uYes, You Can Be Prosecuted For Stealing Gold, Weapons From Video Game Charactersr

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• In the Big Bang Theory episode “The Zarnecki Incursion,” Sheldon’s World of Warcraft account is hacked and his in-game character is robbed of all its amassed treasure and weaponry. The local police and FBI both laugh off his demands to track down the virtual thief, but in the real world there are prosecutors going after this new form of criminal.

  Fusion has the story of a pair of online gamers-turned-bandits who teamed up to steal and resell virtual goods in the game Diablo III. The twosome profited to the tune of more than $8,000 — in actual money.

  To commit their crimes, they would trick other Diablo users into downloading software that would allow them to remotely access the other users’ computers.

  Then one of the thieves would take over a victim’s character, dropping all of its loot in an in-game spot for his partner-in-crime to come in and grab up.

  The victimized players were able to get their lost items back by dealing with the game publisher, Blizzard, but that doesn’t make it any less of a crime for someone to illegally access your computer, and to resell those goods (virtual or not) for thousands of dollars. Additionally, Blizzard was at a loss for having to reimburse users whose in-game items were stolen.

  That’s why the FBI arrested the men in 2012.

  Though the dollar value of the crimes resulted in felony charges for the two thieves, they eventually both entered guilty pleas to misdemeanor “unauthorized impairment of a protected computer.” They were given probation and ordered to pay $5,654 to Blizzard.

  “People think they are not going to get caught, that they’re not going to be found in their bedrooms on a computer. They don’t think it’s that big of a deal,” the federal prosecutor in the case tells Fusion.

  
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by Chris Morran via Consumerist

u110-Year-Old Man Credits Long Life To His Daily Can Of Beerr

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  (Pedestrian Photographer)

  We’ve all heard that an apple a day can keep the doctor away, but one man who’s reached the lofty age of 110 has entirely different maxim — drinking a can of beer a day is keeping the reaper away.

  Nebraska’s oldest man and possibly the oldest man in America turned 110 on May 16, reports Omaha.com, and his family said his daily beer has always been his secret to a long life.

  “He always told everybody the reason he has lived so long is drinking one can of beer, every day at 3 p.m.,” said his daughter. “He always joked that that was his medicine since he takes very little medicine.”

  When it comes to said medicine, it doesn’t seem to matter whether it’s a lager or an IPA, he says.

  “Whatever kind was around,” he said, though his daughter said he prefers Miller brands.

  As for his age, he sometimes has to be reminded of it, as it’s not one of those things he can be bothered with these days.

  “I don’t even notice it,” he said.

  He may be the oldest man in America, but it’s unclear, as two other candidates at 116 and 112 have gaps in their age records. He’s currently the oldest man whose age can be verified, according to the national Gerontology Research Group.

  “All this means is that there is a confusing situation, whereby we have three potential contenders for ‘oldest man in America,’” Robert Young, director of the group’s supercentenarian research and database division told Omaha.com.

  Besides drinking his daily beer, the other advice he has for a long, happy life?

  “Right here,” he told Omaha.com, pointing to his heart.

  A beer a day is 110-year-old Nebraska man’s secret to a long life [Omaha.com]

  
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by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

uCVS Buys Nursing Home Pharmacy Chain, Drug Provider OmniCare For $12.7Br

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  (Chris Rief)

  CVS plans to spend $12.7 billion to buy pharmacy-service provider Omnicare Inc. in order to gain a larger foothold in the quickly expanding long-term care industry and specialty pharmacy market.

  The Wall Street Journal reports that the deal, which includes about $2.3 billion in debt, will boost CVS’s business presence with nursing homes and senior-living facilities across the U.S.

  Omnicare, currently the largest provider of pharmaceutical services in nursing homes, operates 160 locations in assisted living and long-term care facilities in 47 states.

  The company also helps market, distribute and obtain reimbursements for high-priced drugs generally used by smaller patient populations, the WSJ reports.

  “The acquisition of Omnicare significantly expands our business, providing CVS Health access into a new pharmacy dispensing channel,” CVS Health CEO Larry Merlo said in a statement.

  The deal has the potential to be fairly lucrative for CVS. In 2014, Omnicare recorded a revenue of $4.75 billion in the long-term care market and $1.67 billion in specialty pharmacy services.

  USA Today reports the deal comes at the right time for CVS to capture more business in the long-term care market, as that industry is estimated to grow exponentially in the coming years.

  The Congressional Budget Office expects that one-fifth of the total U.S. population will be 65 years of age or older by 2050. Many of those consumers could find themselves residents of nursing homes and residential care centers, nearly all of which offer on-site pharmaceutical facilities.

  The transaction, which is expected to close later this year, is just the latest in what appears to be a trend in acquisitions related to how drugs are sold and distributed, indicating that health-related companies are looking to the future of consumer care, according to the WSJ.

  UnitedHealth Group purchased Caramaran Corp. for $12.8 billion earlier this year. Shortly before that deal was reached Rite Aid bought pharmacy-benefit manager Envision Pharmaceutical Services for $2 billion.

  CVS Buys Drug Provider for $10.4 Billion [The Wall Street Journal]
  CVS buys Omnicare for $12.7B to expand senior care business [USA Today]

  
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by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

uKohl’s Will Open An Off-Price Store In New Jerseyr

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  (JeepersMedia)

  You may have been under the impression that Kohl’s, a department store where suggested retail prices are largely imaginary because most of the store is at least 30% off, already was a discount store. Even then, they’re about to experiment with an even more discounted store, joining stores like Nordstrom, Saks, and now Macy’s in opening their own downscale outlet store.

  The new Kohl’s store will be about 30,000 square feet, located in New Jersey’s Philadelphia suburbs, and will be called Off Aisle by Kohl’s. That’s about half the size of the smallest existing Kohl’s stores. The chain says it will have returned merchandise from regular Kohl’s stores: they haven’t said this, but we suspect that they’ll also carry items that have sat around other stores for too long.

  Kohl’s is a retailer that focuses on middle-class customers, and the American middle class is keeping a firm hand on their wallets recently. Off-price stores like TJ Maxx and Ross, however, have been doing great. While this year so far, the west coast ports slowdown that delayed some fashion shipments and send them to the outlet market has been great for low-end retailers of higher-end merchandise.

  Kohl’s will test off-priced store for returned merchandise [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel]

  
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by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

uLumber Liquidators CEO Resigns Amid Formaldehyde Flooring Investigationr

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• Following news reports of allegedly excessive formaldehyde levels in some of its flooring products — and subsequent lawsuits and investigations — the CEO of Lumber Liquidators has resigned from the top position at the company.

  In a move the company describes as “unexpected,” Robert Lynch told the Lumber Liquidators board he’d decided to step down as CEO and President.

  While the announcement made no mention of the formaldehyde issue, the company’s stock price has plummeted in the months since a 60 Minutes report that claims to have found potentially dangerous levels of formaldehyde in China-made laminate flooring sold by Lumber Liquidators.

  The company has maintained that it did nothing wrong and has questioned the testing methods used in the news report, but decided in early May to halt sales of laminate flooring from Chinese manufacturers.

  But even that move could not help the company, whose stock price is now less than one-third of what it was in February.

  Company founder Thomas Sullivan will take over as interim CEO while the company looks for Lynch’s replacement.

  Formaldehyde is commonly used in the manufacture of laminate flooring, but usually in such small levels that it dissipates quickly. If employed in excess, the chemical can remain in the flooring even after it’s been installed.

  Prolonged, continued exposure to formaldehyde has been linked to numerous health problems ranging from nausea to increased cancer risk. Children are more susceptible than adults to the toxic effects of formaldehyde.

  
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by Chris Morran via Consumerist

uAmazon Prime Now Adds 1-Hour Delivery From Local Stores In NYCr

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  (protohiro)

  Because walking outside and going a few blocks to pick up some bread and milk is just too much work sometimes, Amazon is adding one-hour delivery from certain local stores — but only in New York City’s Manhattan borough for now, with plans to expand to other locations that offer Prime Now eventually.

  Starting today, the Prime Now service will bring deliveries in an hour from a select few stores — D’Agostino grocery stores, Gourmet Garage and Billy’s Bakery — Amazon announced in a press release, only in certain Manhattan neighborhoods at first, with more stores and more locations added in the coming weeks.

  Next in Manhattan will be Italian marketplace Eataly and Westside Market.

  “We are launching delivery from local stores through Prime Now in Manhattan today and will add local stores in other cities where we offer Prime Now soon,” Amazon says, with deliveries arriving in an hour or less.

  Customers will have to use the Prime Now App, which offers deliveries in either two hours for free or one hour for $7.99 in Atlanta, Austin, Baltimore, Brooklyn, Dallas, Manhattan and Miami. Those cities will eventually be added to the local delivery list as well.

  
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by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

uFCC Warns Internet Providers To Comply With Privacy Rulesr

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  (DCvision2006)

  While some Internet service providers are aching to track users’ every online move so they can analyze and sell that data, the FCC is warning these companies that the Commission will be taking a hard look at these practices after the new net neutrality rules kick in next month.

  “The Commission has found that absent privacy protections, a broadband provider’s use of personal and proprietary information could be at odds with its customers’ interests,” reads an enforcement advisory [PDF] sent out yesterday by the FCC.

  The advisory also notes that consumers would be more willing to use broadband services if they were more certain that their personal info is being protected.

  Section 222 of the Communications Act offers basic privacy protections for telephone service customers, but the rules weren’t applied to broadband providers because they were not classified as a telecommunications service.

  However, the FCC’s new Open Internet Order reclassifies broadband so that it falls under this more regulated category, meaning that Section 222 can be applied.

  The advisory notes that there may be a future broadband-specific guidance on these issues, but in the interim the FCC’s Enforcement Bureau “intends to focus on whether broadband providers are taking reasonable, good-faith steps to comply.”

  Recent actions by some ISPs have raised new questions about privacy. For example, AT&T’s high-speed GigaPower service offers some customers a significant monthly discount if they’re willing to allow the company to track their online browsing activity. In the wireless world, Verizon has been heavily criticized for its use of “supercookies” trackers that users did not know about and could not initially opt out of.

  [via DSLreports.com]

  
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by Chris Morran via Consumerist