Here’s another strong hint that technology is making us dumber, and more critically, less sympathetic people. British scientists published a study last month showing that second screeners — people who watch TV while playing with their cell phones, for example — have smaller brains in places where it matters: a [Keep reading]
Digital criminals inventing and exploiting identities out of thin air, rather than impersonating real consumers, are a fast-growing menace, according to a new report from fraud-fighting firm ID Analytics. This relatively new form of identity fraud, called synthetic identity fraud, involves criminals using random Social Security numbers, mismatched names and [Keep reading]
Some less-than-above-board debt collectors deploy a number of unsavory tactics while trying to persuade consumers to give them money, but none worse than this: trying to collect on debts that just don’t exist. It happens, often. Sometimes, bad records are to blame. Debt notes are often sold, re-sold and re-sold [Keep reading]
Everything we do, kind or evil, ripples through life like the waves that violently and then gently ripple out from a peddle dropped in a pond. Every act, part of a fabric. Many times, we won’t even live to see the consequences of our actions; or they are so distant [Keep reading]
John Southerland knows where every penny goes. In fact, after reading other Restless Project budgets, he sent me a spreadsheet detailing all of his family’s expenses for the past 10 years. And his perspective is simple: For his family, a middle-class income doesn’t support a middle-class way of life. “I [Keep reading]
Uber, the controversial digital-age private taxi service, is driving around something other than passengers today. It’s driving around nurses, offering free flu shots on demand to customers who request them, as part of a one-day experiment in New York, Boston, and Washington D.C. Ordering a flu shot is pretty much [Keep reading]
At church recently, a friend expressed shock that a family might pay $2,500 or so per month for their mortgage. “Their house must be too big,” she said, in essence. I objected, saying such house payments are pretty common. But I wanted to be more specific, so I worked with [Keep reading]
I’ve talked a lot in The Restless Project about how Americans’ work-life balance is non-existent — stolen by technology, the recession, and data-wielding companies. Today comes further evidence of that in a report that, with a nice twist, assigns a dollar value to it. Here’s the awful truth: You volunteer, [Keep reading]
Borrowers stuck with oppressive private student loan debts continue to get little mercy from lenders, which is bad for both consumers and the financial institutions, according to a report issued Thursday by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. While distressed mortgage holders have several opportunities to appeal for lower monthly payments, and federal [Keep reading]
Credit cards equipped with smart chip technology are slowing edging towards reality here in the States. On Friday, The White House announced it would start requiring government-issued credit and debit cards be equipped with chips. That means folks who receive federal benefits on debit cards will get new plastic with [Keep reading]
Bob Sullivan