Privacy

Governor Signs Election Bills

September 2, 2015  ·  Mark Reback

<p><strong>One aims to ward off problematic ballot measures by raising the cost of filing</strong></p> <p>Gov. Jerry Brown signed 14 bills into law Tuesday, including measures that will increase the cost of filing a proposed ballot initiative from $200 to $2,000 and align city elections with statewide votes in areas of low participation.</p>

Hotels Fight Back Against Sites Like Expedia and Priceline

September 1, 2015  ·  Mark Reback

<p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="158" data-total-count="158" id="story-continues-1" itemprop="articleBody">For years, travelers have been drawn to online sites like <a href="http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/business/companies/expedia-inc/index.html?inline=nyt-org" title="More information about Expedia Inc">Expedia</a>, Travelocity, <a href="http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/business/companies/orbitz-worldwide-inc/index.html?inline=nyt-org" title="More information about Orbitz Worldwide Inc">Orbitz</a> and Priceline to find and reserve hotel rooms, flights and rental

Woman Fights Health Insurer In Months-Long Wait For Birth Control

August 26, 2015  ·  Mark Reback

<p>Frustrated by a potentially six-month wait to obtain birth control, a Tarzana woman has launched a social media campaign against her health insurer, saying the company’s list of physicians is misleading and a referral to an out-of-network provider would mean fronting a $1,200 bill.</p>

Will Google Choose The Next President?

August 21, 2015  ·  John M. Simpson

<p>Many of us worry that companies with an abundance of cash and a willingness to use it can unfairly influence<img class=" alignright size-full wp-image-2519" alt="" src="https://consumerwatchdog.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/images_googleevil2-75x75.jpg" style="width: 175px; height: 175px; float: right;" width="75" height="75" /> elections and politicians.  Google — or do we call it Alphabet these days — has demonstrated a willingness to throw around big bucks to achieve its goals, but two researchers have shown how the Internet giant poses an even greater threat through its search engine.</p>

Robot Car Crashes Need Police Oversight, Says Watchdog

August 21, 2015  ·  Mark Reback

<div class="panel-pane pane-node-body clear article left no-title block"> <div class="pane-content"> <div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden view-mode-_custom_display"> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item even"> <p>A watchdog group is asking California police and the Department of Motor Vehicles to investigate any crashes involving <a href="http://www.pddnet.com/events/2015/02/motor-trends-additive-manufacturing-drives-production-race-ready-cars?cmpid=regwallcontent" target="_blank" rel="noopener">experimental autonomous cars</a>.</p>

Consumer Watchdog To Google & Self-Driving Car Companies, “Show Us The Video/Data & Police Investigations!”

August 21, 2015  ·  Mark Reback

<p>Consumer Watchdog is asking the California Department of Motor Vehicles to amend its Autonomous Vehicle Regulation to require that police investigate any crashes of robot cars being tested on public roads. They also urge the DMV to require any data and video gathered by a self-driving car just before and during a crash should be provided to the department. The video and data – with personally identifying information redacted – should be released to the public.</p>

Consumer Group Wants Investigations For All Self-Driving Car Crashes

August 21, 2015  ·  Mark Reback

<p>A leading consumer group called upon California officials Thursday to strengthen oversight of crashes involving self-driving cars. Consumer Watchdog, a nonprofit organization based in the state, asked California's Department of Motor Vehicles to amend regulations to require police to investigate any crashes involving <a class="injectedLinkmain" href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/autonomous/">autonomous cars</a> on public roads.

Santa Monica Watchdog Group Urges Defeat of Initiative Fee Hike

August 18, 2015  ·  Mark Reback

<p>Santa Monica-based Consumer Watchdog urged the California State Assembly Monday to defeat a bill co-sponsored by former Santa Monica Mayor Richard Bloom that would hike the ballot initiative filing fee from $200 to $2,000.</p> <p>AB 1100, co-sponsored with Evan Low, D-Campbell, has been approved by the State Senate and is awaiting a vote by state representatives.</p>

AH&LA and Consumer Watchdog Seek to Block Expedia-Orbitz Merger

August 18, 2015  ·  Mark Reback

<p>Nonprofit advocacy group Consumer Watchdog joined the American Hotel & Lodging Association in opposing the proposed $1.3 billion merger of Expedia and Orbitz, calling for the need to maintain competition and fair prices.</p> <p>"The proposed deal would give the combined company monopolistic control of the online-booking market, enabling it to impose higher fees on hotels, which would inevitably mean higher costs for consumers," wrote John M. Simpson, Consumer Watchdog's privacy project director, in a letter to the Justice Department.</p>

CURES Controversy Rekindled

August 13, 2015  ·  Mark Reback

<p><a href="http://www.chfs.ky.gov/os/oig/KASPER.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A yearlong study</a> released last month suggests Kentucky's new law requiring physicians and pharmacists to register with and use the state's new electronic prescription drug monitoring system is working.</p> <p>Two weeks ago, New Jersey became the 10th state to establish a "meaningful mandate" requiring physicians to check a database before prescribing certain drugs, according to the Brandeis Prescription Drug Monitoring Program Center of Excellence.</p> <p>California is not one of the 10.</p>

Some Reservations About Expedia’s Acquisition of Orbitz

August 13, 2015  ·  Mark Reback

<p>A consumer activist group and the hotel industry are both urging the U.S. Department of Justice to block travel-booking site Expedia Inc.’s proposed acquisition of Orbitz Worldwide Inc.</p> <p>John Simpson, privacy project director of Consumer Watchdog, wrote a letter this week to the DOJ, urging it to block the $1.3 billion deal, which was reached on Feb. 12. The American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) last week issued a similar statement, saying the merger would harm both consumers and small hotel owners and franchisees.</p>

Magid On Tech: Looking Forward To Big Things From Alphabet, Google’s New Parent

August 12, 2015  ·  Mark Reback

<p class="bodytextragright"><span id="mn_Global"><span id="MNGiSection">Disclosure: Larry Magid is CEO of <a href="http://ConnectSafely.org">ConnectSafely.org</a>, a nonprofit Internet safety organization that receives contributions from Google and other tech companies.</span></span></p>