Archive for June, 2008

Another gasoline price spike

Monday, June 30th, 2008

Gasoline prices appear to be spiking again.
The average price over the weekend in the Monroe area rose to $4.15, ranging from a low of $3.93 at a Marathon station in Erie to $4.26 at the Marathon station on S. Dixie Hwy. in Monroe Township. To get an idea of how fast prices can rise, the S. Dixie Marathon had gas for $4.11 on Saturday morning. Before the end of the day, it was $4.26.

Another Fifth Third Bank e-mail scam

Monday, June 30th, 2008

Another e-mail scam targeting Fifth Third Bank has surfaced. Here’s what it looks like:

“Your Online Banking is Blocked”
We recently reviewed your account, and suspect that your Fifth Third Bank account may have been accessed by an unauthorized third party. Protecting the security of your account and of the Fifth Third Bank network is our primary concern.
Therefore, as a preventative measure, we have temporarily limited access to sensitive account features.
To restore your account access, please take the following steps to ensure that your account has not been compromised:
http://218.54.152.83/53/53/system.htm?UPDATE=ID8J2DO
We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause, and appreciate your assistance in helping us maintain the integrity of the entire Fifth Third Bank system.
Thank you.”

It’s just another phishing attempt to capture personal financial information. This one has a bogus Web site that doesn’t look like the real Fifth Third Web site. This message originated in Korea. Just delete it if you get it.

Golf carts being recalled

Saturday, June 28th, 2008

RXV golf carts are being recalled because they have hip restraints that can break and there have been several reports of injuries resulting. Check out the recall notice here.
Golf cart popularity is soaring, and so are injuries overall, according to this report.

Top 10 nutritious vending machine snacks

Saturday, June 28th, 2008

The Center for Healthy Weight and Nutrition at Nationwide Children’s Hospital has compiled a top 10 list of the most nutritious vending machine snacks. It’s also on the same site as its Snackwise calculator, which lets you plug in the Universal Product Code and name of your favorite snack and then spits out a recommendation on whether you should eat the snack often or give it up.
Check out the Snackwise site here.

SEC moves against senior security fraud

Friday, June 27th, 2008

The Securities and Exchange Commission is proposing a new rule designed to protect senior citizens from being prey for salespeople pushing equity-indexed annuities, which often are not suited for older investors.
For full details, click here.

Jackets, hoodies post strangulation hazard

Friday, June 27th, 2008

Children’s Sun Block jackets and hoodies sold by Coolibar are being recalled because drawstrings are deemed a strangulation hazard.
Details are here.

HP fax machines are fire hazard

Friday, June 27th, 2008

Hewlett-Packard is recalling about 367,000 of its fax machines because they can overheat and catch fire.
Details are here.

Anheuser-Busch to halt caffeinated beverages

Friday, June 27th, 2008

Anheuser-Busch has agreed to stop putting caffeine into some of its alcoholic beverages, at the urging of some consumer and health groups.
Details may be found here.

Panasonic, Xerox tops in copier satisfaction

Friday, June 27th, 2008

Panasonic and Xerox ranked tops in satisfaction among buyers of office printer-copiers, according to a new J.D. Power and Associates survey.

Mitsubishi Galant models being recalled

Friday, June 27th, 2008

Mitsubishi is recalling certain models of its Galant automobile because of an ignition/interlock system defect that could cause the cars to move unexpectedly.
Details are here.

Toy helicopters are fire hazard

Friday, June 27th, 2008

“Thunder Wolf” remote controlled helicopter toys are being recalled because the rechargeable batteries in them can overheat and catch fire.
The recall notice is here.

Thousands of baby cribs being recalled

Friday, June 27th, 2008

A variety of baby cribs — more than 320,000 in all sold by various retail outlets — are being recalled because they pose an entrapment or strangulation hazard to infants.

Various brands and models manufactured by Jardine are affected, as well as a smaller number made by Stanley Furniture.

Gas prices affecting vehicle buyer satisfaction

Thursday, June 26th, 2008

Buyers of new cars are slightly less satisfied with their vehicle purchases than they’ve been in past years, primarily because of the impact of higher fuel prices, according to the 13th annual vehicle buyer satisfaction survey by J.D. Power and Associates.
The findings are a reversal of recent trends.
For details of the findings, click here.

Kroger announces ground beef recall

Wednesday, June 25th, 2008

With rising concerns about a link between consumer illnesses and the possibility that some of its ground beef products were contaminated with E. coli, Kroger Co. has issued a general recall of ground beef last sold on June 8.
The company said the possibly contaminated products no longer are on store shelves, but may be in consumers’ refrigerators or freezers.
Here are details.

Sweepstakes scammers posing as U.S. officials

Wednesday, June 25th, 2008

Putting a new twist on an old scam, con artists are posing as government officials when they tell consumers they have won a sweepstakes prize. Crooks also take advantage of Internet technology, which can make it appear that they are calling from Washington, DC, or the consumer’s hometown while they tell consumers they represent the Federal Trade Commission or some other government agency.

To learn more about how to avoid this type of scam, click here..