Czech news in brief for August 13: Thursday's top afternoon headlines

Prime Minister Andrej Babiš said the government will meet Monday to renew the National Coalition to Fight Drought, established in 2018. The cabinet plans to allocate CZK 4 billion for drought measures, including three new dams, and wants water designated as a public interest. Czechia is experiencing exceptionally severe hydrological drought, with small hydropower plants particularly affected. Officials say up to 90 percent of more than 1,400 small plants have stopped operating.

Cybercriminals are targeting people in Czechia with increasingly convincing SMS messages impersonating ČSOB and urging recipients to update their banking app. Links lead to fake websites that can install malicious software and steal banking credentials. Police and banks warn people not to click links or provide passwords and authorization codes. Banking apps should only be updated through official Google Play or Apple App Store channels.

A study by the Czech ombudsman and Masaryk University found that age discrimination in hiring begins as early as 40. Researchers sent 4,280 fictitious applications from men aged 40 to 55 to Labour Office listings. Candidates aged 40 to 44 received positive responses 28.9 percent of the time. Each additional year of age reduced the chance of a positive response by an average 0.3 percentage points.

Two brothers from Opava allegedly pretended to have severe mental disabilities for nearly 20 years, collecting 11.5 million Kč in disability pensions and other benefits, police said. The brothers, now 35 and 37, allegedly deceived doctors and officials with help from their parents and caregivers. Investigators found them independently shopping, taking out loans, and traveling around Opava. Five family members have been charged with fraud.

Prague hospitals are urgently seeking blood donors as supplies of types A and O, both positive and negative, fall to critical levels during the summer holiday period. The Central Military Hospital has also reported shortages of B blood, while the General University Hospital is particularly short of A-negative and B-negative blood. Donation centers typically see fewer donors during summer, while the donor pool is also declining.