Behind the Scenes

CR took quick action following news of the major security breach of Equifax, which compromised sensitive information including the social security numbers of nearly half of the U.S. population.

CR responded to this historic data breach by equipping  consumers with tips on how to take control of their financial information, and explaining the difference between a security freeze and a fraud alert. Nearly 400,000 people in just four days accessed our Facebook posts of the breach. In addition, CR sent a letter to the CEO of Equifax strongly urging the company to offer consumers better resources and tools to help them protect themselves.

More than 200,000 people signed our electronic petition asking Congress to pass stronger federal data security standards. And a second petition directed at Equifax garnered nearly 180,000 signatures, which we delivered to Equifax headquarters in Atlanta recently. We are continuing to collect signatures. You can still sign the petition to help continue to put the pressure on Equifax. CR is working with national and state decision makers to strengthen data security standards and penalties for infractions of those standards. Your support helps makes comprehensive action like this possible.

What do you do when you know a hurricane is coming your way? Thanks to your support, CR provided timely information to those affected by the major storms we witnessed this fall.

CR shared more than 20 stories and videos to help people with storm prep and cleanup during this severe hurricane season. More than 260,000 visitors looked for information such as "What to Feed Your Family When the Power Is Out", "How to Get Your Prescriptions During an Emergency" and
"Generator Safety Tips That Will Get You Through a Storm." We also sent targeted messages to our the CR community in regions impacted by Harvey and Irma.

Based on a CR analysis, the number of consumer complaints of suddenly shattering sunroofs has soared in recent years.

Since 1995, CR found that American vehicle owners have filed at least 859 official accounts with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration with 71 percent of those incidents occurring since 2011. CR has read through those reports, and while some details vary, the experience is similar: a sunroof suddenly shatters with no direct or known cause. The reason for the increase may be that sunroofs have significantly expanded in size in recent years, and there are more on the roads due to growth in popularity. Our investigation has found that, with a few exceptions, automakers are not acknowledging or resolving the issue. CR is calling on automakers with a pattern of shattering incidents to order a recall if it hasn't already. Read more details here.

There are at least 36 reports of injuries, mainly minor cuts or scrapes, but no serious injuries or deaths. The Scion tC, Hyundai Veloster, Kia Sorento, Nissan Murano, and Kia Optima were the most-cited models with this problem.

For the third year running, CR graded the top 25 fast food restaurant chains on their antibiotics policies for the meat and poultry they serve.

CR released the Chain Reaction report and scorecard, which aims to motivate companies to adopt policies that prohibit the routine use of antibiotics in healthy animals. Why is this important? The overuse of antibiotics is leading to bacteria that develop a resistance to these them.

In our first report in 2015, 80 percent of the restaurants received a failing grade. This year's takeaway? More than half of the largest companies now have policies in place restricting the use of medically important antibiotics in their chicken supply chain.  The 14 restaurants on this year's list that have made commitments to reduce antibiotic use represent two-thirds of all fast food industry revenue. CR has more work to do-the chain restaurant industry still lags in limiting the use of antibiotics in beef and pork production, but with your support, we will make progress on that front too. Read more here.