Patricia Wells

The U.S. State Department recently alerted its diplomats about attempts to impersonate Secretary of State Marco Rubio and possibly other officials using artificial intelligence (AI) technology. This warning came after officials discovered someone pretending to be Rubio reached out to at least three foreign ministers, a U.S. senator, and a governor. The attempts were made … Read more

Deadly floods struck Texas recently, claiming at least 89 lives and leaving communities grappling with the destruction. As the state recovers, false rumors have spread online suggesting cloud seeding caused the extreme rainfall. Experts say that’s not true. The floods were the result of a powerful natural weather system. The US National Weather Service had … Read more

Billionaire Richard Li’s FWD Group Holdings made a strong start on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on Monday. After initially dropping as much as 2.5%, the insurer’s shares bounced back, ending the day up 1.1% at HK$38.40. The initial public offering raised HK$3.5 billion, or about $442 million. This marks a significant moment for Li, … Read more

More than 100 people lost their lives after sudden flash floods slammed the Texas Hill Country over the Fourth of July weekend. The floods, caused by heavy rain dumping up to 12 inches in some spots, led to the Guadalupe River rising nearly 30 feet in just one hour. It left the area devastated and … Read more

Homeowners in the U.S. have seen their insurance costs rise sharply over the past six years, with the steepest hikes happening just recently. According to a new report from LendingTree, rates stayed mostly steady between 2019 and 2021 but began climbing in 2022 and have surged in both 2023 and 2024. From 2019 to 2021, … Read more

The U.S. property and casualty insurance industry faced a tough start to 2025, with losses and expenses overshadowing growth in premiums. The first quarter ended with a $1.1 billion underwriting loss, largely due to the costly wildfires that swept through California in January. Industry experts point to these fires as a major driver behind the … Read more

Erie Insurance has fully restored its business operations after a month-long network outage that began in early June. The company says there is no evidence that any sensitive personal information, financial data, or protected records were accessed or stolen during the incident. The outage started on June 7 as a defensive move to contain a … Read more

In 2024, wind and solar energy in the United States generated more electricity than coal for the first time. This milestone highlights a shift in the country’s energy landscape, with renewable sources gaining a stronger foothold in power generation. Experts say the renewable energy sector is growing fast, not just in wind and solar, but … Read more

A cybercrime group known as Scattered Spider has shifted its focus from retailers to insurance companies, raising new concerns in the cybersecurity world. Recent attacks on Erie Insurance, Philadelphia Insurance Companies, and Aflac highlight this worrying trend, according to experts from Google’s Threat Intelligence Group. Scattered Spider is a loosely connected group of hackers that … Read more

Every day, we hear about big cyberattacks hitting companies, but what about hackers targeting people at home? As more of our daily lives and devices connect to the internet, personal cybercrime is on the rise. Many folks might not even realize the risks they face or what they can do to protect themselves. A recent … Read more