On Your Side: Need advice? It's Consumer Protection Week

Whistleblower readers, get your browsers ready. Today marks the start of National Consumer Protection Week.

Coming hot on the heels of Weights and Measures Week, NCPW hasn't yet caught fire in Minnesota, judging by the absence of local observances in the region. In other parts of the country, state attorneys are kicking off the week with "shred-a-thons" to encourage people to keep unneeded personal documents out of the hands of identity thieves.

Still, the week's website, ncpw.gov, offers plenty of tips that could prevent some of the problems readers share with us every day through anguished calls and e-mails.

For instance, there's the "Online Shopping Assistant," set up by Canadians to help consumers decide whether the retailer they want to do business with is legit. Click on strib.mn/hircTa to launch it.

Teens can learn how to be savvy consumers by visiting the Federal Trade Commission's interactive "Virtual Mall," strib.mn/hA8w2U, full of simulated rip-offs, identity-theft space invaders and other fun ways to avoid being a sucker or a victim. It's certainly a lot more fun than the Federal Reserve Kids Page, strib.mn/hFswcs.

By March 12, the government hopes more Americans will know the difference between "phishing," "smishing" and "vishing." Think you know? Go to strib.mn/hZuEC4

Local product recalls

An estimated 79,000 Chinese-made beaded door curtains sold at Target under the Circo brand name were recalled last week after three reports of entanglement since 2009, one of them a girl who nearly choked. The items sold in stores and online for $13 to $15 between January 2009 and May 2010.

J&J Distributing of St. Paul recalled about 87 pounds of buffalo-chicken cheese dip products sold in the Twin Cities under the Cub and Kowalski's brand names. Containers of dip with sell-by dates from Feb. 23 to Feb. 25 could have unannounced MSG in them, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which detected the potential problem during an inspection. There have been no reports of adverse reactions to the dip, the USDA said.

Last week, Manhattan Group LLC, a Minneapolis toy importer, recalled about 400 Parents Busy Time Activity Centers because a wooden peg in the "xylophone activity" could come loose, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission. The CPSC has one report of a child putting the peg in his mouth. The toy was sold for about $90 in stores, catalogs and online from December through last month.

Keep up to date with food, medicine and product recalls at recalls.gov.