A third of people who complain about debt-collectors who break the law say they don't even owe the money under discussion. Of the victims who complained to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau about being hounded for money they don't owe, two thirds say they never owed it, and a third say they had already paid it off. Debt-collectors call wrong numbers or hassle people with names similar to those of debtors. They call them at work and at home, and use threats and obscene language when they're told they've got the wrong person. One offender, CashCall Inc, is being sued over its practices, and was separately ordered to refund $14M in debts it collected through fraudulent robo-signing.
Debt collectors illegally hound people who don't owe money
Florida town accidentally sold its water tower to local businessman
In Brooksville, Florida, personal trainer Bobby Read purchased a municipal building to convert into a fitness center. He paid $55,000. Turns out though that the deed also included the town's water tower. While the right thing to do would have been for Read to start selling the water back to the town at inflated prices,… READ THE REST
Verizon dumps AOL and Yahoo in fire sale
There was a time when AOL was on track to becoming the biggest media empire in the world (in 2000 AOL bought Time Warner for $182 billion). There was a time when Yahoo was synonymous with the World Wide Web (in 1999 its market cap was $125 billion). Today Verizon managed to get fifty cents… READ THE REST
China's Ant Group plans to sell EyeVerify, U.S.-based biometric security firm that scans your eyeballs
China's Ant Group plans to sell off its U.S.-based biometric security firm EyeVerify, which identifies you by scanning your eyeballs. The sale comes as tension grows between Beijing and Washington over how and where sensitive user data is hosted, the Financial Times reports. From Reuters: EyeVerify, based in Kansas City, Missouri, designs eye verification technology… READ THE REST
Are you a hot sleeper? Stay frosty this summer with a chilled water sleep cooling system.
Trying to sleep during the height of the summer heat isn't always easy. If you live in a warm climate and if you have upstairs bedrooms, you know the heat rises — and while the air conditioning keeps things feeling comfortable downstairs, that isn't always the case upstairs. Once you throw some sheets and blankets… READ THE REST
The KingCamp Pop-Up Roof Tent will turn your SUV into a glorious camping base camp
No one wants to sleep on soggy, unstable, or unsafe ground when they go camping. If you've got an SUV, you're probably halfway tempted to just sleep in the vehicle sometimes, even though that kind of defeats the whole outdoor experience. However, you can still use your SUV to your advantage and craft yourself a safe,… READ THE REST
Strengthen your home wireless signal with 6 deals on Wi-Fi mesh networks
We all know the chaos that ensues when your home is suffering through Wi-Fi problems. In this day and age, you might as well just turn off the electricity. Your home basically becomes Frontier House, with everyone plunging back into a pre-internet age that feels more and more alien by the day. For homes dealing… READ THE REST
