Amazon’s AI shopping assistant, Rufus, on a computer monitor on Dec. 1, 2024, in New York. Company apps, including Rufus, may make it easier to shop, but consumers might balk at giving up too much of the shopping experience. AP Photo/Peter Morgan

What we lose when artificial intelligence does our shopping

Retailers are racing to hand your shopping over to AI. Consumers are right to be wary – and not just about privacy.
Most consumers are unaware that the Health Star Rating system is compensatory, and that one negative nutritional attribute, such as high sugar, can be cancelled out by a positive attribute like fibre. from www.shutterstock.com

Why the Australasian Health Star Rating needs major changes to make it work

A food heath labelling system Australia and New Zealand introduced five years ago is under review and needs a significant overhaul to make it useful for consumers looking for healthy options.
The EU’s data protection measures aspire to force companies to be more transparent around data collection. from www.shutterstock.com

Should online users be bound by their privacy agreements?

The European Union has enacted a systematic plan to give people more control over their personal data online. But despite these efforts, privacy agreements remain largely unreadable.
The law assumes consumers read the terms and conditions of their contracts, and in a dispute, they are held responsible for the written terms of any agreements. from www.shutterstock.com

Research shows most online consumer contracts are incomprehensible, but still legally binding

Legally, consumers are expected to read any online contracts they enter into, but companies have no obligation to offer readable agreements. As research shows, most are incomprehensible.
The industry selling honey and bee products is booming. from www.shutterstock.com

How better tests and legal deterrence could clean up the sticky mess left behind by fake honey row

The bee product industry is booming and in unregulated markets, there is a strong economic incentive to cheat. Self regulation combined with legal deterrence could help clean up the sticky mess.

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