America is about to learn, again, the sad insurance lessons of wind vs. water. When hurricanes hit, standard homeowners insurance covers damage caused by wind — a tree blown down on a house, for example — but not damage caused by water from flooding. This means you should double-check your [Keep reading]
I’ve written several times about the connection between domestic violence and mass murder. Nearly every time a heinous event involving a mass shooting occurs, the murderer has a history of violence at home. We just had a chilling reminder of this in Charlottesville — James Alex Fields, who drove through [Keep reading]
Bob’s note: Getting justice, and fairness, doesn’t involve getting mad, or getting even: It involves knowing the law. Few things scare misbehaving corporations more than consumers who know their rights. This new series with consumer attorney Jeff Carton of Denlea & Carton will try to give you some basic tools so [Keep reading]
Con men always need a dance partner. I’ve spent 25 years writing about scams, and I’ve interviewed 1,000s of victims. I’ve talked to 90-somethings who are sure a woman (or man) in Nigeria loves them and just needs money for a flight home. To people who are sure that [Keep reading]
For years, security researchers and consumers have been fixated on concerns around hacking cars. Maybe they should worry about ship hacking instead. Several recent collisions involving U.S. Naval vessels have sparked speculation that someone or something is interfering with the ships’ ability to steer clear of other vessels in busy [Keep reading]
RED TAPE WRESTLING TIPS Fake eclipse glasses are dangerous Make sure you know the source of yours If you don’t have plans for Monday, stay home. Eclipse traffic is going to be a nightmare Most scammers want to rob you blind. But eclipse glass scammers could, quite literally, make you [Keep reading]
In all the noise of this week’s events, it would be easy to miss some dramatic news out of Kiev today. So I’ll amplify it here. A Ukrainian hacker who wrote code that might have helped hack the U.S. election — and other political events around the world — has [Keep reading]
When the lights go down on small-town America next week, Eclipse chasers are guaranteed to see a heck of a show. Not much else is guaranteed, however. I explained the tricky problems facing towns in the “zone of totality” for CNBC.com this week. You can read that story here. Below [Keep reading]
What are the 10 biggest ripoffs Americans complained about last year? And which new, fast-growing ripoffs do you need to know about before they find their way on this dastardly list soon? Read on. Consumers who feel cheated or abused often turn to local or state authorities – instead of [Keep reading]
If you want to understand politicians, don’t bother listening to what they say. They always say whatever they have to say. Instead, listen to what their supporters say. Pay close attention to the crowd a politician attracts. Twenty years ago I created a months-long special project on presidential politics called [Keep reading]
Bob Sullivan