Tag: fines
Property register fines worth £1bn not yet imposed
Ask Slashdot: Should Libraries Eliminate Fines for Overdue Books?
Fines account for less than 1 percent of Chicago Public Library’s revenue stream, and there is also a collection cost in terms of staff time, keeping cash on hand, banking and accounting. The San Diego library system did a detailed study and found the costs were higher than the fines collected, says Molloy.
And this week the King County Library System in Washington state — serving one million patrons in 50 libraries — joined the trend, announcing that it would end all late fines for overdue books.
A local newspaper summarized the results of a six-month review by library staff presented to the Board of Trustees:
– In recent years, fines made up less than 1% of KCLS’ operating budget.
– Late fine revenue continues to decrease over time. This trend correlates with patrons’ interest in more digital and fewer physical items. Digital titles return automatically and do not accrue late fines.
– Collecting fines from patrons also has costs. Associated expenses include staff time, payment processing fees, printing notices and more.
– A majority of peer libraries have eliminated late fines.
Now Slashdot reader robotvoice writes:
Library fines were assessed since early last century as an incentive for patrons to return materials and “be responsible.” However, many studies have found that fines disproportionately affect the poor and disadvantaged in our society…
I have collected several anecdotes of dedicated library patrons who were locked out of borrowing because of excessive and punitive fines… I get daily use and enjoyment from library books and materials. While I personally have been scrupulous about paying fines — until they were eliminated — I support the idea that libraries are there to help those with the least access.
What do you think?
Share your own thoughts in the comments. Should libraries eliminate fines for overdue books?
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Former Employee Who Defrauded Apple Sentenced to 3 Years in Prison and $19 Million in Fines
Prasad was part of Apple’s Global Service Supply Chain department between 2008 and 2018, and his job was to buy parts and services from vendors for servicing older devices. In 2011, Prasad started accepting kickbacks, inflating invoices, and stealing parts, causing Apple to pay for components and services that it did not receive.
Two vendors worked with Prasad to steal money from Apple. His schemes included funneling illicit payments from the vendors to his creditors, tricking Apple into paying for components twice, and stealing components purchased by Apple and reselling them to Apple through his co-conspirators. In total, he was found guilty of stealing $17 million through mail and wire fraud.
He will forfeit nearly $5.5 million in assets that the government has already seized, and will need to pay an additional $8 million in forfeiture money. The $13.5 million forfeiture is on top of the $17 million that he must pay to Apple and the $1.8 million he owes to the IRS for not paying taxes on the money he received from Apple.
After serving three years in prison, he will have another three years of supervised release.
This article, “Former Employee Who Defrauded Apple Sentenced to 3 Years in Prison and $19 Million in Fines” first appeared on MacRumors.com
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FTC fines supplement maker $600,000 for ‘review hijacking’ Amazon listings
For the first time, the US Federal Trade Commission has fined an organization for “review hijacking.” In February, the agency accused The Bountiful Company, maker of the Nature’s Bounty brand of vitamins, of deceiving consumers. Between 2020 and 2021, Bountiful abused a feature of Amazon to make it seem like some of its newer supplements had higher product reviews and ratings than they did in reality.
If you have ever bought something on Amazon, you’ve almost certainly interacted with the feature Bountiful attempted to game. Some listings include a set of icons that highlight different “variations” of that same product. For example, if you visit the page for Sony’s popular WH-1000XM5, the feature will highlight that the headphones are available in three different colors. By design, Amazon designed this feature to be narrow. Sellers are supposed to use it to showcase that a product they offer is available in a different color, size, quantity or flavor.
That’s not what The Bountiful Company did. According to the FTC, Bountiful used the feature to give newer products a boost from older, more well-established ones with different formulations. In one internal email the agency obtained, Bountiful lamented that “people did not love” one of its new vitamins but noted sales “spiked the second we variated the pages and they continue to grow.”
On Monday, the FTC said it voted unanimously to approve a consent order that carries a $600,000 fine for Bountiful and bars the company from employing such tactics in the future. “Boosting your products by hijacking another product’s ratings or reviews is a relatively new tactic, but is still plain old false advertising,” said Samuel Levine, the director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection.
“There’s no place for fraud in Amazon’s store. We have proactive measures in place to prevent listing abuse and we continuously monitor our store,” an Amazon spokesperson told Engadget. “Our policies prohibit reviews abuse including offering incentives like gift cards to write positive reviews. We suspend, ban, and take legal action against those who violate these policies and remove inauthentic reviews.”
According to Amazon, “more than 99 percent” of the products people view on its marketplace “contain only authentic reviews.” If you find what you think is a fake review, the company recommends tapping the “Report” button so it can investigate and take action. The spokesperson added Amazon would continue working with FTC and other enforcement agencies to combat fraudsters.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ftc-fines-supplement-maker-600000-for-review-hijacking-amazon-listings-210142185.html?src=rss