MoneyWatch

The economy of recent years has left many Americans looking for new ways to protect and grow their savings. Seniors, in particular, many of whom rely on a tight budget made up of retirement savings and Social Security, need to be particularly careful with where they store their money and where they invest it. While traditional savings vehicles like high-yield …

Rates have increased significantly over the last few years due to the Federal Reserve attempting to temper inflation. The trend started in March 2022, when high post-pandemic inflation levels led the Fed to increase its target federal funds rate. And, the Fed then opted to increase its benchmark rate several more times before pausing rate hikes temporarily. And, in general, …

Google has struck a deal with Reddit that allows the search giant to use posts from the online discussion site for training its artificial intelligence models and to improve services such as Google Search. The arrangement, announced Thursday and valued at roughly $60 million, will also give Reddit access to Google AI models for improving its internal site search and …

Vice Media will no longer publish content on its website, with the former digital media darling joining BuzzFeed in slashing additional staff this week. Vice also plans to lay off several hundred workers as it shifts a studio-only business model, CEO Bruce Dixon told employees in a memo delivered late Thursday, the Associated Press reported. The women’s lifestyle site Refinery …

After promising that its software would shield internet users from third-party tracking, Avast allegedly harvested and sold customers’ online browsing data, according to the Federal Trade Commission. The maker of antivirus software deceived customers by claiming it would protect their privacy, while not making clear it would collect and sell their “detailed, re-identifiable browsing data,” the agency announced Thursday. “Avast …

Yale University on Thursday said it is reversing a pandemic-era policy that made standardized test scores like the SAT exam optional for applicants, joining other top colleges such as Dartmouth and MIT. In a statement posted to its website, Yale said it is abandoning the test-optional approach that it began four years ago, when the pandemic shut down testing centers …

More than 120,000 biometric gun safes sold by retailers nationwide are being recalled amid reports of unauthorized users opening them — including a six-year-old boy — posing a serious safety hazard and risk of death. The U.S. Consumer Product and Safety Commission on Thursday announced four separate recalls of biometric safes, with the companies that imported the Chinese-manufactured safe collectively …

Retirement is a time to savor the fruits of your labor, but if you’re facing looming debt, it can cast a shadow on your golden years. And, if that debt comes with a high interest rate, the costs can compound quickly — especially if you haven’t budgeted to pay it off in full as part of your retirement plan. But …

An Oklahoma man used his computer skills to defraud Uncle Sam, hacking into a government auction site to lower the price of vehicles and jewelry he’d successfully bid on from thousands of dollars down to one buck, federal prosecutors said. Evan James Coker, 41, pleaded guilty to wire fraud in a scheme involving online auctions run by the General Service …

When it comes to investing strategies, it makes sense for investors to continually seek opportunities that strike a balance between security and return on investment. After all, a well-balanced portfolio is a crucial component of a good investment strategy, as it’s important to try and reduce risk from more volatile assets by adding safe investments to the mix. And, one …