try canceling the subscription the right way: call the company and ask for the subscription to be canceled. Ask when, too. Most don’t want to mess with the CFPB, but if you get any hassles, the CFPB has other options you can try and are available here.

Buying a car has grown difficult in recent years, as many consumers have been forced to deal with low inventory and rising prices. 

To help guide the car buying process in the coming year, U.S. News & World Report released its 2023 Best Cars for the Money awards. 

While the report covers a dozen different categories – including midsize cars, SUVs, and Hybrids – one thing was clear across the board: Hyundai had more cars top the lists than any other manufacturer in the industry. 

Which cars are worth the price? 

Two factors were most important when considering which cars were worth their price tags: quality and value. After accounting for automotive reviews and purchases, experts were able to break down where consumers should be looking for their next car in 2023. 

Hyundai proved to have the most value among the major car brands, with four of its vehicles earning recognition. 

It wasn’t the first time that either the Hyundai Kona or the Hyundai Elantra Hybrid were recognized in this way. The Elantra Hybrid was named the Best Hybrid Car for the Money for the second time, while the Kona took home the Best Subcompact SUV for the third time. 

Additionally, the Hyundai Palisade won out as the Best 3-Row SUV for the money, and the Hyundai Santa Fe was the Best 2-Row SUV. 

The other winners include: 

• Best Compact Car: 2023 Honda Civic

• Best Electric Car: 2023 Chevrolet Bolt

• Best Midsize Car: 2023 Kia K5

• Best Subcompact Car: 2023 Kia Rio 

• Best Compact SUV: 2023 Mazda CX-5

• Best Hybrid SUV: 2023 Kia Sportage Hybrid

• Best Minivan: 2023 Honda Odyssey

• Best Electric SUV: 2023 Chevrolet Bolt EUV 

What do consumers think? 

While Hyundai was found to provide car buyers with great value, what do consumers think of the vehicle brand? Based on reviews found on ConsumerAffairs, the opinions are mixed. 

Hope from Thibodaux, Louisiana, has expressed issues with the exterior of her daughter’s Elantra.

“My daughter's car is two years old and paint is starting to chip on the car and you can see the clear coat on the hood coming off and they try to tell me it’s from impact," she wrote in a ConsumerAffairs review. Three door handles with missing chips of paint and clear coat spots on hood missing and it’s impact issues...”

On the other hand, Jo from Spring, Texas, shared a five-star experience with a Hyundai Elantra:

“Love my little car. I have had hardly any maintenance on it and it is an '06. It drives like a dream," Jo wrote. "It's like the Ever-Ready bunny just keeps going. I will buy another one when I am able, but why now when this one is still like new.” 

See more reviews for the Hyundai Elantra, Hyundai Santa Fe, and the overall Hyundai brand here.