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Welcome to the Consumer Rights Wiki
Exposing the overlooked exploitation of modern consumers
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Your #1 mission: Help build this wiki. We’re looking for contributors who care about protecting consumer rights. Here’s how you can get started:
Write a new article
- Visit the article suggestions page.
- Pick a topic that interests you.
- Create an article using our content guidelines.
- Once you’re done, remove the topic from the list to avoid duplication.
Check out our guide on creating your first article for some tips!
Other ways to help
Don’t want to write a full article? No problem, here are other ways to contribute:
- Check out How to help for a guide.
- Improve and expand existing articles.
- Remove suggestions that are already covered or don’t fit the wiki’s scope.
- Add missing but relevant topics to the suggestions list.
Want to understand the bigger picture? Read our Mission Statement to learn what we’re about.
2025-10-04
The Consumer Rights Wiki is now open-source!
Head over to our GitHub at https://github.com/FULU-Foundation/crw if you're interested in helping out with the codebase.
2025-07-22
We've just launched an update to the create-a-page flow for most pages, which now includes a form! This new form will collect a few basic details about the specific article you're creating, and will use your answers to auto-populate a table which will provide machine-readable information for third party projects (for company and product articles, it will also populate the infobox in the template!). This information will be used by projects like the in-development browser extension, as well as anyone who wants to access some hard data on the Wiki's pages.
Check it out by hitting the create a page button in the sidebar!
2025-07-03
We're phasing out the Louis Rossmann video directory in favour of a more general Article suggestions page, created by the eminent JamesTDG!
This will allow anyone to contribute their (hopefully sourced!) ideas to the Wiki without needing to create a full article, and will provide an excellent repository of ideas for editors in need of inspiration.
2025-06-10
We're opening up applications for moderators! Please see here for full instructions on how to apply.
In short, we're looking for motivated individuals who are willing to patrol the Wiki, make sure that articles are up to scratch, and take actions to protect the wiki from spam or malicious content whenever appropriate.
2025-01-30
We made it easier for you to create a new article! Simply click on Create a page in the sidebar on the left, fill in the title for your page and click on "Create page".
Microsoft is one of the world's largest technology companies, founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen. It produces Windows, Office, Azure, Xbox, and other major products. Over the years, the company has faced repeated criticism and lawsuits for engaging in anti-competitive practices, forcing the bundling of software, and implementing consumer-unfriendly policies.
Microsoft has been fined by regulators in the U.S. and Europe for monopolistic behavior, such as tying Internet Explorer and Windows Media Player to its operating systems. More recent controversies involve restrictive licensing, subscription lock-ins, telemetry and privacy concerns, as well as the forced integration of Microsoft services, such as Edge, OneDrive, and Copilot.
Consumers have also raised issues with forced updates in Windows, the requirement of newer hardware features (such as TPM 2.0 in Windows 11), privacy-invasive features like “Recall,” and dark-pattern design that makes it difficult to avoid Microsoft accounts. Product-specific controversies include the Xbox 360's “Red Ring of Death,” DRM restrictions, and changes in Minecraft that require a Microsoft account migration.
While Microsoft continues to dominate both consumer and enterprise software markets, its practices raise ongoing concerns around competition, privacy, and consumer rights. The article about Microsoft is featured to encourage updates and improvements to the article as well as for its long-time existence on the CRW.
Want to suggest a featured article? Add it to the discussion page.
August 2025
- Clippy the paperclip is taking over profile pics across the internet in protest of big tech – Coverage of the Clippy Campaign
July 2025
- Buy now, pay later loans will now hit credit scores — and experts think Gen Z could be at risk – FICO plans to include BNPL loans in credit scores this fall, raising flags for young and vulnerable borrowers
Want to suggest a story? Add it to the discussion page.
Also see: In the news for coverage about this project.
Ad & tracking blockers
- Pi-hole – Self-hosted network-based ad blocker.
- uBlock Origin – Efficient browser-based ad and tracker blocker.
- LocalCDN – Replaces third-party CDNs with local resources to block trackers.
Anti-scam resources
- Have I Been Pwned – Check if your email/password was exposed in a breach.
- CFPB – File complaints and view alerts about financial services.
- ScamAdviser – Analyze websites for trustworthiness.
- VirusTotal/Hybryd Analysis – Scan files and websites for malware.
Archival tools
- Wayback Machine - World’s largest internet archival service
- archive.today - Smaller internet archival service for excluded websites (ex: Twitter/X, Facebook)
- SingleFile - Browser extension to save website EULA/privacy policy as html locally
- ArchiveBox - Self-hosted website archival tool
Corporate accountability & recalls
- Better Business Bureau (BBB) – Lookup business complaints and file your own.
- SaferProducts.gov – U.S. product recall and complaint site.
- FDA Recalls – Drug and food recall database.
Legal & complaint filing
- Consumer Reports – Independent product reviews and ratings.
- Ripoff Report – Public consumer complaint database.
- ClassAction.org – View or join consumer class-action lawsuits.
Repair & Open designs
- iFixit – Open repository of device repair instructions.
- Open Source Ecology – Open source machinery designs.
Price & product transparency
- CamelCamelCamel – Amazon price tracker to detect deceptive price drops.
- Keepa – Detailed price history and deals on Amazon products.
- TrueStar – Analyzes Amazon reviews for manipulation. [Subscription needed]
Privacy & surveillance tools
- PrivacyGuides.org – Recommends tools to protect online privacy.
- SimpleOptOut – Direct links to opt out of data brokers.
- EasyOptOuts – Automated data broker opt-out service. [Subscription needed]
Subscription & dark pattern tracking
- Trim – Finds and cancels unwanted subscriptions.
- Goodbudget – Budgeting app with debt tracker. [Subscription needed]
- Terms of Service; Didn’t Read – Summarizes privacy policies and rates companies by trustworthiness.
- Deceptive Design – Defines, identifies, and catalogs dark patterns and deceptive design practices in various software and services.
- Dark Pattern Games – A game review website devoted to helping you find games that don't use psychological tricks to manipulate you into becoming an addicted gamer.
8 October 2025
- 15:5515:55, 8 October 2025 STMicroelectronics (hist | edit) [1,124 bytes] Hiya Keedo (talk | contribs) (New page.)
- 05:2105:21, 8 October 2025 Qualcomm (hist | edit) [4,735 bytes] Tooniis (talk | contribs) (Created page with "{{CompanyCargo |Founded=1985-07 |Industry=Semiconductors, Computer hardware, Telecommunications |Logo=Qualcomm-Logo.png |Type=Public |Website=https://www.qualcomm.com/ }} {{Ph-C-Int}} ==Consumer-impact summary== {{Ph-C-CIS}} ==Incidents== {{Ph-C-Inc}} This is a list of all consumer-protection incidents this company is involved in. Any incidents not mentioned here can be found in the [[:Category:{{FULLPAGENAME}}|{{PAGENAME}} category]]. ===Example incident one...")
- 03:0803:08, 8 October 2025 List of services without clear cancellation (hist | edit) [931 bytes] Beanie Bo (talk | contribs) (created page) Tag: Visual edit
- 03:0103:01, 8 October 2025 List of products and services with forced arbitration (hist | edit) [7,101 bytes] Beanie Bo (talk | contribs) (Sorry for the caps lock and bold and formatting issues. It's past my bedtime) Tag: Visual edit
7 October 2025
- 23:5623:56, 7 October 2025 Assioma (hist | edit) [4,237 bytes] Sojourna (talk | contribs) (Created page with "{{ProductLineCargo |ArticleType=Product |Category=Power meter pedals |Company=Favero |Description= |InProduction=Yes |Logo=Assioma logo.png |ReleaseYear=2015<ref>{{Cite web |author=DC Rainmaker |title=The Favero bePRO Power Meter In-Depth Review |url=https://www.dcrainmaker.com/2015/09/favero-depth-review.html |website=DC Rainmaker |date=11 Sep 2015 |access-date=6 Oct 2025 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150912041150/https://www.dcrainmaker.co...")
- 21:5221:52, 7 October 2025 LG Warranty Starts Ownership Transfer from You to LG Electronics (hist | edit) [542 bytes] CityguyUSA (talk | contribs) (Created page with "{{IncidentCargo |Company=LG |StartDate=2022 |Status=Active |ProductLine=LG |Product=LG Gram Laptops |ArticleType=Product |Type=Repairability & Ownership Restriction |Description=Replaced products and parts become property of LG. Does this mean that the old parts that were removed become their property or the installed parts? }} {{Ph-I-Int}} ==Background== {{Ph-I-B}} ==[Incident]== {{Ph-I-I}} ===[Company]'s response=== {{Ph-I-ComR}} ==Lawsuit== {{Ph-I-L}} ==Consume...")
- 21:4321:43, 7 October 2025 Listonic (hist | edit) [686 bytes] Kysakio (talk | contribs) (Created page with "{{ProductCargo |ProductLine=Shopping List |InProduction=No |Description=Shopping list app }} {{Ph-C-Int}} ==Consumer-impact summary== {{Ph-C-CIS}} ==Incidents== {{Ph-C-Inc}} This is a list of all consumer-protection incidents related to this product. Any incidents not mentioned here can be found in the [[:Category:{{PAGENAME}}|{{PAGENAME}} category]]. ===Example incident one (''date'')=== {{Main|link to the main CR Wiki article}} Short summary of the incide...")
- 21:2621:26, 7 October 2025 Disney requires an active subscription to delete a Disney+ account (hist | edit) [2,119 bytes] Skyler161 (talk | contribs) (Disney+ does not allow users to simply login and delete their account if they are no longer subscribers to their service.)
- 03:2503:25, 7 October 2025 Microsoft Authenticator (hist | edit) [2,003 bytes] OfficialBeebe (talk | contribs) (Created page with "{{ProductCargo |Company=Microsoft |InProduction=Yes |ArticleType=Product |Category=Security, Software |Website=https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/security/mobile-authenticator-app, https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/account-billing/about-microsoft-authenticator-9783c865-0308-42fb-a519-8cf666fe0acc |Description=A free app that secures Microsoft accounts with single sign-on (SSO) and provides multi-factor authentication (MFA) to various other online services. }} {{Ph-C-Int}}...")
- 01:0501:05, 7 October 2025 Getac (hist | edit) [2,486 bytes] The Wang (talk | contribs) (Getac Technology Corporation is a global leader in rugged mobile technology and intelligent video solutions, including laptops, tablets, software, body-worn cameras, in-car video, interview rooms, and evidence management software. Getac’s solutions and services enable the vital work done by frontline workers operating in the world’s most challenging environments. cited: 6:03 PST 10/06/25 @ https://www.getac.com/us/about-us/)