Consumer News: New AARP Livability Index Platform picks top spots to live

Scam Checker brings phone lookups, link checks, and reports from other users into one place

By Mark Huffman of ConsumerAffairs

• Truecaller has launched a free Scam Checker that examines suspicious phone numbers, web links, and scam descriptions.

• The tool is available on Truecallers website worldwide without an account. Its Android app rollout has begun in India.

• A safe result is one signal, not a reason to trust an unexpected call or message.

A text says you owe a toll. Another claims theres a problem with a delivery. Before clicking the link or calling the number, consumers now have another way to check whether the message resembles a known scam.

Truecaller, the company behind CallerID, has launched Scam Checker, a free tool that lets users search a phone number, examine a web link, or describe a suspicious encounter in their own words. It draws on Truecallers detection systems and scam reports submitted by its users to show relevant warnings and accounts of similar experiences.

Someone who receives a text about an unpaid toll could copy its web address into Scam Checker without opening the link. They could also search the senders number or look for reports describing the same demand. Truecaller says its link checker considers signals including community reports, known phishing databases, and information about the website.

The web version is available globally and does not require a Truecaller account. The company says Scam Checker is also launching in its Android app in India, with more markets and iOS support planned later. More detailed information about a searched phone number, such as an associated name, requires use of Truecallers existing service.

People often sense that something is wrong, but they need a quick way to check before responding, Truecaller CEO Rishit Jhunjhunwala said in the companys announcement.

Truecaller also plans to add screenshot uploads and expand the types of the tool can assess. Those features are not part of the announced launch.

What consumers should keep in mind

Scam Checker can help uncover a reported threat, but a result marked safe should not settle the question on its own. A new scam may not yet have been reported, and a callers apparent identity does not prove that the person contacting you is legitimate.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) advises consumers not to click links in unexpected texts or use the contact information supplied in them.

If a message claims to be from a bank, delivery company, or toll agency, contact that organization through a phone number or website you already know is real. Scam texts can be reported using a phones report junk feature or forwarded to 7726 (SPAM).

More than half of those who became ill are children age 5 or younger

By Mark Huffman of ConsumerAffairs

• Sierra Nevada Cheese Company has recalled all Graziers grass-fed raw milk cheeses amid a multistate E. coli outbreak.

• Federal officials have reported 13 illnesses in nine states, including eight hospitalizations and three cases of a serious kidney complication. No deaths have been reported.

• The cheeses were sold at retailers nationwide and online. Consumers should check their refrigerators and freezers.

Sierra Nevada Cheese Company has recalled its Graziers grass-fed raw milk cheeses after health officials linked them to an E. coli outbreak that has sickened 13 people in nine states.

Eight people have been hospitalized, and three developed hemolytic uremic syndrome, a serious complication that can cause kidney failure, according to the Food and Drug Administration. No deaths have been reported. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says more than half of those who became ill are children age 5 or younger.

The recall covers all Graziers raw milk cheeses: medium cheddar, sharp cheddar, jalapeo jack and Monterey jack. They were sold in 8-ounce and 16-ounce retail packages and supplied to food service customers and wholesalers in 5-pound loaves. The FDA says the cheeses were sold at retailers nationwide and online.

Cases have been reported in California, Colorado, Georgia, Kentucky, Michigan, Nevada, Oregon, Tennessee and Utah. Of nine people interviewed about what they ate before becoming ill, all nine reported eating Graziers grass-fed raw milk cheese. The FDA says its investigation is continuing to determine the source of contamination and whether other products are affected. F

What consumers should do

Do not eat the recalled cheese. Throw it away or return it to the place of purchase for a refund. Because cheese can be kept for a long time, the FDA advises checking freezers as well as refrigerators. If cheese was removed from its packaging and you cannot tell whether it is part of the recall, throw it away. Wash and sanitize containers, utensils and surfaces that may have touched it. Restaurants and retailers should not serve or sell the recalled products.

E. coli symptoms can include severe stomach cramps, diarrhea that may be bloody, and vomiting. Symptoms may begin a few days after eating contaminated food or as long as nine days later. The CDC advises calling a health care provider right away for bloody diarrhea, diarrhea lasting more than two days without improvement, a fever above 102 degrees, persistent vomiting or signs of dehydration.

The CDC recommends choosing pasteurized milk and dairy products, particularly for children under 5, who face a greater risk of severe foodborne illness.

It urges consumers to remain alert to being gouged

By Mark Huffman of ConsumerAffairs

• An advocacy group says Walmarts patents and shopping technology raise concerns about personalized pricing.

• Walmarts CEO says the company does not charge different prices based on a shoppers identity, history or urgency, and promises it will not do so.

• A patent describes ways prices could vary, but it does not establish that Walmart uses those methods.

As ConsumerAffairs reported this week, Walmarts CEO has issued a letter to customers, pledging not to use surveillance pricing as it transitions to digital shelf tags. But a consumer group claims thats an exercise in damage control.

In a September 25 statement, Groundwork Collaborative said Walmarts electronic shelf labels, AI shopping assistant and patents warrant closer scrutiny. The groups president and CEO, Lindsay Owens, argues that the retailer has developed tools that could be used to vary prices according to customers behavior.

Technology patents questioned

According to the consumer group, the dispute centers partly on a Walmart patent granted in 2023. It describes a system for updating electronic shelf labels and gives an example in which a shopper with tuna in a cart could be offered a different price for mayonnaise.

It also discusses changing a price when supply is low and demand is high. Those examples show what the patent contemplates; they do not show that Walmart has put those pricing methods into use.

Groundwork also points to the performance of Sparky, Walmarts AI shopping assistant. At a September investor conference, Walmart U.S. President and CEO Dave Guggina said customers who engage with Sparky have an average order value 40% higher. He described the assistant as suggesting items that could help complete a meal or another shopping task. To be clearm the figure does not, by itself, indicate that Sparky changes the prices shoppers pay.

Other companies

In her recently published book Gouged, Owens makes clear that Groundwork is scrutinizing retailers other than Walmart. She argues that technology has made it easier for companies to test what individual customers will pay and to adjust prices with little visibility for shoppers.

The books published description points to added fees for event tickets, changing ride-share fares and software that landlords use to set rents. Owens also raises concerns about driving data being shared with insurers and potentially affecting premiums.

One example comes from Owens research with Consumer Reports on Instacart. In tests conducted at the same stores at nearly the same time, shoppers were shown prices for identical grocery items that differed by as much as 23%. Instacart said the differences came from limited pricing tests run for retail partners, disputed describing them as surveillance pricing, and said it ended the tests in December 2025.

Owens also discusses RealPage, whose software recommends apartment rents to landlords. She argues that sharing pricing data through such systems can help keep rents high even when apartments are vacant.

The Justice Department brought an antitrust case against RealPage and reached a proposed settlement in 2025 that would restrict its use of competitors sensitive information and certain pricing features.

The settlement resolves the governments claims, but it should not be read as a court finding that every rent recommendation was unlawful. L

Together, the examples illustrate Owens broader claim: as technology evolves, consumers may have difficulty judging whether a price reflects ordinary costs and competition when the decisions behind it are hidden in data and software.

Consumers can pair instructions for their phone with those for their wireless provider

By Mark Huffman of ConsumerAffairs

• The FCC has released step-by-step guides to help consumers block and filter unwanted calls and texts.

• The guides cover iPhones, Android phones and services from AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon.

• Many of the tools are free or included in phone plans, though availability depends on the device and service.

The Federal Communications Commission has published five new guides showing consumers how to turn on tools that block or filter unwanted calls and texts.

The guides are designed to help people find protections already available through their phones or wireless service. Two cover Apple and Google devices; the other three cover services offered by AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon.

The FCC recommends choosing the guide for your phone and the guide for your provider. An iPhone customer with T-Mobile service, for example, would use both of those instruction cards, then decide which features to enable.

Many of the features cost nothing extra or are included in a customers plan, the agency said.

All three carriers also offer free ways to report unwanted incoming calls and texts. Consumers should check what is included in their own plan before turning on a feature that may carry a charge.

Practical solutions

The guides give consumers a practical way to reduce interruptions, but the FCC does not promise that filtering will stop every unwanted call or text. Consumers can review the available settings and choose the protections that work best for them.

Combatting the scourge of illegal robocalls remains the FCCs top consumer protection priority, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said. The agency said the guides are part of its broader effort to curb illegal robocalls and robotexts.

In 2025, consumers were inundated with approximately 52.5 billion automated calls. While roughly 57% were flagged as sales pitches or fraudulent, tracking metrics do not break out from general telemarketing. Consequently, exact national statistics on the proportion of unwanted communications tied to remain unavailable.

Recently, Carr released a Public Notice seeking comment on the creation of a new consumer tool, a Robocall Scorecard, aiming to empower consumers to make informed choices when it comes to their voice service provider. These new consumer resources mark the latest step in the Commissions broader effort to attack and stop illegal robocalls at every point in their life cycle.

The numbers suggest that an increasing number of homeowners are struggling

By Mark Huffman of ConsumerAffairs

• More than 40,000 U.S. properties had a foreclosure filing in August, up 13% from a year earlier.

• Lenders began foreclosure proceedings on 25,894 properties, a 7% annual increase.

• Completed foreclosures rose 42% from August 2025, though overall activity remains below pre-pandemic levels.

While the rate of foreclosures is nowhere near the level during the housing market crash nearly two decades ago, the rate is beginning to rise, albeit slowly.

South Carolina had the highest foreclosure rate in August, while Texas recorded the most completed foreclosures.

Foreclosure activity continued to climb in August, with 40,277 U.S. properties receiving a foreclosure filing, according to property data firm ATTOM. That was 13% more than in August 2025 and 1% more than in July.

Foreclosure is a process, with only the last stage resulting in a homeowner's loss of a house. However, filings and other steps in the process signal trouble for homeowners trying to pay their monthly mortgage.

The figures cover several stages of the process, including default notices, scheduled auctions and lender repossessions. A filing therefore does not mean a homeowner has already lost the property.

Lenders started foreclosure proceedings on 25,894 properties in August, up 7% from a year earlier but down 3% from July. Florida recorded the most starts, at 3,189, followed by Texas with 3,126 and California with 2,565.

Completed foreclosures rose more sharply. Lenders repossessed 5,794 properties in August, a 42% increase from a year earlier and a 22% increase from July. Texas accounted for 1,835 of those repossessions, the most of any state.

Where foreclosure rates were highest

Nationwide, one in every 3,569 housing units had a foreclosure filing during the month. South Carolina had the highest rate, at one in every 1,547 housing units. Nevada, Florida, Texas and Maryland followed. Among metropolitan areas with at least 200,000 residents, Columbia, South Carolina, had the highest rate.

The annual increases point to more homeowners reaching the foreclosure process, but ATTOM cautioned against reading the figures as a return to the levels seen in earlier housing downturns. The company said overall foreclosure activity remains below pre-pandemic norms.

What to do

Homeowners who are having trouble making mortgage payments should contact their mortgage servicer as soon as possible, even if they have not missed a payment. The phone number is on the monthly mortgage statement. Explain what caused the hardship, whether it is temporary or ongoing, and ask to apply for foreclosure prevention assistance. Waiting until a foreclosure notice arrives can limit the time available to work out a solution.

Depending on the loan and the homeowners circumstances, the servicer may offer a temporary payment pause or reduction, a plan to catch up on missed payments, or a loan modification. Some borrowers may qualify to move past-due amounts to the end of the loan. A pause does not erase missed payments, so homeowners should ask how and when those amounts will be repaid before agreeing to a plan.

Homeowners can also get free foreclosure prevention advice from a HUD-approved housing counselor. Counselors can help review the options, prepare an application and communicate with the mortgage company. To find one, call 800-569-4287 or use HUDs housing counseling search.

Those whose hardship was connected to COVID-19 can also check whether their state or tribal Homeowner Assistance Fund program is still accepting applications. Funding is limited, and the program is scheduled to end in September 2026 or sooner if local funds run out.

Anyone who has received legal papers or a foreclosure sale date should seek help immediately and consider contacting legal aid. Homeowners should be wary of companies that demand an upfront fee, promise to stop foreclosure or tell them to send mortgage payments somewhere other than their servicer.