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Facebook Twitter WhatsApp SMS Email Print Copy article link Save BEIRUT — Hezbollah fired about 250 rockets and other projectiles into Israel on Sunday, wounding seven people in one of the militant group's heaviest barrages in months, in response to deadly Israeli strikes in Beirut while negotiators pressed on with cease-fire efforts to halt the all-out war. An Israeli bomb squad policeman carries the remains of a rocket that was fired from Lebanon on Sunday in Kibbutz Kfar Blum, northern Israel. Some of the rockets reached the Tel Aviv area in the heart of Israel. Meanwhile, an Israeli strike on an army center killed a Lebanese soldier and wounded 18 others in the southwest between Tyre and Naqoura, Lebanon's military said. The Israeli military expressed regret, saying that the strike occurred in an area of combat against Hezbollah and that the military's operations are directed solely against the militants. Israeli strikes have killed over 40 Lebanese troops since the start of the war between Israel and Hezbollah, even as Lebanon's military has largely kept to the sidelines. People are also reading... Margaret Atwood OSU event altered over threats Tree farm fiasco has Corvallis homelessness under microscope The real reason Corvallis' Pastega Lights moved to Linn County Bomb cyclone, flood risk in Benton County this week Albany's Joel Dahl pleads guilty to sex crime involving minor Strike over: Benton County, union reach tentative deal Philomath woman suspected in Eugene Airport bomb scare Commentary: Gulbranson shows he should be starter in thrilling win over Cougars What's available from Benton County services as strike nears Week 2 Sweet Home man sentenced for crash that injured his daughter American flag thrown by driver fleeing Benton County deputies In trying to flee, suspect accused of driving over Albany police officer OSU football: It's time to look ahead to next year OSU women's basketball: Ferreira brings versatility to the Beavers' lineup Tensions rise, as Albany strike enters second week Lebanon's caretaker prime minister, Najib Mikati, condemned the latest strike as an assault on U.S.-led cease-fire efforts, calling it a “direct, bloody message rejecting all efforts and ongoing contacts” to end the war. Hezbollah began firing rockets, missiles and drones into Israel after Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack out of the Gaza Strip ignited the war there. Hezbollah has portrayed the attacks as an act of solidarity with the Palestinians and Hamas. Iran supports both armed groups. The Israeli police bomb squad inspects the site after a missile fired from Lebanon hit the area Sunday in Petah Tikva, outskirts of Tel Aviv, Israel. Israel launched retaliatory airstrikes at Hezbollah, and in September the low-level conflict erupted into all-out war as Israel launched airstrikes across large parts of Lebanon and killed Hezbollah's top leader, Hassan Nasrallah. The Israeli military said about 250 projectiles were fired Sunday, with some intercepted. Israel’s Magen David Adom rescue service said it treated seven people, including a 60-year old man in severe condition from rocket fire on northern Israel, a 23-year-old man who was lightly wounded by a blast in the central city of Petah Tikva, near Tel Aviv, and a 70-year-old woman who suffered smoke inhalation from a car that caught fire there. In Haifa, a rocket hit a residential building that police said was in danger of collapsing. The Palestine Red Crescent reported 13 injuries it said were caused by an interceptor missile that struck several homes in Tulkarem in the West Bank. It was unclear whether injuries and damage were caused by rockets or interceptors. Sirens wailed again in central and northern Israel hours later. Israeli airstrikes without warning on Saturday pounded central Beirut, killing at least 29 people and wounding 67, according to Lebanon's Health Ministry. A flock of birds flies above the smoke from Israeli airstrikes Sunday in Dahiyeh, Beirut. Smoke billowed above Beirut again Sunday with new strikes. Israel's military said it targeted command centers for Hezbollah and its intelligence unit in the southern suburbs of Dahiyeh, where the militants have a strong presence. Israeli attacks have killed more than 3,700 people in Lebanon, according to the Health Ministry. The fighting has displaced about 1.2 million people, or a quarter of Lebanon’s population. On the Israeli side, about 90 soldiers and nearly 50 civilians have been killed by bombardment in northern Israel and in battle following Israel's ground invasion in early October. Around 60,000 Israelis have been displaced from the country's north. EU urges immediate halt to Israel-Hezbollah war The EU's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell called for an "immediate ceasefire" in the Israel-Hezbollah war while on a visit to the Lebanese c... The European Union’s top diplomat called Sunday for more pressure on Israel and Hezbollah to reach a deal, saying one was "pending with a final agreement from the Israeli government.” U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein was in the region last week. Josep Borrell spoke after meeting with Mikati and Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, a Hezbollah ally who has been mediating with the group. Borrell said the EU is ready to allocate $208 million to assist the Lebanese military. But Borrell later said that he did not “see the Israeli government interested clearly in reaching an agreement for a cease-fire" and that it seemed Israel was seeking new conditions. He pointed to Israel’s refusal to accept France as a member of the international committee that would oversee the cease-fire's implementation. The emerging agreement would pave the way for the withdrawal of Hezbollah militants and Israeli troops from southern Lebanon below the Litani River in accordance with the U.N. Security Council resolution that ended the monthlong 2006 war. Lebanese troops would patrol with the presence of U.N. peacekeepers. With talks for a cease-fire and hostage release deal in Gaza stalled, freed hostages and families of those held marked a year since the war's only hostage-release deal. “It’s hard to hold on to hope, certainly after so long and as another winter is about to begin," said Yifat Zailer, cousin of Shiri Bibas, who is held along with her husband and two young sons. Around 100 hostages are still in Gaza, at least a third believed to be dead. Most of the rest of the 250 who were abducted in the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack were released in last year's cease-fire. Talks for another deal recently had several setbacks, including the firing of Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, who pushed for a deal, and Qatar’s decision to suspend its mediation. Hamas wants Israel to end the war and withdraw all troops from Gaza. Israel has offered only to pause its offensive. The Palestinian death toll from the war surpassed 44,000 this week, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count. On Sunday, six people were killed in strikes in central Gaza, according to AP journalists at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah. Buyer beware: How to spot fake online shopping sites Buyer beware: How to spot fake online shopping sites How often do you buy something online ? A couple of times a month? A couple of times a week? A couple of times a day? Everybody's answer will be different, but collectively, it's done a lot: Online retail accounted for over $1 trillion of purchases in the U.S. in 2022 and a record $277.6 billion in the second quarter of 2023 alone. Retailers ranging from titans like Amazon and Walmart, down to local small-town shops work very hard to land their share of that business. Sadly and inevitably—so do criminals and scammers. At any given moment, they operate millions of bogus sites. So how can you spot those fake online shopping sites? Spokeo provides a guide. It's Easy to Create an Online Presence In the early days of the internet , it took some genuine skills to set up a website, but those days are gone. A quick search will show that there are lots of apps and services offering websites on a prefabricated "fill in the blanks" basis, and most web hosts provide those tools as part of the service when someone signs up with them. It's even easier on social media . If you were opening a "side hustle" business tomorrow from your home, you could set up your own Facebook page tonight in under an hour, with exactly zero knowledge of websites. Once that page is set up, you just need to throw a few dollars in the direction of Facebook's advertising department, and they'll start advertising your page to users. It's no harder to promote a website, except in that case, you'd give your advertising dollars to Google. This is a simplified overview, but the main point holds: Establishing a presence online has become a very democratized process, open to anyone with minimal skills and even the smallest budget for advertising. That's been a boon for legitimate entrepreneurs, but it also makes life very easy indeed for scammers. How Bogus Websites Steal Money and Information There are multiple types of bogus websites . Some are imposters, created to look very much like a legitimate commercial or government site that you're familiar with, such as Amazon or Netflix. Others don't imitate a specific site, but instead attempt to capture the look and feel of those sites in general (whether that be a retail site, a government or bank page, or even something relatively shady like a gambling or porn site). Next, scammers find ways to drive traffic to their site. Often that's through phishing texts or emails, but deceptive ads on social media or search engines like Google and Bing work just as well. Once a browser arrives at the criminals' site (or, in some cases, downloads their app), any number of bad things can happen. One is that they'll download malware onto your devices, which can capture passwords or steal personal information. A more straightforward risk is that the browser will cheerfully enter their personal and banking/credit card information, thinking they're making a legitimate purchase. That's largely why fake online shopping sites are so dangerous, and so useful to scammers and identity thieves. How Fake Online Shopping Sites Work Most bogus sites share some or all of those characteristics, but shopping sites are a very specific type of bogus site with some quirks of their own. One characteristic to count on—whether the website directly impersonates a major retailer like Amazon, a niche retailer like MEC, or just positions itself as an anonymously general retail site—is that it will offer unusually low pricing on high-demand products. That might be a mass-market item like the latest gaming console, a suddenly in-demand item that's unavailable through normal channels (remember trying to get masks and sanitizing wipes during COVID-19?), or something as mundane as disposable diapers or high-capacity computer drives. Whatever the product, the advertised price will be low enough to get attention. The bogus site will have any number of ways to transfer a browser's money to its coffers, depending on the scammers' intentions and skillset. A few of the most common include: Products that are damaged, refurbished, low-quality fakes, or otherwise not as described (and therefore, not worth nearly what was paid for them). Products that never arrive at all after they've been paid for (this is the most common variation.) Hidden fees, surcharges, or shipping charges that dramatically inflate the price of the (usually substandard) product. Charging a "restocking fee" before processing a refund or return (which, of course, they subsequently don't do). These are all aside from the potential to infect devices or steal payment information . Sites focused on identity theft might consider a faux purchase to be just the added gravy. Fake Online Shopping Sites are a Big (and Year-Round) Problem How common is online shopping fraud? Well, the news is pretty bad. The FTC's 2022 Consumer Sentinel Network Data Book recorded over 327,000 online shopping complaints, the fourth-highest category for overall complaints and second among fraud categories. You would expect these sites to be more prevalent during the final quarter of the year, corresponding to the holiday gift-giving season—Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and Christmas itself—and they are, but that doesn't mean you can relax during the other nine months of the year. The Anti-Phishing Working Group, or APWG, identified nearly a million fake or phishing websites during the first quarter of 2022 alone (not a busy time of year for shopping), for example. To be clear, only 14.6% of those were eCommerce sites, but that still translates to well over 140,000 bogus shopping sites. The true number is almost certainly higher because the APWG only tracks the ones that use a phishing approach. Many opt to simply buy advertising instead (or as well), and those won't be captured in the APWG's statistics. However you slice it, there's a definite risk of encountering these sites when you shop. Recognizing Fake Online Shopping Sites The good news is that bogus shopping sites aren't hard to spot, once you're aware of the risk. They aren't built for permanence; scammers pull them together quickly and cheaply and then abandon them once they stop producing.That "just good enough" approach leaves plenty of visible signs you can detect. Below, here's what to look for when recognizing fake online shopping sites. Bad images Bogus sites don't have direct access to the real products' manufacturing images, so they resort to copying and pasting from legitimate sites. \That means bogus sites' product images (and often their fake logos, if they impersonate a legitimate site) are fuzzy and low-res. A URL that's slightly "off" Imposter sites obviously can't have the same URL as the legitimate site, so they'll usually have a URL that looks right, but isn't quite. They might have a typo in the name, or incorporate the real company's name into their URL in a non-standard way ("myfakesite.amazon.com.123xyz.com"), or—sneakiest of all—use a letter from a different language's character set , which looks the same to the eye, but not to the computer. Broken links The scammers may have simply copied and pasted user interface elements from a legitimate site, in which case many links on the site may be broken (or simply not clickable). Lots of missing elements A legitimate retail website will have several pages of legalese, often starting with a pop-up about its cookie policy or privacy policy. You should certainly expect to see a detailed document spelling out shipping policies, return and refund policies, and similar details. If those are missing or brief and vapid, it's probably a fake site. Limited options for payment Sites that plan to take your money and run will often show oddly specific payment options, from wire transfers to gift cards to cryptocurrency. The thing those payment methods have in common is that it's very difficult to get money back once it's spent. Sites geared around capturing your personal or payment information, on the other hand, may insist on getting your credit card. Typos, grammar, and linguistic errors Simple, silly language errors are often a red flag. Scammers may not be native English speakers, and it shows up in awkward or sometimes inappropriate phrasing. Errors in actual product listings aren't necessarily a smoking gun—you'll see them frequently on real Amazon pages—because they come from the manufacturers, who are often not English speakers. Language errors on the rest of the site are more of a concern. HTTP vs. HTTPS In the address bar of your browser, a legitimate retail site's URL will start with HTTPS, rather than HTTP, and will show a closed lock symbol. The majority of fake sites now also have an HTTPS URL and will show the lock (so this isn't as helpful as it used to be), but less-sophisticated scammers may miss that detail. You can automatically rule those ones out. And, of course, the biggest red flag of all is an unrealistically low price on the product you're looking for. We all want to get a really good deal, but that impulse will often lead you astray. What to Do if You Think a Shopping Site Is Fake If a shopping site fails those basic "eyeball" tests, the smart thing to do is just close that browser tab and walk away. If you want to dig deeper, or if you aren't sure, there are a few quick and easy ways to verify a site's legitimacy. Use a URL/website checker Remember those really sneaky fake URLs that use a letter from another alphabet? The best way to check those (and other problematic elements in a URL) is through a URL verifier/website reputation service, like the ones from URLVoid and Google . Just copy (don't click!) the link, and paste it into the checker. If the site is sketchy, they'll tell you. Look up the site on a registry Domain names all need to be registered and there are several lookup tools to check this, like ICANN's registration lookup (think of it as Spokeo for websites). If a site claims to be Amazon but was registered just a few weeks ago, that's a really big red flag. Similarly, if the site isn't located where it should be, or if the ownership data is obscured, that's grounds for concern. Turn to Google If you have a bad feeling about a particular site, do a quick Google or Bing (or whatever) search that pairs the site's name with keywords like "scam," "fraud," "bogus" or "ripoff" and see what comes up. If you get a lot of hits, that's definitely grounds for concern. Go Forth and Shop (Safely) If a given site fails any or all of those tests, then keeping your wallet in your pocket is definitely the smart choice. Instead of making the purchase, report the site instead to the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center and the FTC's Report Fraud website. That will get the investigative wheels turning and may help protect someone less wary from falling victim to the scammers. As always, wariness and skepticism are your friends when it comes to avoiding scams. Don't click on links in emails, texts , or social media messages; instead, go to the company's site by typing the URL directly. If you search a company's page on Google, scroll down through the actual search results until you find it instead of clicking on the sponsored results or advertisements at the top. Most of all, remember the golden rule of scam avoidance: If it seems too good to be true, it probably is. Keeping those principles in mind, and using the tips given here to screen out dubious sites means you'll be able to shop 'til you drop (safely), despite the vast number of scammers out there. And that—as the credit card ads like to say—is priceless. This story was produced by Spokeo and reviewed and distributed by Stacker. Get local news delivered to your inbox!WEC Energy director Gale Klappa sells $4.4m in stockBEIRUT — Hezbollah fired about 250 rockets and other projectiles into Israel on Sunday, wounding seven people in one of the militant group's heaviest barrages in months, in response to deadly Israeli strikes in Beirut while negotiators pressed on with cease-fire efforts to halt the all-out war. An Israeli bomb squad policeman carries the remains of a rocket that was fired from Lebanon on Sunday in Kibbutz Kfar Blum, northern Israel. Some of the rockets reached the Tel Aviv area in the heart of Israel. Meanwhile, an Israeli strike on an army center killed a Lebanese soldier and wounded 18 others in the southwest between Tyre and Naqoura, Lebanon's military said. The Israeli military expressed regret, saying that the strike occurred in an area of combat against Hezbollah and that the military's operations are directed solely against the militants. Israeli strikes have killed over 40 Lebanese troops since the start of the war between Israel and Hezbollah, even as Lebanon's military has largely kept to the sidelines. Lebanon's caretaker prime minister, Najib Mikati, condemned the latest strike as an assault on U.S.-led cease-fire efforts, calling it a “direct, bloody message rejecting all efforts and ongoing contacts” to end the war. Hezbollah began firing rockets, missiles and drones into Israel after Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack out of the Gaza Strip ignited the war there. Hezbollah has portrayed the attacks as an act of solidarity with the Palestinians and Hamas. Iran supports both armed groups. The Israeli police bomb squad inspects the site after a missile fired from Lebanon hit the area Sunday in Petah Tikva, outskirts of Tel Aviv, Israel. Israel launched retaliatory airstrikes at Hezbollah, and in September the low-level conflict erupted into all-out war as Israel launched airstrikes across large parts of Lebanon and killed Hezbollah's top leader, Hassan Nasrallah. The Israeli military said about 250 projectiles were fired Sunday, with some intercepted. Israel’s Magen David Adom rescue service said it treated seven people, including a 60-year old man in severe condition from rocket fire on northern Israel, a 23-year-old man who was lightly wounded by a blast in the central city of Petah Tikva, near Tel Aviv, and a 70-year-old woman who suffered smoke inhalation from a car that caught fire there. In Haifa, a rocket hit a residential building that police said was in danger of collapsing. The Palestine Red Crescent reported 13 injuries it said were caused by an interceptor missile that struck several homes in Tulkarem in the West Bank. It was unclear whether injuries and damage were caused by rockets or interceptors. Sirens wailed again in central and northern Israel hours later. Israeli airstrikes without warning on Saturday pounded central Beirut, killing at least 29 people and wounding 67, according to Lebanon's Health Ministry. A flock of birds flies above the smoke from Israeli airstrikes Sunday in Dahiyeh, Beirut. Smoke billowed above Beirut again Sunday with new strikes. Israel's military said it targeted command centers for Hezbollah and its intelligence unit in the southern suburbs of Dahiyeh, where the militants have a strong presence. Israeli attacks have killed more than 3,700 people in Lebanon, according to the Health Ministry. The fighting has displaced about 1.2 million people, or a quarter of Lebanon’s population. On the Israeli side, about 90 soldiers and nearly 50 civilians have been killed by bombardment in northern Israel and in battle following Israel's ground invasion in early October. Around 60,000 Israelis have been displaced from the country's north. The EU's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell called for an "immediate ceasefire" in the Israel-Hezbollah war while on a visit to the Lebanese c... The European Union’s top diplomat called Sunday for more pressure on Israel and Hezbollah to reach a deal, saying one was "pending with a final agreement from the Israeli government.” U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein was in the region last week. Josep Borrell spoke after meeting with Mikati and Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, a Hezbollah ally who has been mediating with the group. Borrell said the EU is ready to allocate $208 million to assist the Lebanese military. But Borrell later said that he did not “see the Israeli government interested clearly in reaching an agreement for a cease-fire" and that it seemed Israel was seeking new conditions. He pointed to Israel’s refusal to accept France as a member of the international committee that would oversee the cease-fire's implementation. The emerging agreement would pave the way for the withdrawal of Hezbollah militants and Israeli troops from southern Lebanon below the Litani River in accordance with the U.N. Security Council resolution that ended the monthlong 2006 war. Lebanese troops would patrol with the presence of U.N. peacekeepers. With talks for a cease-fire and hostage release deal in Gaza stalled, freed hostages and families of those held marked a year since the war's only hostage-release deal. “It’s hard to hold on to hope, certainly after so long and as another winter is about to begin," said Yifat Zailer, cousin of Shiri Bibas, who is held along with her husband and two young sons. Around 100 hostages are still in Gaza, at least a third believed to be dead. Most of the rest of the 250 who were abducted in the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack were released in last year's cease-fire. Talks for another deal recently had several setbacks, including the firing of Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, who pushed for a deal, and Qatar’s decision to suspend its mediation. Hamas wants Israel to end the war and withdraw all troops from Gaza. Israel has offered only to pause its offensive. The Palestinian death toll from the war surpassed 44,000 this week, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count. On Sunday, six people were killed in strikes in central Gaza, according to AP journalists at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah. How often do you ? A couple of times a month? A couple of times a week? A couple of times a day? Everybody's answer will be different, but collectively, it's done a lot: Online retail accounted for over $1 trillion of purchases in the U.S. in 2022 and a record $277.6 billion in the second quarter of 2023 alone. Retailers ranging from titans like and Walmart, down to local small-town shops work very hard to land their share of that business. Sadly and inevitably—so do criminals and scammers. At any given moment, they operate millions of bogus sites. So how can you spot those fake online shopping sites? provides a guide. In the early days of the , it took some genuine skills to set up a website, but those days are gone. A quick search will show that there are lots of apps and services offering websites on a prefabricated "fill in the blanks" basis, and most web hosts provide those tools as part of the service when someone signs up with them. It's even easier on . If you were opening a "side hustle" business tomorrow from your home, you could set up your own Facebook page tonight in under an hour, with exactly zero knowledge of websites. Once that page is set up, you just need to throw a few dollars in the direction of Facebook's advertising department, and they'll start advertising your page to users. It's no harder to promote a website, except in that case, you'd give your advertising dollars to Google. This is a simplified overview, but the main point holds: Establishing a presence online has become a very democratized process, open to anyone with minimal skills and even the smallest budget for advertising. That's been a boon for legitimate entrepreneurs, but it also makes life very easy indeed for scammers. There are multiple types of . Some are imposters, created to look very much like a legitimate commercial or government site that you're familiar with, such as Amazon or Netflix. Others don't imitate a specific site, but instead attempt to capture the look and feel of those sites in general (whether that be a retail site, a government or bank page, or even something relatively shady like a gambling or porn site). Next, scammers find ways to drive traffic to their site. Often that's through phishing texts or emails, but deceptive ads on social media or search engines like Google and Bing work just as well. Once a browser arrives at the criminals' site (or, in some cases, downloads their app), any number of bad things can happen. One is that they'll download malware onto your devices, which can capture passwords or steal personal information. A more straightforward risk is that the browser will cheerfully enter their personal and banking/credit card information, thinking they're making a legitimate purchase. That's largely why fake online shopping sites are so dangerous, and so useful to scammers and identity thieves. Most bogus sites share some or all of those characteristics, but shopping sites are a very specific type of bogus site with some quirks of their own. One characteristic to count on—whether the website directly impersonates a major retailer like Amazon, a niche retailer like MEC, or just positions itself as an anonymously general retail site—is that it will offer unusually low pricing on high-demand products. That might be a mass-market item like the latest gaming console, a suddenly in-demand item that's unavailable through normal channels (remember trying to get masks and sanitizing wipes during COVID-19?), or something as mundane as disposable diapers or high-capacity computer drives. Whatever the product, the advertised price will be low enough to get attention. The bogus site will have any number of ways to transfer a browser's money to its coffers, depending on the scammers' intentions and skillset. A few of the most common include: These are all aside from the potential to infect devices or steal . Sites focused on identity theft might consider a faux purchase to be just the added gravy. How common is online shopping fraud? Well, the news is pretty bad. The FTC's recorded over 327,000 online shopping complaints, the fourth-highest category for overall complaints and second among fraud categories. You would expect these sites to be more prevalent during the final quarter of the year, corresponding to the holiday gift-giving season—Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and Christmas itself—and they are, but that doesn't mean you can relax during the other nine months of the year. The Anti-Phishing Working Group, or APWG, identified during the first quarter of 2022 alone (not a busy time of year for shopping), for example. To be clear, only 14.6% of those were eCommerce sites, but that still translates to well over 140,000 bogus shopping sites. The true number is almost certainly higher because the APWG only tracks the ones that use a phishing approach. Many opt to simply buy advertising instead (or as well), and those won't be captured in the APWG's statistics. However you slice it, there's a definite risk of encountering these sites when you shop. The good news is that bogus shopping sites aren't hard to spot, once you're aware of the risk. They aren't built for permanence; scammers pull them together quickly and cheaply and then abandon them once they stop producing.That "just good enough" approach leaves plenty of visible signs you can detect. Below, here's what to look for when recognizing fake online shopping sites. Bogus sites don't have direct access to the real products' manufacturing images, so they resort to copying and pasting from legitimate sites. \That means bogus sites' product images (and often their fake logos, if they impersonate a legitimate site) are fuzzy and low-res. Imposter sites obviously can't have the same URL as the legitimate site, so they'll usually have a URL that looks right, but isn't quite. They might have a typo in the name, or incorporate the real company's name into their URL in a non-standard way ("myfakesite.amazon.com.123xyz.com"), or—sneakiest of all—use , which looks the same to the eye, but not to the computer. The scammers may have simply copied and pasted user interface elements from a legitimate site, in which case many links on the site may be broken (or simply not clickable). A legitimate retail website will have several pages of legalese, often starting with a pop-up about its cookie policy or privacy policy. You should certainly expect to see a detailed document spelling out shipping policies, return and refund policies, and similar details. If those are missing or brief and vapid, it's probably a fake site. Sites that plan to take your money and run will often show oddly specific payment options, from wire transfers to gift cards to cryptocurrency. The thing those payment methods have in common is that it's very difficult to get money back once it's spent. Sites geared around capturing your personal or payment information, on the other hand, may insist on getting your credit card. Simple, silly language errors are often a red flag. Scammers may not be native English speakers, and it shows up in awkward or sometimes inappropriate phrasing. Errors in actual product listings aren't necessarily a smoking gun—you'll see them frequently on real Amazon pages—because they come from the manufacturers, who are often not English speakers. Language errors on the rest of the site are more of a concern. In the address bar of your browser, a legitimate retail site's URL will start with HTTPS, rather than HTTP, and will show a closed lock symbol. The majority of fake sites now also have an HTTPS URL and will show the lock (so this isn't as helpful as it used to be), but less-sophisticated scammers may miss that detail. You can automatically rule those ones out. And, of course, the biggest red flag of all is an unrealistically low price on the product you're looking for. We all want to get a really good deal, but that impulse will often lead you astray. If a shopping site fails those basic "eyeball" tests, the smart thing to do is just close that browser tab and walk away. If you want to dig deeper, or if you aren't sure, there are a few quick and easy ways to verify a site's legitimacy. Remember those really sneaky fake URLs that use a letter from another alphabet? The best way to check those (and other problematic elements in a URL) is through a URL verifier/website reputation service, like the ones from and . Just copy (don't click!) the link, and paste it into the checker. If the site is sketchy, they'll tell you. Domain names all need to be registered and there are several lookup tools to check this, like (think of it as Spokeo for websites). If a site claims to be Amazon but was registered just a few weeks ago, that's a really big red flag. Similarly, if the site isn't located where it should be, or if the ownership data is obscured, that's grounds for concern. If you have a bad feeling about a particular site, do a quick Google or Bing (or whatever) search that pairs the site's name with keywords like "scam," "fraud," "bogus" or "ripoff" and see what comes up. If you get a lot of hits, that's definitely grounds for concern. If a given site fails any or all of those tests, then keeping your wallet in your pocket is definitely the smart choice. Instead of making the purchase, report the site instead to the FBI's and the FTC's website. That will get the investigative wheels turning and may help protect someone less wary from falling victim to the scammers. As always, wariness and skepticism are your friends when it comes to avoiding scams. Don't click on links in emails, , or social media messages; instead, go to the company's site by typing the URL directly. If you search a company's page on Google, scroll down through the actual search results until you find it instead of clicking on the sponsored results or advertisements at the top. Most of all, remember the golden rule of scam avoidance: If it seems too good to be true, it probably is. Keeping those principles in mind, and using the tips given here to screen out dubious sites means you'll be able to shop 'til you drop (safely), despite the vast number of scammers out there. And that—as the credit card ads like to say—is priceless. Get local news delivered to your inbox!
DENVER--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec 18, 2024-- Colorado BioScience Association (CBSA) announces the state’s life sciences ecosystem raised $2.15 billion in 2024, a 46% increase compared to 2023. Colorado, recognized as the Hub for Health Impact , has attracted close to $12 billion for life sciences research and development during the last eight years from public and private sources, as well as federal, state, and foundation grants. Colorado’s life sciences companies and organizations demonstrated fundraising strength throughout 2024, surging past $1 billion in the first two quarters of the year, according to CBSA data. The 2024 numbers mark the second time in a four-year period that funding totals have reached $2 billion. During the record fundraising of 2021, fueled by the pandemic, Colorado companies and organizations raised $2.4 billion. “Colorado BioScience Association applauds our ecosystem’s phenomenal fundraising success. Investors know there’s a unique and powerful convergence of world-changing technologies being developed in Colorado, with life sciences playing an interconnected role,” said Elyse Blazevich, President & CEO of Colorado BioScience Association. “Life sciences investors, companies, and talent are seeing and seizing the opportunities in Colorado because of our collaborative community, top-ranked talent, central location, robust infrastructure, reasonable costs, and unmatched quality of life. It’s no surprise Colorado now ranks in the top quintile for life sciences venture capital funding.” Colorado Life Sciences Financings: Eight-Year History Colorado’s life sciences fundraising is approaching close to $12 billion raised in the last eight years. 2024: $2.15B 2023: $1.47B 2022: $1.6B 2021: $2.4B 2020: $1.2B ($2.6B including Invitae acquisition of ArcherDX) 2019: $850M ($12.B including Pfizer acquisition of Array Biopharma) 2018: $1.0B 2017: $1.2B Funding Sources Colorado companies raised $818.5 million in public capital, a 64% increase compared to 2023 through post-IPO equity and debt, $445.0 million through mergers, acquisitions, and partnerships, and $383.0 million in private capital, primarily from venture funding. Private Capital $383.0M Pre-Seed/Seed $23.0M Series A + B $183.4M Series C, D + Later $146.4M Other $30.1M Underscoring the ecosystem’s maturity and growth, several high-profile Colorado companies recently announced clinical milestones, including Edgewise Therapeutics , Enveda , OnKure Therapeutics , and Umoja Biopharma . Federal Grants Federal funding provides critical capital for research and development at private companies and academic and research institutions, with grants from the National Institutes of Health and National Science Foundation totaling $496.6 million. In many cases, the grant dollars are deployed through the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs. The University of Colorado System, Colorado State University, and National Jewish Health continue to rank as the state’s leading recipients of federal funding for life sciences research and development. State Grants The State of Colorado’s Office of Economic Development and International Trade awarded $5.5 million in Advanced Industries Accelerator Grants to life sciences companies and university researchers in 2024. “Thanks to critical funding from the state’s Advanced Industries Accelerator Grant Program, Colorado companies and researchers are advancing technologies that will revolutionize health and care,” said Blazevich. “CBSA is fighting to preserve this program from projected state budget cuts in 2025, because it saves and changes lives with breakthroughs developed here in Colorado. The program provides significant return on investment to the state, attracting $2.9 billion in follow-on capital for Colorado’s advanced industries since 2016 and creating more than 5,000 jobs.” Colorado’s life sciences community makes a vital contribution to health innovation for patients and the state’s economy, providing mission-driven, high-paying jobs to more than 41,000 Coloradans, according to new data from BIO . The $52.9 billion in economic impact by Colorado’s life sciences ecosystem generates tax dollars, funds critical infrastructure and education, and supports families and communities. CBSA compiles and analyzes annual life sciences financings using publicly available sources, including company news releases, media reports, SEC filings, federal and state databases, as well as Crunchbase. Connect with CBSA: Twitter/X , Facebook and LinkedIn About Colorado BioScience Association Colorado BioScience Association (CBSA) creates co-opportunity for the Colorado life sciences community. CBSA champions a collaborative life sciences ecosystem and advocates for a supportive business climate. From concept to commercialization, member companies and organizations drive global health innovations, products, and services that improve and save lives. The association leads Capital and Growth, Education and Networking, Policy and Advocacy, and Workforce Cultivation to make its members stronger, together. Learn more: cobioscience.com View source version on businesswire.com : https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20241218192950/en/ CONTACT: Media Contact:Sheliah Reynolds Primavera Group for Colorado BioScience Association (720) 289-4739 sheliah@theprimaveragroup.com KEYWORD: COLORADO UNITED STATES NORTH AMERICA INDUSTRY KEYWORD: RESEARCH FINANCE PUBLIC POLICY/GOVERNMENT CLINICAL TRIALS PROFESSIONAL SERVICES BIOTECHNOLOGY HEALTH STATE/LOCAL SCIENCE SOURCE: Colorado BioScience Association Copyright Business Wire 2024. PUB: 12/18/2024 04:41 PM/DISC: 12/18/2024 04:40 PM http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20241218192950/en Copyright Business Wire 2024.
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ORONO, Maine (AP) — Christopher Mantis helped lead Maine past Holy Cross on Sunday with 17 points off of the bench in an 80-55 win. Mantis had five rebounds for the Black Bears (3-3). Quion Burns scored 16 points and added eight rebounds. AJ Lopez went 6 of 13 from the field (2 for 6 from 3-point range) to finish with 14 points. The Crusaders (4-3) were led in scoring by DeAndre Williams, who finished with 12 points. Joe Nugent added 11 points for Holy Cross. Caleb Kenney had 10 points. Maine took the lead with 11:42 left in the first half and did not relinquish it. The score was 35-26 at halftime, with Burns racking up nine points. Maine pulled away with a 19-3 run in the second half to extend a seven-point lead to 23 points. They outscored Holy Cross by 16 points in the final half, as Lopez led the way with a team-high 12 second-half points. NEXT UP Both teams play on Friday. Maine squares off against Elon and Holy Cross travels to play Virginia. The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar .Nicole Velez weighed 244 pounds at her heaviest in November 2023. The 31-year-old who works in a members' lounge at a Florida airport struggled with self-confidence. A 60-minute outpatient procedure helped her lose over 100 pounds because it curbed her appetite. My job is welcoming members to lounge. "Are you new here?" customers often ask. "No," I'll reply. "I've checked you in many times before." They can't believe that I'm the same person I was 11 months ago. It's because I've lost 109 pounds after a non-surgical procedure. My portion sizes are about a quarter of what they used to be. I feel full after eating much smaller amounts. My new figure has given me a lot of confidence and a new lease on life. My weight has been up and down my whole life. I started dieting at 9. It was triggered by an unkind comment from a boy up and down a hill. "Wow, you're fat and you can rollerblade?" he said. I went home and looked in the mirror. In my mind, I saw a large person staring back at me. I regretted raiding the fridge for pizza and eating sugary cereal with sweet, condensed milk. But I couldn't stop myself as an emotional eater. As I got older, I realized I could get through a 4,000 calorie meal and remain hungry. Over the years, I tried every diet under the sun. In my 20s, I lost 60 pounds but regained it within months with an extra 20 pounds on top. I suffered aches and pains, despite my young age. My back hurt. Everything hurt. I had to slide out of bed because I was too heavy to pull myself up. Then, last year, at 244 pounds — far too heavy for my 5ft 6in frame — I was . It was a shock. "I either have to change my ways, or this disease will kill me," I thought. I looked for solutions on the internet. I chance upon a , which cost me $11,000. It was approved by the FDA in 2022. The procedure I had was an hour-long endoscopic treatment that shrinks the stomach by 70%, causing a reduced capacity to take in food. The doctors told me it alters gut hormone signaling, leading to reduced appetite and increased feelings of fullness. I didn't notice any side effects. I took one day off work and . I lost exactly 45 pounds in 45 days. Then I graduated to protein shakes and regular food, including raw, vegan meals. I make sure to drink at least a gallon of water a day. The weight came off quickly. I now weigh 135 pounds. I went from a size 18 to a size 0 and had to buy a new wardrobe. Best of all, my bloodwork showed I was no longer pre-diabetic. My confidence is much better. I have a good social life. I can swim and rollerblade again. I'm happier than I've ever been since that boy's thoughtless comment in 1991. Read the original article on
EVANSVILLE, Ind. (AP) — Tayshawn Comer scored 18 points as Evansville beat Campbell 66-53 on Sunday night. Comer had six rebounds and six assists for the Purple Aces (3-4). Cameron Haffner scored 16 points and added six rebounds. Gabriel Pozzato shot 3 for 5, including 2 for 3 from beyond the arc to finish with 10 points. Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content. Please enable it in your browser settings. Get updates and player profiles ahead of Friday's high school games, plus a recap Saturday with stories, photos, video Frequency: Seasonal Twice a week
NoneThe Ontario government says it will match the federal government’s two-month GST holiday by removing provincial sales tax (PST) from items that are not currently covered by existing provincial rebates. The move will provide “nearly $1 billion in additional relief for Ontario families” and comes following “extensive discussions” with the federal government, Ontario Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy’s office said in a statement. The latest affordability measure comes on top of previously-announced $200 cheques that are set to be mailed out to Ontario taxpayers in the new year. Premier Doug Ford announced the cheques last month, saying life had become “too costly” for Ontario residents. The federal government then followed suit with an announcement that they would send $250 cheques to Canadians who were working in 2023 and earned less than $150,000. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also said that the federal government would provide a two-month GST holiday on items like restaurant meals, diapers, toys, snacks and video games to help Canadians struggling with the cost of living. The tax holiday is set to run between Dec.14 and Feb. 15, covering off many purchases around the busy holiday shopping season, as well as Valentine’s Day. Critics have said that both governments are bribing Canadians with their own cash ahead of expected federal and Ontario elections, and that the money could be better spent on social programs for those who need it the most. However both Ford and Trudeau have maintained that the measures are aimed at affordability amid a cost of living that has skyrocketed for many.
Colin Cowherd Makes Bold Claim About Former Oregon QB Bo NixIndian grandmaster Gukesh Dommaraju is the new world chess champion after a stunning blunder by his opponent in the last game of the 14-game series. Playing in Singapore, Gukesh dethroned world champion Ding Liren, a Chinese grandmaster who has been struggling with his form this year. Playing with black, the game was steered into a variation of the King’s Indian Attack: French, Reversed Grünfeld Variation. But after a promising start, Ding found himself down a pawn in an endgame, although computers evaluated the position as extremely drawish. Gukesh piled on the pressure and Ding made a horrible blunder on move 55 with Rf2. Gukesh immediately noticed the mistake and took a deep sip of water as he double-checked the winning variation. Ding also noticed his error, and his face turned bright red. The win marks an incredible rise to the top for Gukesh and at just 18-year-old, he now stands astride the chess world. Gukesh has had a golden year, and played a key role in India’s win at the 45th International Chess Federation Chess Olympiad in Budapest. Ding, meanwhile, has struggled with form and his mental health. He did, however, play a strong match and only faltered at the end. Teen bursts into tears For Gukesh, it was a dream come true. Six years earlier he had declared: “I want to become the youngest world chess champion.” Gukesh became India’s youngest grandmaster aged 12 years, seven months and 17 days, and among the youngest in the history of the game. Even Magnus Carlsen, the most recognisable current player in chess and a five-time world champion, was older. Gukesh burst into tears and hugged his father after nearly three weeks and 14 games of intense battle against Ding, 32. It was a rare loss of composure from the young man, who in public usually appears shy and reserved. He was absent from the Bermuda party while starring for India at this year’s Chess Olympiad in Budapest — the event is a decades-old tradition where contestants party at a nightclub in the host city. But after India finished with two gold medals, Gukesh surprised fans accustomed to his serious persona by posting a video of himself dancing exuberantly to a popular Tamil song clad in traditional clothing. Though he spends much of his time practising the game, Gukesh recently confessed to a love of the hit television sitcom “Friends”. When competing he usually wears a tilak — a smattering of white ash on his forehead in deference to his Hindu faith — to go with his suit. ‘Proud moment for chess’ In 2022, Gukesh beat US number one Fabiano Caruana at the Chess Olympiad and later that year triumphed over Carlsen. He reached the world championship by becoming the youngest winner of the prestigious Candidates Tournament in April. Indian chess icon and five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand has played a mentor’s role in Gukesh’s journey and hailed the teenager as his successor. “It’s a proud moment for chess, a proud moment for India... and for me, a very personal moment of pride,” Anand said of Thursday’s win. Born to a doctor father and microbiologist mother, Gukesh started playing chess aged seven. His father Rajnikanth took him to watch Anand play Carlsen in a world championship match in his hometown Chennai in November 2013. The world championship in Singapore was compared by some in India to the classic showdown between the American Bobby Fischer and Soviet great Boris Spassky at the height of the Cold War in 1972. Ties between nuclear-armed neighbours China and India are frequently tense. But Gukesh was magnanimous in victory on Thursday, saying Ding “fought like a true champion” despite being “obviously not at his best physically”. Ding had told AFP before the tournament started last month that he was “having mental problems mainly during the period last year” and had to take a break from chess on his doctor’s advice and travel around China to relax. Gukesh had won in the Candidates Tournament held in Toronto, Canada, in April this year, earning him the right to challenge Ding. - with Agence France-Presse