Tuesday, November 28, 2017

Reasons to always read website privacy policies

Image credit: Pixabay
Privacy policies are often long documents full of legalese and other convoluted paragraphs. A large number of web users find them frustrating to read and it is common for many people to ignore the links that lead to business privacy policies when they join a website.

The reason for this is because not only are they often difficult to read, people in general typically are eager to be up and running once they are registered. Not to mention, reading privacy policies is pretty time-consuming. However, bypassing a read through a website's privacy policy is a big mistake.

Tuesday, November 21, 2017

How to spot fake Black Friday deals

Image credit: Leigh Goessl
Traditionally, Black Friday deals were items slashed in price to entice consumers to head out in the early dawn hours the day after Thanksgiving with special morning deals.

Essentially, these deals were designed for ambitious people looking to be the early bird that catches the worm. This no longer is the case. Black Friday is becoming a multi and all day event. In addition to the madness typically associated with the oft-cited busiest shopping day(s) of the year, nowadays many fake Black Friday deals have emerged over time.

Friday, November 17, 2017

'Tis the season for scams - watch out for these holiday frauds

Image credit: Pixabay
As Thanksgiving Day arrives in the United States, it is not only the season to be jolly, but the season for scams for the next six weeks. This is a busy time of year. People are shopping, attending parties, and a flurry of other activity. In other words, people might be distracted, which makes for a perfect scenario for a scammer to hatch a scheme to lure his or her prey.

Scams that tend to circulate around the holidays include:

Wednesday, November 15, 2017

Ways using Facebook can put your bank account at risk

Image credit: Pixabay
Did you know sharing too much information on Facebook can be risky business? And it can put your bank account at risk?

Facebook currently remains one of the most popular destinations on the web. With over 1 billion members in 2017, for several years now the network has pretty much remained the top network people turn to socialize online. Many people across the globe perceive the popular social network as offering many benefits. Using Facebook, however, does not come without its drawbacks. The larger the network has grown, the more attractive it has become to scammers and ID thieves.

Wednesday, November 8, 2017

How to stop credit card junk mail

As the world goes digital, credit card companies still spend a lot of time soliciting through the good old-fashioned postal mail. They pre-approve, send low introductory rate offers, or provide other offers designed to entice you to apply. Some of them are kind enough to prefill much of your personal information for you.

Oh, did you know your personal information is being sold too? Meaning more solicitations. And the credit reporting agencies are cashing in on them.

Wednesday, November 1, 2017

How to spend smart using credit cards

Image credit: Pixabay
No doubt about it, credit cards are a great convenience. Many people find there are many advantages to shopping by credit. Unfortunately, a problem arises when overuse or abuse of credit cards occurs. Excess spending beyond a budget through use of credit can rapidly lead to severe financial problems, including ruined credit and high debt accumulation.

On the other hand, wise spending when using credit cards can offer lots of tangible benefits to consumers. In order to be successful, what this entails is following some basic general rules of thumb when making purchases with plastic.