Monthly Archives: February 2017

General Information

Seniors: The Importance of a Personal Support Network

Elderly lady holding her pet cat

The Importance of a Personal Support Network

The American Red Cross recommends that senior citizens create a personal support network made up of several individuals who will check in on you in an emergency, to ensure your wellness and to give assistance if needed. This network can consist of friends, roommates, family members, relatives, personal attendants, co-workers and neighbors. Ideally, a minimum of three people can be identified at each location where you regularly spend time, for example at work, home, school or volunteer site.

There are seven important items to discuss and implement with a personal support network:

  1. Make arrangements, prior to an emergency, for your support network to immediately check on you after a disaster and, if needed, offer assistance.
  2. Exchange important keys.
  3. Show them where you keep emergency supplies.
  4. Share copies of your relevant emergency documents, evacuation plans and emergency health information card.
  5. Agree on and practice methods for contacting each other in an emergency. Do not count on the telephones working.
  6. You and your personal support network should always notify each other when you are going out of town and when you will return.
  7. The relationship should be mutual. You have a lot to contribute! Learn about each other’s needs and how to help each other in an emergency. You might take responsibility for food supplies and preparation, organizing neighborhood watch meetings and interpreting, among other things.

from: http://www.redcross.org/prepare/location/home-family/seniors

Money Advice

Buy-Smart Tips at Car Dealerships

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Shopping around for a new or new-to-you used car can be exciting. But before you step on the lot, be mindful of a few sales tactics and how to ensure you stay in control. Doing some homework ahead of time can help you buy in confidence.

Mixed Negotiations

Also known as the “four square” method, this sales tactic combines multiple, unrelated factors into a single transaction. The sales manager writes the price of the car, the down payment, trade-in value and the desired monthly payment into four boxes. If you want a certain trade-in price or a set monthly payment, other numbers may increase to compensate.

How to prepare: Shop your trade-in around multiple dealerships to get an estimate of its true value, and know not to negotiate based on your desired monthly payment.1

Inflated Interest Rates

Some car dealerships may advertise a certain interest rate, then make a last-minute change to financing.1

How to prepare: Secure a car loan through a bank or other outside party and come to the dealership with pre-approval in hand. Know your credit score beforehand so you’re confident about what you can afford, and triple-check all numbers in your paperwork.2

Spot Delivery

Some car buyers have driven a car off the lot without securing financing. This means that a few weeks later, the car dealership could call to say the loan application was rejected and that they need new paperwork—with a higher interest rate or down payment.

How to prepare: Never sign a deal or drive away in your new car if you don’t see your interest rate written down.3

1http://www.caranddriver.com/features/car-dealer-tricks-to-watch-for
2http://www.dmv.org/buy-sell/new-cars/scams.php
3https://www.carbuyingtips.com/top-10-scams/scam1.htm

Tags: car dealership, car dealerships, dealership tricks, used car, used car dealership

 

General Information

How to Protect Yourself from Data Breaches

Data breaches seem to be happening more and more often, with data thieves targeting both small companies and global giants.1 Data thieves are always on the lookout—and you should be too. Here’s what you need to know about protecting yourself from data breaches.

How Hacks Can Happen

Technology seems to offer the promise of keeping us safer—so what can lead to hacks? It’s a complicated issue, including:

  • Multiple entry points. People and companies access data from multiple places, including desktop computers, phones and tablets. These are all potential entry points for hackers, making it more complicated to protect against a data breach.
  • High volume of malicious activity. Nearly 1 million pieces of malicious software are published each day,2 making it difficult to guard against every new threat.

How you Can Help Protect Yourself

Whether or not there have been reports of a data breach, you should always do everything you can to keep your information secure. Here are some tips to consider:

  • Create complex passwords. Use different ones for each account, and change your passwords3if a company you’ve recently interacted with gets hacked.
  • Shop with a credit card. You may have less liability for fraudulent credit card charges,4 but you may be responsible for more than $500 in charges if your debit account is hacked.5
  • Watch for fraud. If you receive a notice about the data breach, call the company to confirm that it is legitimate.
  • Guard against identity theft. One in three people who experience a data breach will become an identity theft victim, according to Javelin Strategy & Research.6 If you are one of them, contact each credit card company to set up fraud alerts and freeze your accounts. Then get in touch with your local Social Security office for next steps.
  • Set up account alerts. You may be able to receive notifications of suspicious purchases or those that exceed a certain dollar amount. This may give you a heads-up that you’ve been hacked.

Disclaimer: Farmers and Mike Guiffrida are not responsible for, and does not endorse or approve, either implicitly or explicitly, the content of any third party sites hyperlinked from this page. We have no discretion to alter, update, or control the content on the hyperlinked, third party site. Access to third party sites is at the user’s own risk, is being provided for informational purposes only and is not a solicitation to buy or sell any of the products which may be referenced on such third party sites.

1http://www.informationisbeautiful.net/visualizations/worlds-biggest-data-breaches-hacks/
2http://money.cnn.com/2015/04/14/technology/security/cyber-attack-hacks-security/
3http://www.forbes.com/sites/financialfinesse/2015/10/14/worried-about-data-breaches-7-steps-to-protect-yourself/#6b3554d94099
4https://www.us-cert.gov/ncas/tips/ST07-001 
5http://money.cnn.com/2013/12/20/pf/expert/debit-credit-cards/index.html?iid=EL
6https://www.javelinstrategy.com/press-release/new-identity-fraud-victim-every-two-seconds-2013-according-latest-javelin-strategy

Tags: data breach, data breaches, what to do if you are hacked