on the consumer watch, julie watts, kpix 5. >> calls coming.e right back. ,,,,,, covered california is howt californians can take advantage of the affordable care act. we can help you get quality health insurance right now. to sign up, call 800-787-9159 or go to coveredca.com. you can also use our website to find local, in-person help. one of the biggest questions we get here is, "does covered california offer financial assistance?" yes. covered california is the only place that gives you financial help with your coverage. millions of californians will qualify. find out if you do. all plans include free preventive care. now, you might have a question about what that means. it means free mammograms, immunizations, cancer screenings, and more. it's a big list, and it's all free. so don't wait. without insurance, even a small medical issue can cost you big. call 800-787-9159, or go to coveredca.com, and get covered. using the bay.. as a highwa how google is getting its employees to work - by wate and we ask - does google ha the proper permits to d

kpix 5 consumerwatch reporter julie watts julie watts with a big win that turns into a headache. >> whatr were you born? >> i was born 1935. >> 1935 you say? agnes, congratulations. >> reporter: ers that the voice of christine's 78-year-old mother who she says thought she had won a $5,000 sweepstakes. >> they are saying congratulations, they are making out like she's already a winner. >> reporter: but instead of winning $5,000, christine says her elderly mother inadvertently signed up for a five-year nonrefundable magazine subscription for a total of $777. >> this is exclusively that means it's held only for our preferred cardholder and that's a visa, mastercard, american express, and discover. >> to me that's actually saying you have to pay for a magazine subscription to enter our contest which is illegal. >> reporter: and san francisco d.a. george gascon agrees. >> clearly, these people are taking advantage of people that are not sophisticated enough to understand what's going on. >> reporter: we played him the recorded phone call which the company says proves christine's mom knew what

on the consumer watch, julie watts, kpix 5. >>> the biggest tech event kicks off this weekend in las. the trending topics with the electronic consumer show. >> reporter: the big stars at the consumer electronic show this year are tiny computers. not on your desktop, but just about everywhere else. cnet's lindsey turntine. >> it will be big this year. last year was just the beginning and we saw things like the smart watches, this year they will be everywhere. >> reporter: if it soundsfuturistic. >> this is the state of the art. >> reporter: this was the way to the future 25 years ago. >> we set out for the consumer show in las vegas. >> reporter: as reported by steve croft on the cbs news series. at the 1989 consumer electronics show, vcrs with on screen programming were all the rage. >> you just plug in the vcr and prints out what to do on the tv screen like an automatic bank teller. >> the rate of change is extremely quick. anything that you might have imagined 20 years ago could exist in the future and probably does. >> reporter: among the current future offerings are cars that dri

julie watts has his story. >>> reporter: >> there were lines around the corner for days. >> reporter:s gamer, who goes by the name of geno, considered himself one of the lucky few when he nabbed this xbox 1 at gamestop's midnight black friday sale. but his luck ran out. >> brought it home real excited to use it opened it up, started up the xbox, and it wouldn't boot. $720 paid, just staying. >> reporter: and he is not alone. youtube video posted by other gamers echoed his frustration as their $500 consoles were also rendered use less, stuck on what's become known as the green screen of death. after numerous attempts at rebooting failed, geno called gamestop hoping to swap his xbox out for a new one that works. but he was told they were sold out. >> so hopefully somebody will give you a call back whenever we get some more made. >> reporter: so we turned to microsoft in hopes the manufacturer might be able to help. its solution, send the brand- new xbox in for repair. >> i just spent over $500 on this thing. like i don't want a repaired one. i don't want a refurbished one. i want a bran

the new push to make it easier to eat healthy. ,, ,,,, julie watts on the consumerwatch, with a new > of us resolve to eat healthier in the new year. good thing to do but food labels are confusing. julie watts on the consumerwatch with a new effort to make packaging better reflect reality. >> reporter: when you see the word natural or healthy on a product, do you assume that they are natural and healthy? >> not at all. >> reporter: well, that skepticism may be healthy. >> i think consumers are losing confidence in labels. >> reporter: they are threatening to sue what they call three of the worst offenders, the makers of crystal light, smart balance and ensure for making deceptive or misleading claims. in the case of crystal light, he says it's the word natural. >> along with the natural flavoring you're getting an artificial preservative, artificial coloring, and artificial sweeteners. >> this artificial butter does little to help lower cholesterol. and these muscle shakes won't make most people healthier at 350 calories a bottle. >> these claims are phony baloney. drinking two cans o

julie watts with what happed to a bay area woman -- when got hit with a big tax bill. >>> allotted ofers owe money to the irs. on the consumerwatch, julie watts with what happened to a bay area woman when she got hit with a big tax bill. >> reporter: mary was shocked to find she owed the irs over $13,000 in back taxes. >> time to settle your tax debt is now. >> reporter: so mary contacted a web-based tax relief company which agreed to take her face for a $2,500 fee. >> they made it sound so good. >> reporter: but she says weeks went by with no resolution and when she called to check her account -- >> i was told by blue tax that they had not got to my form yet, that it was still on somebody's desk. >> reporter: so mary says she fired blue tax and turned to the irs herself where she says she cut a deal with the agency slashing her own tax bill from $13,000 to just around $2,000. >> blue tax did nothing for me. >> reporter: but blue tax disagrees. the company says it did work on her case for a month before mary called it quits. so blue tax took her to court for the $2,500 fee plus anothe

on the conr watch, julie watts explains. the number crunchers at nerd wallet call it... the 1-thod dollar mistake. they say... getting insured coul five times more costly for g people... than just paying t of pocket... and paying the penalty. they calculate the average uninsured young adult will y 384 dollars... between out pocket doctors visit... and penalty for not signing up. while the same person - ins - would pay over 17-hundredn premium and out of pocket health care costs. a even with one er visit... ty say the uninsured would sti pay less... but covered california's dana howard disputes the numbers. " that's just if there isn t anything wrong with them ify went to emergency room and e it's located. well they took into account full rate wellm not going to debate with th what my point is that you ct predict what their hospital costs are going to be if yo get sick whose gona pay for that, their mom? " he points out that an appendectomy for example... cost tens of thousands... although nerd wallet found r than a quarter of young adus actually visit an e-r each and onl

on the consumer watch, julie watt, kpix5. >>> boeing machinists are at odds after an okayed contract build a new 777-x airplane. the contract would take away some pensions and healthcare benefits in order to build the new plane. political leaders explained the deal is necessary to support the area's economy. however, local union officials are urging their members to oppose the deal, arguing that it surrenders too much while the company is profiting. machinists had rejected a contract proposal in november. >>> an effort to make the dangerous streets of san francisco a little safer. details of a police crackdown after a series of accidents. >>> and a bay area comeback story, the return of the river otters. >>> we'll be right back. ,, so i should probably get the last roll... yeah but i practiced my bassoon. [ mom ] and i listened. [ brother ] i can do this. [ imitates robot ] everyone deserves ooey, gooey, pillsbury cinnamon rolls. make the weekend pop. kevin! toaster strudel, yah? ♪ warm, flaky, toaster strudel. [ female announcer ] now get two bonus box tops for your school. to a qui

julie watts has his story. >> there were lines around the corner for days. >> reporter: this gamer who by the name of geno, considered himself one of the lucky few when he nabbed this xbox 1 at gamestop's midnight black friday sale. but his luck quickly ran out. >> brought it home, real excited to use it, opened it up, started up the xbox, and it wouldn't boot. 720 paid. just sang. >> reporter: he is not alone. youtube videos posted by other gamers echoed geno's frustration as their $500 consoles were also render use less stuck on what's become known as the green screen of death. after numerous attempts at rebooting failed, geno called gamestop hoping to swap his xbox out for a new one that works. but he was told they were sold out. >> said hopefully somebody will give you a call back whenever we get some more made. >> reporter: so he turned to microsoft, in hopes the manufacturer might be able to help. its solution, send the brand- new xbox in for repair. >> i just spent over $500 on this thing. like i don't want a repaired one. i don't want a refurbished one. i want a brand-new one.

consumer watch reporter julie watts shows us what you can do to help.eporter: it's hard not to notice we haven't got much rain lately. >> our weather will stay sunny, will stay mild and stay completely dry. >>reporter: and water officials admit they're worried. >> it's becoming problematic. 1977 was a big drought year and so far this year to date this is dryer than that year. >>reporter: and if this keeps up, we may soon be forced to ration water, but andrea pope of east bay mud says there's a lot homeowners can do right now. >> so we have aerators right here. >>reporter: she says this is the time to start conserving water, to reduce devices that reduce water from your tap. >> this is a two gallon per minute shower flow. some have 3 1/2 or even higher. >>reporter: you should look into low-flow shower heads and special nozzles that fit over a garden hose. >> it has a shutoff so you're not wasting water when you're going in between. >>reporter: she says better yet, catch or save water when you cook or wash and use that for outdoor plants. >> the plants do

julie watts on the consumer watch with a new effort to make food packaging better, reflect reality. >en you see the world natural, healthy on a product, do you assume they're natural and healthy? >> not at all. >> reporter: that's skepticism may be healthy. >> consumers are losing confidence in food labels. >> reporter: they's threatening to sue three of the worst offenders for making deceptive or misleading claims. in the case of crystal light, he says it's the word natural. >> along with the natural flavoring you're getting an artificial preservative, artificial colouration, and artificial sweeteners. >> reporter: and this smart balance butter does little to lower cholesterol. and these shakes, at 350 calories a bottle, won't make most people healthier. >> these claims are phoney baloney. drinking two cans of this is not going to produce those benefits. it's likelier to produce obesity. >> we see more chambers on labels that are misleading -- claims on labels that are misleading. >> reporter: while some claims like organic and cholesterol reducing are regulated by the fda others lik

consumerwatch reporter julie watts is at the target store in san francisco tonight. julie?porter: yeah, ken. we're learning that the information hackers got goes much deeper than initially reported including a variety of very personal information and some of the victims may have not shopped at the store during breach period between black friday and december 15. first they said it was just your credit card number. then they said the crooks good p.i.n. numbers too. now target is revealing on top of the 40 million customers whose credit cards were compromised, the same hackers stole the names, mailing addresses, emails and phone numbers from an additional 70 million customers which may include online shoppers. >> when we thought it was just credit card numbers, that's easy enough but now you have so much information out there that you can't take back. >> reporter: he says target's offer to pay for one year of credit monitoring and id theft protection is empty unless social security numbers were compromised too. >> it's unlikely thieves have enough information to start taking o

on the consumer watch, julie watts explains a ruling aga yelp may set a >>> totally anonymous onlines may be soon a thing of the past. on our consumerwatch, julie watts explains a ruling against yelp may set a new precedent. >> reporter: we get these complaints all the time from businesses who believe their negative yelp reviews are people who were never their customers. sometimes it's the competition, other times people with opposing political views. but whatever the reason, a virginia court ruling may now mean yelp has to hand over the identities. yelp has been ordered to reveal the name of 7 anonymous people who left negative reviews for a carpet cleaning business. the owner claims they were never actually customers and the court ruling will now allow him to sue for defamation. yelp argues the reviews are protected under free speech but the court points out that protection is based on the assumption that the reviewer is actually a customer. the first amendment does not protect deliberately false statements and the court decided the carpet company provided sufficient evidence that

on our consumerwatch, julie watts reports that t-mobile is throwing out a new offer to lure customersompetition. >> reporter: just days ago at&t was offering $450 to it. mobile customers willing to transfer their service. today t-mobile struck back with an offer of $650 to customers willing to break up with at&t. it's promising to pay early termination fees for up to five lines. those who switch can get a maximum of $350 per line and another $300 per phone all part of t-mobile's strategy to get people to kill their cell phone contracts and apparently it's working. last year, t-mobile added 4.4 million customers its biggest growth in eight years. >>> if you are looking for a good doctor life just got easier. today consumer reports partnered with calquality.org for a new rating service online that's free. you will find detailed reviews of all the major primary and specialty care groups. the site already provides ratings for hospitals, nursing homes and other long-term care facilities. the ratings are based on patient surveys. >>> and how is that new year's resolution coming? if yours is

julie watts on the consumerwatch a case of "seller beware." >>> disputes over ebay purchases happen all the time and usually buyer beware. the case of seller beware. >> reporter: for franco selling his prize connection of gi joes hasn't been easy. >> it's tough letting go pieces of my childhood. >> the guy who bought one of the treasures on ebay is making it even harder. back around thanksgiving, the new dad sold his action figure on ebay for $72 plus $10 shipping and handling. >> it's definitely a collector's item. i've seen others like it on ebay go for close to $200 and this one. >> reporter: he was out of town for the holidays when the auction closed and somebody shipped the items seven days later. eight days a of that, the postal service confirmed it was delivered but the same day, the buyer complained franco lied saying the item never arrived. >> i was at first stunned. luckily, i purchased the delivery confirmation so i felt like i was in the clear. >> reporter: not exactly. ebay sided with the buyer and issued him a refund by taking $82 out of franco's paypal account and when he

julie watts reports one security move is raising questions. >> it will appear to come from target.t will have the target logo. it will have probably language taken from their own website or communications. >> reporter: he isn't talking about female target sent to millions security breech victims offering free credit monitoring for a year. he is describing an e-mail scam intended to make you think it is from target. >> it will be difficult for recipients of the e-mail to tell the difference between a scammer and target. they have the same information now. >> reporter: he warns scammers will use what they have to get more. they'll pose as target, maybe a class-action lawsuit against target or even other retailers hoping you'll click a link or type in the url of a malicious target look-alike site and give up more information or worse, download malware. >> which will sneak into your computer and bank account. >> reporter: why would target contact breech victims via e- mail and direct them to a link considering it knows scammers are doing the same thing. retailer did not respond to our

julie watts, kpix. >> if you need 84 p you can call our hot line 1-888-5-helps you. >>> more and more dogs are getting sick from marijuana. according to uc davis veterinarians, the number of pot ingestion cases in dogs are up. one the doctor says a few years back the hospital would see dogs suffering marijuana poisoning about every other month. now, it is every other week. >> many are unknown. but three or six or eight hours later we see the symptoms that fit with that intoxication. >> many dogs end up consuming pot-laced foods in crashes can. the intoxication could also cause seizures. we'll be right back. ,,,,,,,,,,,,,, female announcer: he needs a firmer he needs a firmer tempur-pedic... she wants a softer tempur-pedic... they both get what they need with the new tempur-choice, at sleep train the first tempur-pedic with multi-zone comfort control, featuring customizable shoulder, back, and leg support on each side. plus, get four years interest free financing. try the revolutionary new tempur-choice today! it's the perfect choice... ...for both of us! ♪ sleep train ♪ your ticket to

consumerwatch reporter julie watts has our story. < >> this isn't my particular unit. >>> chris butler can't forget his old apartment. all he has to do is look own air b and b, the site that allows you don't out your home. back in 2012 he was evicted from his 18 p hundred dollars month one bedroom in this building in san francisco's rush hill. the reason, one of just a few that justify legal eviction in renter-friendly san francisco. >> the landlord served me with an owner move-know eviction. >> but instead of moving in himself, butler contends the landlord moved his daughter in from another unit in the building so he could rent out her old apartment on air b and b. >> i was under rent control based on an opportunity to make more money through a different channel. >> butler points to these two units on air b and b which he sayest they are in the building and currently going for 125 and 145 a night. by comparison, butler's rent worked out to about $53 a night. >> it is a very big problem. >> tenant rights attorney is representing butler in a lawsuit against his former landlord. he says

julie watts on the consumer watch explains. >> these are my copays here and benefits. >> he is not sure he is actually covered. the self-employed cpa was one of the first to sign up back in october. he chose anthem blue cross and made his first payment in december. >> i wanted to make sure there would be enough time to resolve any difficulties. >> but he says so far he hasn't received any proof he has a policy. a big problem because he recently came down with the flu. when he tried to fill his prescription, he was forced to pay out of pocket. >> the giant walmart said no. we can't honor your prescription. >> when you're trying to do something of this magnitude, balls will definitely be dropped. >> a business backed public policy organization says thousands are in the same boat with no documentation. >> a lot of it happens because of flexibility that we gave consumers. >> he said the deadline created a huge influx of new customers who all came in at the last minute. >> the insurance companies are throwing all the staff they have at this. >> but he says they can't train people overnight.

on the consumerwatch, julie watts tells us the hackers got more information, as well. julie. >> reporter: yeah, juliette. we're learning that they got more information than initially reported, including a variety of personal information and some of the victims may not have actually shopped at target between that initially reported breach period that was between black friday and december 15. first they said it was just your credit card number. then they said the crooks good p.i.n. numbers too. now target is revealing on top of the 40 million customers whose credit cards were compromised, the same hackers told the names, mailing addresses, emails and phone numbers from an additional 70 million customers which may include online shoppers. >> when we thought it was just credit card numbers, that's easy enough but now you have so much information out there that you can't take back. >> reporter: he says target's offer to pay for one year of credit monitoring and id theft protection is empty unless social security numbers were compromised too. >> it's unlikely thieves have eno

julie watts on the consumerwatch explains what this year end surprise is all about. >>> reporter: likeany people, martin makes the most of his purchases online. and now, california is trying to make sure it gets its share of those transactions. >> i got this letter from the state. >> reporter: earlier this week he said the state board of equalization sent him this let'ser warning he probably owed and would have to pay use tax when he files his tax return next year. >> use tax is the same thing as sales tax. >> reporter: the state board of equalization says, use tax must be paid on all items that weren't taxed at the time of sale. >> the easiest way to look at it is if i'm going to buy something from an out-of-state retailer i'm not charged tax. there's a good likelihood you will owe use tax. >> reporter: including items sold online or performed while traveling to other states or other countries. >> i don't think anybody has heard of this unless they are a tax lawyer. >> reporter: he says the letters are going out to californians who haven't paid use tax in the past even though it's bee

. >>> it's a popular tool for tourists looking for a place to crash, but julie watts found one bay arear who says his landlord pushed him out to cash in on airbnb. >> this is not the unit. >> reporter: chris butler can't forget his old apartment. all old has to do is look on airbnb, the -- all he has to do is look on airbnb, the site that allows you to rent out your home for a vacational rental. in 2012 he was evicted from his home in san francisco russian hills, one of just a few reasons that justify renter friendly eviction in san francisco. >> the landlord served me with an owner move-in eviction. >> he contended the landlord moved in his daughter to rent out her old apartment in airbnb. >> they saw an opportunity to make more money through a different channel. >> butler points to these two units on airbnb which he says are in the building currently going for 145 a night. by comparison butler's rent worked out to about $63 a night. joe tobener is representing him in a lawsuit . he said it's a problem all over the city. he said stories like thesauri phenomenonlies, but that's no -- li

julie watts shows what you can do to help. >> reporter: it's hard not to notice we haven't got much rainely. >> our weather will stay sunny, stay mild, and stay completely dry. >> and water officials admit they're worried. >> it's becoming problematic. >> 1977 was a big drout year and so far, this year-to-date, this is dryer than that year. >> and if this keeps up we may soon be forced to ration water, but andrea polk of eastbay mud says there's a lot homeowners can do right now. she says this is a time to start conserving water and recommends installing faucet aerate ors that reduce the flow of water from your tap. >> this particular one is a two gallon per minute flow shower head. >> a lot of homes have three and a half or even higher. >> you should also look into low flow shower heads that fit off a garden hose. >> it has a shut off so that you aren't wasting water when you go in between. >> better yet, capture and save water when you cook or wash and use that for your outdoor plans. >> the plans don't need very much water in the winter. >> and then there are more ambitious options li

julie watts shows us how one south bay woman turned to consumerwatch after a home makeover didn't gos planned. >> you just do the blind test and put your fingers in them and you can tell that they're different. >> reporter: jean knew right away that the carpet she purchased at this home depot for nearly 2 bucks a square foot wasn't the carpet that was installed in her south bay home. >> this is a little denser, the threads themselves alonger. >> reporter: after a closer look, both the home depot salesman and its third party installer agreed, jean didn't get the palatial taupe carpet she paid for. instead she had four rooms in thoroughbred chestnut a cheaper an lower quality floor covering. >> it shreds really easily like all the little fibers come up easily. >> reporter: but before home depot we agree to replace it, they needed to be sure and sent samples of her newly laid carpet to georgia for analysis a sort of carpet csi. but when jean called for results she said she was bounced around from office to office for two months. >> he could never get a straight answer who was sending it

. >> julie watts tells us that con artists are impersonating irs agents. >> my name is jason jordan andalling you from the irs. >> reporter: the message is hard to understand. but to cheryl, the message was clear. >> that i was in trouble with the irs. there was something wrong with my previous income tax and that i needed to contact them immediately. >> reporter: when the caller finally reached him two days later, he had more bad news. she was under investigation for tax fraud. >> he said i needed to contact another person because he was the investigator on my case. >> that is a scam. >> reporter: sergeant eric melendez says it's another investigation of a con game in which scammers pose as members of a government agency, police department, law firm, utility, you name it. and right now, they're posing as irs agents. he says in every case the scammer gives urgent reasons why you need to send the money immediately. usually by prepaid debit card or wire transfer. >> they're trying to get the money transferred from the victim to them without leaving traces. >> reporter: some are adding an

good evening, i'm julie watts in for elizabeth cook. >> i'm ken bastida. family is sharing stories about the veteran bart police officer killed in the line of duty. they are hurting for their loss and the officer who mistakenly opened fire. they are a strong law enforcement family. four members serving in different east bay agencies. they invited juliette goodrich into their home this afternoon. >> reporter: ken, detective sergeant smith is known to his family as tommy. he has two older brothers in law enforcement, his wife and brother-in-law in law enforcement. they know it's a dangerous job. they know that they are serving the public. they also know they never want to get a phone call like they did yesterday. >> if you are lucky to find the love of your life, hold on to it. i did. i cherished every moment we had. >> reporter: tommy's wife chemly is a k-9 officer with bart pd. she was working when she heard the call come in yesterday. >> not only my family here grieving. his family. there's another officer's family out there grieving. i hope the community

on the consumerwatch, julie watts reports these charges should be the least of her worries. >>> reporter: most people aren't too concerned about the information hackers got from the massive target credit card breach. after all, credit card companies assure you're not responsible when crooks use your information to make their own credit cards like these confiscated from a couple crossing the mexican border last week. >> so this is mailed to my home. i received this yesterday morning. >> reporter: and this costco american express card bearing laura campbell's name and some other woman's photo. >> i like how she sprack for the executive card. nice touch. >> reporter: but that was just the beginning. >> someone on january 2 had gone online and requested a copy of my credit report. so they were able to obtain all my information from that. so i mean, scary they get all my email addresses, open accounts, mortgages, everything they know about you. >> reporter: once they have that, they have your identity. >> this really is a nightmare because you have now got so much information out there that y

on the consumerwatch, julie watts explains what's behind these orphan applications. >>> reporter: >> whenever i contact them they say we have no record of you. >> reporter: viewer after viewer -- >> they say my name is not in the system. >> reporter: email after email all with the same complaint. >> my applications have been lost. >> reporter: they signed up for insurance but still have no coverage because their insurance companies say they have no record of their applications. i'm sitting here with a stack of emails just this week alone. are there a lot of lost applications. >> no, not a lot as a matter of fact. >> reporter: "covered california's" dana howard says only 2% of all the applicants are dealing with this issue but that still amounts to over 12,000 californians! so what's the problem? >> when we send over the, uhm, the transmissions and verification that the person has enrolled, sometimes, uhm, there is a misalignment of data that takes place. so what actually the insurance plan sometimes is looking at doesn't quite match up with what they think that it should be. >> repor

on the consumerwatch, julie watts is here to help us with the best diets of 2014. >>> reporter: >> iverweight my entire life. i really needed to take action and change something. >> reporter: 'tis the season for diet testimonials and there's no shortage online but with so many options how do you know which ones are right for you? enter u.s. news and world reports's best diet. >> the dash diet always gets great marks. >> reporter: registered dietician jo ann hattner says the dash diet has been around for years and was initially created to treat and prevent high blood pressure. >> there's a lot of science behind it and because of the science, people do highly recommend the dash diet. >> do i recommend this dash diet? absolutely. >> reporter: youtube testimonials like this tout the benefits of dash, which basically revolves around healthy eating but while it is heart healthy, nutritionally sound and suitable for the whole family, there is one big diet drawback. >> i didn't notice a huge we loss. the original diet was 2,000 calories so many people cannot lose weight on 2,000 cal rims i d

consumerwatch reporter julie watts explains some unemployed folks say getting through is impossible. [ dialing ] >> reporter: for linda, trying to reach the state's unemployment office is a full- time job. >> our offices are currently closed. >> reporter: she says she has been calling them day and night when she was laid off in october trying to find out why her claims haven't been paid. >> i tried first thing in the morning thinking maybe before the lines get backed up. i have tried the last moment. they in fact have numbers for people who speak mandarin or spanish. i have called those. >> reporter: she is not alone. >> it's taken me 3 1/2 weeks to get a person on the phone. >> i spend eight hours two days in a row. >> it's a system that's just overloaded. >> reporter: michael used to run the place. he says as the number of californians on unemployment keeps rising, now at 500,000, the agency staffing level keeps falling thanks to federal budget cuts. representatives from the edd wouldn't speak on camera but hope to get money from the state this summer if governor brown's proposed b

on the consumerwatch, julie watts reports that one of i moves is raising questions.e you checked your email today? you likely gotn email from target offering credit monitoring for a year problem is, cyber security experts warn... there's no y to tell the difference between a lagitimate target email... and the one's scams are creating to look just le them. they warn.. scammers will use the information abt you ... that they hacked fr target then send you emails posing as target. or a class action lawsuit against targ. or even other retailers. ho you'll click on a link. or type in the url of a malicis target look-a-like site. and accidentally give up more information. or download malware. target wouldn't say why it chose to contact breech victims via email and direct them to a link. considering it knows scamme are doing the same thing? but if you're interested ine freed credit monitoring, yo best bet is to go directly the target website... and navigate to it from the home page. and, p.g. and e is warning customers... and non-customs alike... about a scam. the utility sa

. >> julie watts is here with the details on the consumerwatch. > reporter: this time it's wichcraft sandwiches a popular restaurant co-founded by a chef tom. the chain announced yesterday that credit cards were compromised at its new york and san francisco locations. now, they were compromised between august and october of this year. and the restaurant says hackers may have stolen customer in fact including names, card numbers, security codes and expiration days. in a statement on its website the company apologized and said it quickly took steps to secure the system but doesn't say why it took so long to notify customers. >>> hundreds of thousands of californians are getting letters informing them they may owe the state some money. california is reminding us to pay the use tax. that's sales tax that was not charged at the time of purchase. it applies to online transactions as well as things you bought in other states or overseas. not paying could cost you back taxes, penalties and interest. and consumers are complaining about yet another problem d

. >> julie watts with more on the increasingly common sweet heart scam. >> reporter: we told you aboutar at valentine's day, and now fraudsters are meeting their victims and targeting them on dating websites. first earning their trust and then saming them out of thousands. you may remember this woman. she lost $6,000 to a criminal casanova she met online who had also scammed over 100 other women. it turns out they are not alone. the d.a. says a 66-year-old san jose woman just lost over $500,000 to a man she met on christian mingle. he turned out to be a nigerian native. never send money to someone you met online. >>> good news for parents whose kids wracked up hundreds of dollars in game and app purchases. apple will be refunding children parents. the deal was that apple made it too easy for children to spend money. the agreement now requires apple to get the buyers' informed express consent before charging for apps. >>> a new food safety law in california has bartenders up in arms. first chefs were upset over the new law that would require them to wear gloves while cooking, saying it'

on the consumerwatch, julie watts explains it's due to a possible fire hazard.hat's not where you want a fire. >> reporter: definitely not. apparently the fabric doesn't comply with u.s. flammability standards and there is a concern that the fabric could catch fire since the seats are heated. there is no recall but toyota has ordered dealers to stop selling certain camry, avalon, siena and tacoma models from the 2013 and 2014 model years. 2014 corollas and tundras are also on the list. no fires or injuries have been reported. >>> well, they advertise great deals on high-end merchandise that is either slightly damaged or overstocked. but congress is asking for a federal investigation into outlet stores across the u.s. for potentially misleading marketing practices. now, analysts estimate about 85% of the merchandise sold at outlet stores are actually lower quality items manufactured specifically for those outlets. >>> and they are cute ironic hipster and make for great holiday pictures but over 200,000 pacifiers like the one my daughter is modeling here are being

but on the consumer p watch, julie watts reports some landlords are diversing they get more from tourists than tenants. >> reporter: yes. and that has some long-term tenants complaining they are being squeezed out of their rentals. >> this isn't my particular unit but this is another unit in the building. >> chris butler can't forget his old apartment. all he has to do is look on air b and b, the site that allows you to rent out your home for vacation. back in 0212, he was evicted from his $1,800 a month one bedroom in this building in san francisco's russian hills. the reason, one of just a few that justify legal eviction in renter-friendly san francisco. >> the landlord served me with an owner move in eviction. >> but instead of moving in himself, butler contends the landlord move 0 his daughter into -- moved his daughter in so he could rent out her old apartment on air b and b. >> i was under a rent control based on an opportunity to make more money through a different channel. >> butler points to these two units on air b and b which he says are in the building and are currently going

here's k-p-i-x five's julie watts. first they said it was justr credit card number - nat then they admitted the croo got pin numbers too. - nat now target is revealing. on of the 40-milion customers e credit cards were compromis- nat the same hackers stole e names, mailing address, emas and phone numbers from an additional 70 million custo. which may include online shoppers. - when we thought it was just credit card num thats easy enough, but now u have so much information out there that you cant cancel you cant take back. and neal offerral of the id theft nek says. target's offer to payr one year of credit monitori and id theft protection is t of an empty gesture. unless it's next revelations that social security numbers were compromised too. - its unlikely that thievs have enough information to t the names moized, the psalm hackers stole the names, e-mail addresses and phone numbers for customer which is may include online shoppers. >> when we thought it was just credit card numbers that's easy enough but now you hav

on the consumerwatch, julie watts explains how patients can now >>> here's a question for you.ur doctor a drunk or drug addict? >> well, you know, it may sound strange but it's actually a little more common than you might think. it's estimated that 2 out of 10 doctors are alcohol or drug impaired. yet there's no system in california to identify those physicians. and that's the reason behind a new billboard campaign. this one is in oakland. it publicizes a toll-free hotline where patients and medical practitioners can report suspected drug and alcohol abuse by physicians. a roseville woman was a victim of a doctor who left her crippled and disfigured more than a decade ago. >> what i didn't know about my doctor is he battled and addiction to alcohol and was arrested multiple times for dui. >> reporter: she says he lost his license 7 years after operating on her. the consumer watchdog the group behind the billboards says the state medical board's disciplinary records show one in eight cases involves drug or alcohol abuse. consumer watchdog says it will investigate the hotline com

on the consumerwatch, julie watts explains what it's costing the banks so far just in replacement cardsh, too, i would guess. >> reporter: it's tough. not just target bottom's line taking the hit. more than 50 million debit cards and credit cards were replaced since that data breach. so far the total is more than $150 million just to replace those credit and debit cards. that's not including the fraudulent purchases they will have to cover. the average cost to replace a card is $10. now, that includes the cost of the actual card plus expenses to inform customers, reissue, ship and activate all those cards. >>> the better business bureau is warning tonight about a new scam. if your phone rings just once and there is no one there don't call back. they are calling it the one ring cell phone scam which uses a computer to call thousands of it random numbers. when the victim calls back, they are charged 19.925 for an international call and $9 a minute. if you discover these charges on your bill notify your provider immediately. >>> and remember linda hager? we reported last night that she has

but julie watts found one bay area renter who says his landlord pushed him out the cash in on air bnbnother unit in the building. >> reporter: chris butler can't forget the old apartment 689 all he has to do is look on air bnb the site that allows you to rent out your home. back in 2012 he was evicted from his $1,800 a month rent controlled one bedroom in this building in san francisco's russian hill. the reason? one of just a few that justify legal eviction in renter friendly san francisco. >> the landlord served me with an owner move in eviction. >> reporter: but butler contends the landlord moved his daughter into butler's unit from another unit in the building so he could rend out her old apartment on air bnb. >> they saw an opportunity to make more money through a different -- through a different channel. >> reporter: butler points to these two units on air bnb which he says are in the building and currently going for $125 and $145 a night. by comparison? butler's rent worked out to about $63 a night. >> this is a very big problem. >> reporter: tenant rights attorney is represent

. >> july, 2012 we were celebrating the turnover to 1,000-watt in solar and now we've tripled that in8 months. >> although california needs normal winter weather, at least solar is picking up some of the load for hydropower that's just not happening right now. in sacramento, george warren, abc7 news. >> sounds like for people with solar panels, more good news this weekend. >> yes. yesterday we tied a record in southeast tahoe, 58 degrees. that was the record tied last year in 2012. we definitely had a string of dry days for the past couple weeks. it continues throughout the day today. i should say the weekend. but changes could be coming on monday and tuesday. live doppler 7hd showing low clouds and high clouds this morning to talk about. acrosses by in oakland visibility has been reduced to an eighth of a mile. and it's clear in the north bay and temperatures are really chilly. continue to drop to just around freezing in the north by. from the sutro, no visibility problems here. mid-40s and the coast in mid-40s with upper 30s on the peninsula, 41 los gatos and san jose at 42. the roo

july. >>> today marks a change in the way we see things as well. as of midnight, it is illegal to move or import 60 and 40-wattncandescent bulbs. traditional 75 and 100-watt incandescent bulbs have already been phased out. other incandescent bulbs, such as those used in chandeliers are still legal to buy. >>> san jose styrofoam band goes into effect today. most outlets are banned from using styrofoam packaging. >> things are going so well with the current ban on plastic bags, they have doe sided necided not increase the price of paper bags. people will still pay 10 cents for all the bags they have at the store. >>> colorado will be the first state to allow the legal sale of recreational marijuana. pot shops don't open up until later this morning. that did not stop people from lining up to be the first to purchase their newly legalized pot. the state has build some of the most complex regulations for weed. not everybody is a fan. >> i think it is going to be a huge disaster. there are just some things that there are more harm to society than there are benefits to it. >> now, pot shops will only sell 1 ounce to

on in washington between july and the election anyway, which is a sad commentary on washington politics. >> i know. i guess that's -- >> by the way, senator -- congressman watt'sstaff will be very active and still his staff will be working on constituent services on one of the oddest congressional districts in the united states of america that goes from charlotte all the way through salisbury, through greensboro. >> well, hey, you want to talk about redistricting reform, we could go on for -- we could go on -- >> yeah, this is one of the wildest ones. it is crazy. it's a crazy district. >> it is. >> what's that? it's been around for several decades. >> i know. you change lanes on 85 and you go into a new district, if i'm not mistaken. >> you got it. >> all right, governor mccrory, thank you for your time. >> have me anytime. thank you very much. >>> well, if it's wednesday, that means we have election results. we now have the match-up for the special election in florida, and it will be a field day for headline writers. will jolly sink alex, or will sink be jolly over david jolly. plus the latest house democrat to call it quits, two of them, actually. which pre

watt's seat. chuck, you know and i know that not much goes on in washington between july and the election.nelson, will you be doing something between jewuly d election? >> i think we'll be pretty busy. we are every other year. being in the district, listens to people, talking to them, holding meetings, they're doing constituent services, helping people get passports. it's all critical. this is one of the more amazing abdications of responsibility i've never seen? terms of not abdicating, mel watt's team is staying in the office to do some of that constituent service. but reverend barber, let me ask you about the other part we heard mccrory say. they're down with the november election. we checked. that does seem to be true. why would the candidates support this timing? >> it was only permanent interest. it doesn't matter if someone wants to, you know, even stay. all of us don't want to stay in bondage. what we want is constitutional representation. so that doesn't matter. he's called to gronch for the best interest of the people, not to pick out two or three people and then decide to i plea