Current Events in December 2023

Are you leaving cookies for more than just Santa this year?

A new study from All About Cookies – and we’re talking about internet browser cookies, not chocolate chip ones – suggests that there’s a huge gap between what people think they know about internet cookies versus what they actually understand. And it’s much worse than an ignorance-is-bliss type of thing, too.

Worse as in…

• Nearly 40% of internet users blindly accept cookies when they get to a website. And baby boomers, you were twice as likely to accept blindly vs. Gen Z respondents. 

• Some 82% of the people surveyed said they were confident they knew what internet/browser cookies are, yet barely half could identify what they do at their most basic level. 

• Only 11% of respondents could correctly identify what cookies actually do. 

• Nearly one in four people believe rejecting cookies will kick you off of a website. 

“We live in an era where consumers are more and more cognizant of how their data is being used, but you can’t click a link without a cookies disclosure popping up. There’s a big disconnect between how you’d think internet users would behave based on how much they care about their data,” Chris Lewis, head of research at All About Cookies, told ConsumerAffairs.

“Is it wrong to accept all cookies blindly? Not necessarily, but consumers need to know what they’re giving up when they do so, and be comfortable with that choice.” 

What we need to know about cookies 

A few years ago, Google announced that it was going to phase out third-party tracking cookies in its Chrome browser, but then it had a change of heart. Now, it says that it's prepared to join Apple (Safari) and Mozilla (Firefox) and go through with the axe job starting by late 2024.

But that's still a year away and a lot of your personal data could still be picked apart and you could be tracked incessantly by social media sites, shopping sites, and ad agencies that have your permission.

"Just because Google is removing third-party cookies on Chrome in 2024 doesn't mean consumers should let their guard down," Lewis said. "With so much of our browsing on mobile or other browsers, it would only apply to a small piece of our total online footprint. Until we see the rollout complete, and other browsers taking note, we still have a while to go until we can totally put our feet up and not worry about our data."

Lewis suggests that there's not a better time to take stock of who you're giving your life story away to.

“Next time you see a cookies disclosure pop up, look at your options, try some different settings, and see how this changes your user experience,” he said, emphasizing that in most cases, changing your settings won't affect your experience at all.

As an exercise to see how much you're giving away, why not do a simple check-up of your cookies and permissions you have set up in Google Chrome? You can do that here -- and you can very easily shut those irrelevant companies' prying eyes with just a few clicks.

“You should also consider using an ad blocker to keep yourself protected from malicious scripts and trackers. And, lastly, it’s important to turn off unnecessary data collection (from unfamiliar sites) by adjusting your privacy options,” Lewis suggested. 

Before you scan your next QR code, maybe you should think about who’s on the other end of that code. As the number of consumers scanning QR codes continues to near 16 million folks, and places to use them have grown – menus, ads, etc. – hackers are finding ways to manipulate them to their benefit.

As ConsumerAffairs found when we decided to build out some QR codes, they’re incredibly easy to create. There are lots of free QR code generators on the web where you can design codes that will send consumers a link, email, phone call, text message, V-card, PayPal request, event invitation, a social media nudge, images and videos, an app or a pdf.

But easy to create also means easy for hackers to bait consumers in all sorts of ways. If you make the mistake of scanning a malicious code, you could wind up giving the hacker control of your device.

When that happens, you lose big. Your contacts can be downloaded, malware can be loaded on your device, or you can be sent to a fake payment portal where the scammer can use your banking and credit card accounts to make payments to themselves.

And guess what? If you make a payment through a scammy QR code, it’s darn near impossible to get that money back.

Just last year, the FBI began receiving reports of QR code scams. Then, those spread to scammers using QR codes and gift cards together.

“Scammers may call and say they’re going to send a QR code to your phone so that you can receive a free $100 gift card. In reality, the QR code may take you to a malicious website,” the agency said.

2024 will be worse

When ConsumerAffairs spoke with John Wilson, senior fellow, Threat Research, Fortra, about the QR code situation he said that 2024 will be a whopper year of QR scams.

“In 2024, we’ll see an uptick in QR code phishing scams, exploiting the widespread use of QR-codes for payments and information sharing. Scammers will create deceptive QR codes, leading users to malicious sites,” he said.

How will these codes play out in your life? Wilson says one way will be an increase in QR code phishing. In these situations, the victim receives an email pretending to be from their bank or another company they trust and will be instructed to scan a QR code in the email message, which leads to a phishing website.

Wilson says that we have to be extra careful with QR code swapping – especially in places where we’ve gotten used to scanning those codes, like restaurants and bars.

“In this scenario, the victim sees a QR code on a restaurant table that enables them to pay for their meal using their smartphone,” Wilson explained.

“Unfortunately, a scammer has covered the QR code with their own QR code, giving the scammer access to the victim's credit card details. Meanwhile, the victim believes they've paid for their meal but may be accosted by the restaurant staff for non-payment.”

Preventing QR code hacks

The ace-in-the-hole security precaution you should use to protect yourself against scammy QR codes are the same ones you use already – common sense.

“Just as you would with emails or instant messages, don’t trust QR codes if you’re not sure where they’ve come from—perhaps attached to suspicious-looking emails or on websites that you can’t verify," writes Wired’s David Nield.

"The QR code on the menu in your local restaurant, in contrast, is highly unlikely to have been generated by hackers."

Urgency? Alarm? Don’t forget that those are earmarks of scams, too, such as “Verify your identity or prevent your account from being deleted by scanning this QR code.”

For those of you who do scan QR codes, the QR code scanners built into your phone also give you a preview of the link you’ll be visiting (it’s below the brackets surrounding the code).

If the link doesn’t make sense to you, maybe you should just hold off and contact the company directly via a phone call or email to confirm what it’s offering.

The FBI also says that if after scanning a QR code, the site asks for a password or login info, you stop what you’re doing and that you should refrain from scanning QR codes received in emails or text messages unless you know they are legitimate.

“Call the sender to confirm,” the agency suggests.

Pacific Trellis Fruit is recalling 4,872 cases of Malichita brand whole cantaloupes.

The products may be contaminated with Salmonella.

This is a continuing outbreak, and several illnesses have been reported in the U.S. and Canada to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Pacific Trellis Fruit has not received any reports of illness.

A list of the recalled products, packed in corrugated cartons with the price look-up sticker labeled “Malichita.,”and sold at retail supermarkets in California, Illinois, Oklahoma, Texas, Wisconsin and Canada, may be found here.

What to do

Customers who purchased the recalled products should not consume them but discard them.

Consumers with questions may contact the company at (323) 859-9600 Monday - Friday from 9AM – 5PM (PST).

Thinking about giving a puppy for a holiday gift? After you read this, your bark may turn to balk because puppy scams are spiking again. 

When ConsumerAffairs took a look at Google search terms trends, the possibilities are sure there. Searches for “puppy for sale” show there’s a lot of interest in non-standard breeds such as cavapoos, schnoodles, Aussie doodles, and vizslas.

More concerning, however, might be the increase for Craigslist searches. While Craigslist officially banned the sale of companion animals, unscrupulous breeders and dealers have found a way around that ban by using the term “rehoming” and are selling animals who are stolen, ill, or that don’t even exist.

Scammers can get creative, too. One ConsumerAffairs reviewer said they nearly got scammed in a “Nigerian puppy scam” from a minister who had to give up his precious pup because it wasn’t a good fit for his missionary work in Africa. Another reviewer claimed that they couldn’t even trust the AKC’s Marketplace because scammers have burrowed in there, as well.

Prepare to lose your shirt!

The Special Reports Team at Veterinarians.org found that leading up to the 2023 holidays, Americans have lost over $1 million to puppy scams resulting from more than a thousand puppy scam reports.

The top states for puppy scams and the amount of money lost look like this:

1. California– $89,248

2. Texas– $55,955

3. Florida– $49,510

4. New York– $39,238

5. Pennsylvania– $34,089

6. Arizona– $30,699

7. Georgia– $28,939

8. Virginia– $28,115

9. Indiana– $26,232

10. North Carolina– $25,196

11. Massachusetts– $24,613

12. Ohio– $21,699

13. Illinois– $21,660

14. Maryland– $21,000

15. Connecticut– $17,050

How to Identify a Puppy Scam: 5 Warning Signs 

Between what ConsumerAffairs has found from our reporting on puppy scams and what Veterinarians.org’s research team offers, there are some clear-as-the-lick-on-the-face warning signs you can use to keep your puppy pennies safe:

"Sorry, no photo available." The seller claims that you will not be able to see the puppy in person before adoption and/or is unable to provide you with multiple pictures/videos of the puppy up for adoption. 

One tip they offer to help spot this scam is to use Google’s reverse image search tool or TinEye to upload the picture of their chosen puppy and identify if the picture is actually coming from a stock photo site and/or appears on numerous other fraudulent websites, which can help in determining whether or not the puppy actually exists. 

Another defense is to request that the breeder take a picture with the puppy that includes a piece of paper in the frame with the individual’s name written on it and a specific date.

"Zelle me money." The seller asks for payment upfront through Western Union, MoneyGram, a digital money app like Zelle or Cash App, or via a gift card. 

Yep, just like other scammers, money apps are golden money retrievers for puppy scammers, too. Pay with credit card or you could be kissing your money goodbye.

Climate-controlled crates. The seller or a third party asks for follow-up payments to cover additional items such as a climate-controlled crate for shipping, vaccinations, or transportation insurance/life insurance.

“In many cases, fraudulent emails will claim the shipping costs/crate rental fees will be refunded upon the puppy’s delivery,” the researchers said. “However, they never are. Such emails may also threaten individuals with criminal charges of animal abandonment/abuse if fees remain unpaid, a common fear tactic scammers employ to demand additional money.”

Who's your daddy? The breeder’s website offers no information about the sire or dam (father/mother) of the litter, and/or the breeder can’t provide proof of health records or AKC Certification. Note: There’s no guarantee, but you might be able to work with the AKC to identify whether or not a registration/certification is legit or not. 

Purebred or pure bunk? In the case of purebred breeds, the puppy in question is being offered at a significantly steep discount when compared with the average price for a puppy of its breed.

Before you take any leap of faith, do some research. Look at the price ranges for puppies or get out your pen and paper and write down all the different prices you see for the breed you want. If you see any pooch being offered for more than 30% off, you might want to keep looking.

Also, does someone's use of “purebred” actually mean purebred? For those interested in a purebred pup, you can bet that scammers have that angle covered, too. Veteranarians.org recommends that outside of truly reputable sellers, it’s estimated that anywhere from 20-30% of the dogs in shelters are purebred as well.

“There are also numerous breed-specific rescue groups available across the nation. The AKC Rescue Network, for instance, consists of over 400 such groups,” the researchers recommended. “Additionally, individuals can search for breeder associations or clubs, such as the Golden Retriever Club of America, Poodle Club of America, etc., to find reputable breeders affiliated with the American Kennel Club.”

Is the site for real? Puppy scammers tend to play to the search terms that people use to find a dog. For example, BeaglePuppiesForSaleNearMe.company.com. Before you go all in with a certain company, see if the website you’re considering buying from is the real deal. TheDailyScam offers a comprehensive list of fake puppy seller sites.

Real estate agents had a lot of spare time on their hands in October. Pending home sales, a measure of sales contracts signed but not yet closed, fell 1.5% from an already low rate, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR).

NAR says it is the lowest number for pending sales since the index was launched in 2001. That suggests that most buyers can’t handle the combination of high prices and high interest rates.

And interest rates were very high in October, around 8%. Asking prices for homes may have still been rising during the month. 

"During October, mortgage rates were at their highest, and contract signings for existing homes were at their lowest in more than 20 years," said Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist. "Recent weeks' successive declines in mortgage rates will help qualify more home buyers, but limited housing inventory is significantly preventing housing demand from fully being satisfied. 

But can we expect the absence of buyers to increase the inventory of available homes, increasing competition among sellers and resulting in lower prices? The jury is still out on that one.

Steve Nicastro, the content team lead at Clever Real Estate, says inventory is still tight and it may be months before that changes. But he says it’s clear that there are fewer buyers in the market these days.

'Affordability still a significant concern'

“Affordability remains a significant concern and has priced many buyers out of the market,” Nicastro told ConsumerAffairs. Many potential buyers are either waiting for better conditions or have just given up on buying and are now renting instead.”

Shmuel Shayowitz, president and chief lending officer at Approved Funding, says the pending home sales number must be viewed in the context of mortgage rates. They were at 8% in October but are around 7.25% now. He thinks the decline in mortgage rates is a bigger factor for buyers than a slight build in inventory levels.

"For buyers, the fact that mortgage rates have been consistently improving since the end of October will have a favorable impact on those looking for homes,” he told us. “On a $400,000 loan, a drop of 1% from 8% to 7% can represent over $270 a month in savings. That will certainly start getting some people off the fence.”

Nicastro says the outlook for housing in 2024 is hard to predict, though he does expect some increase in housing inventory next year. How much, he says, depends on interest rates. Unless rates “plummet” he doesn’t expect current homeowners with a 3% mortgage rate to put their homes on the market.

Lenovo of Morrisville, N.C., is recalling about 3,300 Lenovo USB-C laptop power banks sold in the U.S. and Canada.

The power bank’s internal screws can come loose, causing a short circuit and overheating the lithium-ion battery, posing a fire hazard.

The firm has received one report of a fire causing minimal property damage. No injuries have been reported.

This recall involves the Lenovo USB USB-C laptop power bank, model number PBLG2W.

The power bank has a 20,000 mAh rechargeable lithium-ion battery used to charge laptops, cell phones, and other devices when an electrical outlet is not available.

The power bank is black and measures approximately 7 inches long by 3 inches wide. “Lenovo” is printed in black letters on a red tag on the USB power cord.

The recalled units were manufactured between January 2022, and June 2022. The manufacturing date is located on the product label in a year/month (YY/MM) format.

The part number 40ALLG2WWW and the model number PBLG2W are also located on the product label.

The power banks, manufactured in China, were sold online at www.lenovo.com, www.newegg.com, www.cdw.com, www.insight.com, www.connection.com, www.shi.com, www.Softchoice.com, www.eBay.com and www.staples.com from May 2022, through January 2023, for about $100.

What to do

Consumers should immediately stop using the recalled Lenovo USB-C Laptop Power Banks and contact Lenovo for a free replacement as well as instructions for properly disposing of lithium-ion batteries.

Do not put lithium-ion batteries in the trash or battery recycling boxes found at various retail and home improvement stores. They can cause fires and explosions if they are damaged or crushed and are a hazard when thrown in the trash.

Consumers may contact Lenovo toll-free at (866) 989-0515 from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. (ET) Monday through Friday, by email at recalls@lenovo.com or online at https://support.lenovo.com/solutions/HT515669 for more information.

Well, Virginia Wahoos, we guess there is a Santa Claus – and for TCU Horned Frogs, UC Irvine Anteaters, and every one of the 16.9 million students in U.S. colleges, too. And this Santa is bringing $25 flights home for the holidays.

Nope, this is not a misprint and not a scam, although it sure brought some big-eyed emojis from the ConsumerAffairs news team. For the first time since 1972, when you could fly somewhere on Southwest Airlines for $25, Amazon – in connection with StudentUniverse – is offering Amazon Prime Student members $25 flights to and from home for the holidays.

Call it a gimmick or call it a gift, but you do need to call it limited – not only in the number of tickets, but in how long that deal’s window is open. Beginning December 5 at 6 a.m. Pacific Standard Time (PST), Prime Student members can visit the Prime Student x StudentUniverse page to book tickets on select domestic flights (again, while supplies last) for travel between mid-December and early January for just $25. 

Amazon says that a total of 3,000 $25 flight tickets will be available during this promotion—with 1,000 tickets dropping each day, starting at 6 a.m. PST on December 5, and then at 12 a.m., PST on December 6 and 7.

If you’re not a Prime Student member and want to take advantage of the deal, you can roll the dice essentially for free. New members can start a six-month trial at no cost. Aafter that, it’s $7.49 per month—half the cost of a regular Prime membership.

After that, the opportunity to save dims, but doesn’t go away completely

Once those 3,000 tickets are claimed, StudentUniverse will run a “trailing promotional offer,” that will give Prime Student members $25 off flights with a promotional code. 

“As a mom to a first-year college student, I am excited to have my son home for the holidays,” said Carmen Nestares, vice president of U.S. Prime and Marketing Tech at Amazon.

“And as travel costs continue to rise, we're happy to help make flying more affordable for Prime Students who want to spend this important time with family and friends. It's another way we're delivering incredible savings, value, and convenience to our Prime Student members each year.”

“Terms and conditions apply”

Amazon was upfront about the terms and conditions and anyone interested in this deal should sit up and pay attention to them. ConsumerAffairs has highlighted those that should be paid particular attention to.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS
$25 Flight Promotion: For a limited time, Prime Student Members can book and purchase one round trip or one-way domestic ticket anywhere within the 50 United States and District of Columbia for $25 for a discount rate of up to $500 off the current retail value of the ticket on studentuniverse.com subject to availability and flight destinations.

Starting on December 5, 2023 and for a period of three days, a maximum of 1000 tickets will be available each day. The booking period for the Promotion starts December 5, 2023 at 6 a.m. (PST) through 12 a.m. (PST) December 7, 2023 unless all tickets have been sold.

The Booking is subject to outbound travel dates of 12/8/2023 to 12/25/2023 and inbound travel dates (if applicable) 12/8/2023 to 01/14/2024.

Maximum 1 ticket per verified Amazon Prime Student Member and only 1 passenger per booking.

Only current & valid members of Amazon Prime Student, who have activated the StudentUniverse Prime Student Exclusive offer will be eligible to participate in the Promotion.

See complete terms and conditions at http://www.studentuniverse.com/amazon-home-holidays-terms.

Ho, ho, hold me up! The FBI is warning grandparents that the agency is seeing an uptick in scams that impact their generation. And with a whack, too. Between the two scams, the agency says it’s counted nearly $2 million moving from a senior's pocket to a scammer’s pocket.

The setup and the knockdown

Grandparent scams are anything but new, but they have proven effective in the past and now with artificial intelligence (AI), even more so with things like AI-manipulated Medicare scams. Now that the holidays are upon us, scammers are leaning those grandparent scams toward travel.

The narrative often plays out like this, the FBI says:

Initial contact

Fraudsters contact senior citizens and pose as their grandchildren, who are supposedly in jail after causing a car accident. Some accidents involve diplomats or pregnant women.

Follow-up contact

Another scammer then enters the scene, contacts Granny or Gramps, posing as the grandchild's attorney, and requests payment for legal fees, bond money, or medical expenses for a purportedly injured person involved in the accident.

Further requests 

Here’s where it gets interesting. Scammers instruct the grandparent to keep this thing on the downlow and maintain secrecy, sometimes going as far as referring to a judge-imposed gag order, which, if broken, will result in the grandchild going to jail or incurring more fines.

In some situations, scammers may also request additional money because of a serious injury or a fatality resulting from the alleged accident.

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Methods of payment

Scammers tell the grandparent to send funds via wire transfer; cash, packaged in magazines or books, and sent through the U.S. mail; or to provide the money to willing or unsuspecting couriers, such as Uber or Lyft drivers, who retrieve the money in person at the grandparent’s house.

And the use of those ridesharing services adds a legitimacy that tends to throw people off. So much in fact that seniors report losing $32,000, $98,000, and $700,000 in separate rideshare-related grandparent scams.

CBS’ 60 Minutes’ Sharyn Alfonsi shared how this scam played out with real grandparents. 

What Uber is doing to stop this

Scams like this where there's a "money drop" and involving a rideshare service put Uber in a corner and it had no choice but to fight its way out of the situation.

It's doubtful that a targeted person can ask a company like Uber or Lyft to give them the name and address of where their money is being transported, but Uber is attempting to cut those crooks off at the pass with cyber intelligence of its own.

The company recently deployed surveillance that enables its Public Safety team to scan for digital fingerprints of the fraudsters. Recently, Uber teamed up with the Brevard County Sheriff's Office to stop one of those scammers in their tracks.

Tips to protect yourself

There are several ways to protect yourself from getting involved in this scam. The simplest is just not answering telephone calls from numbers you don’t recognize.

But the best protection if the scammer gets you on the phone and starts their woe-is-me spiel and asks for money is to hang up the phone and call your grandchild, or whoever is supposed to be in trouble directly to verify what’s going on.

“If you cannot reach them, call someone else in your family, even if scammers told you to keep it secret,” the FBI suggests, adding this social media tip:

“Limit the personally identifiable information you post on social media and dating websites. Scammers may use this information to create a convincing story.”

Just as cold and flu season is ramping up, there’s another sickness pet owners should be aware of. 

A respiratory illness is making its way through dogs across the country, and researchers and veterinary experts remain in the dark about the specifics of the disease. The symptoms are similar to both kennel cough or canine influenza, though pathology reports have been unable to link it to any known respiratory illnesses in dogs. 

Reports from the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) are linking the origin of the sickness to Oregon, as the Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA) has seen over 200 cases of this illness since August. 

“Based on the epidemiology of the cases reported at this point, the cases appear to share a viral etiology, but common respiratory diagnostic testing has been largely negative,” said Andrea Cantu-Schomus, ODA communications director. 

Dr. Jane Sykes, an infectious disease expert with The Vets, and a professor at the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine who focuses on infectious disease, told ConsumerAffairs that there is “no clear evidence yet whether there is more respiratory disease than in previous years or there is a new pathogen circulating.” 

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What are the symptoms?

According to the Cornell College of Veterinary Medicine, there are several symptoms associated with this respiratory illness. Dog owners should look out for: 

• Coughing

• Sneezing 

• Labored breathing

• Nose or eye discharge

• Lethargy 

• Decreased appetite

According to Dr. Sykes, vets should be treating symptoms per the International Society for Companion Animal Infectious Disease (ISCAID) guidelines for acute respiratory disease in dogs. 

This illness is highly contagious and has quickly spread to a dozen states across the country, including Colorado, California, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Oregon Pennsylvania and Washington.

Currently, the infection is unique to dogs, though no breeds are more likely to become infected than others. This makes it all the more important for dog owners to take the necessary precautions to keep their pets safe and healthy.  

Skip doggie daycare…for now

To help stop the spread of this respiratory infection, and prevent as many dogs as possible from contracting it, pet owners are encouraged to minimize their pet’s interactions with other dogs. 

Sykes shared her best advice with ConsumerAffairs on how to keep pets safe amidst this outbreak: 

• Owners of dogs that are known to come into contact with other dogs, especially those that have contact with other dogs indoors, like in dog daycare or boarding environments, should make sure that their dogs are vaccinated annually for the organisms that we have vaccines for – adenovirus, distemper, Bordetella, parainfluenza, and H3N2 influenza, as well as other important pathogens that can cause outbreaks of disease, like leptospirosis.  

• Dogs need to be vaccinated at least a week in advance of any boarding.

• If boarding or daycare is necessary, owners should choose daycares or boarding facilities that have good hygiene practices, require vaccination at least one week ahead of boarding, and that minimize overcrowding.

• If you’re thinking about purchasing a new dog, such as for Christmas, you should purchase dogs from reputable breeders or from shelters. Any new dog is best kept away from other dogs for two weeks after purchase, should they break with respiratory disease. Potential owners should also choose to obtain new dogs from North America, rather than importing dogs.

• If dogs do develop signs of illness, they should be kept away from other dogs for as long as possible while showing symptoms, definitely no less than two weeks. 

• Pet owners should remember that there are lots of other reasons for cough, including serious conditions like fungal infections and cancer, so if their dog does not get better in a few days, or is lethargic and not eating, it should be evaluated by a veterinarian.

• If an owner suspects contagious respiratory disease because their dog came out of a shelter or boarding environment or had known contact with other dogs that had respiratory disease, they should inform their veterinarian when they call in advance to make the appointment. The veterinary team can then take precautions to prevent transmission.

Some Family Dollar customers in Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee will get $25 gift cards to settle a class-action suit, stemming from rat infestation at a West Memphis warehouse.

The case was heard in federal court in Memphis and the proposed settlement is contingent on approval by the court. The suit was filed on behalf of Family Dollars customers that were served by stores receiving merchandise from the warehouse. The discovery of the rat problem led to the closure of 400 Family Dollar stores.

How to make a claim

Consumers who shopped at any of the affected stores between January 2020 and Feb. 18, 2022, may be eligible for the settlement.

To make a claim, submit it here.

Some customers have already received settlement notices via email. Those who have are instructed to input the notice ID and confirmation code in the appropriate fields on the settlement website.

If you shopped at one of those stories during that time you can still make a claim, but you will need the store number, as well as the approximate dates you sent shopping.

Consumers have until Jan. 9, 2024 to file a claim.