Card skimming, cheque fraud, ATM fraud, theft, white-collar crime, money laundering, hacking. All of these equate to financial scams. Almost all of us can say that we know of at least one person that has fallen victim to at least one of these scams in recent years.
According to recent news articles, these scams have more than doubled over the past five years, and are set to skyrocket even more, as the recession continues to dig into the pockets and finances of consumers and businesses alike.
A lot of the tips I am going to mention, should generally be common sense, but I think that folk need reminding these days, especially owing to the fact that life is so fast paced. We often don’t stop to give our daily habits a second thought.
- When doing transactions at shops or restaurants, do not allow your card to leave your sight. Yes, we know how convenient it is to simply hand your card over to the waiter and have him return to your table with the bill. This is by far one of the easiest ways for card skimming to take place (card skimming involves a small device that your card is swiped through, which conveniently stores your card number, account number and PIN code, thereby making it extremely easy for fraudulent transactions to take place on your card).
- Always check your bank statements carefully, and make sure you know exactly what each transaction is for. So many people make the mistake of simply throwing statements away, or worse still, not even bothering to open or check them. Scammers rely on folk who do not check statements or query unusual transactions to carry out their dirty scams.
- Do not ever supply your PIN number or passwords for any of your accounts to anyone who calls, claiming to be a staff member from the bank. Any legitimate banking institution will never ever do this.
- Never ever click on a link in an email claiming to be from your bank or financial services provider, that asks you to click on the link to verify your account details. This is one of the oldest scams around, and honestly, I actually don’t know how people are still falling prey to this one. Your bank will also never send emails out asking you to verify account details.
- Never ever supply your credit card CVC numbers to anybody over the phone. With these 3 numbers that are usually found on the back of your card, anybody can have transactions processed using your credit card. The oldest scam around in this regard is having someone call you who claims to be from Visa or MasterCard, and ask you to “verify” the CVC number on your card after reading your card number off to you over the phone. Don’t do it. Plain and simple.
- Again, stating the extreme obvious here, but never ever share your PIN number with anybody, no matter who they are.
- Always ensure that any websites you need to supply credit card details on, are legitimate, and are encrypted so that your details are safe.
- Online gambling is a bad idea for many reasons. Firstly, it is a waste of your hard-earned cash, and secondly, your credit card details are very seldom safe on sites like these.
- When signing contracts that involve debit orders or monthly payments, always be sure to read the fine print regarding additional charges and fees. Again, keep a check on your bank statement so that you can spot any discrepancies.
- Always shred account and card statements that you no longer use or need. Do not rely on just tearing them up and tossing them in the bin.
- The same goes for your expired or unused credit cards and store cards. Always make sure these are destroyed and cut or shredded into as many pieces as possible, especially where the built-in chip is concerned, because the chip is the key to all of your personal information. Always make sure that the CVC number and chip from the card are destroyed completely, even if it involves making a bonfire. Voila…this gives plastic surgery a whole new meaning!
- If you feel uneasy about giving details to an online site for any reason, rather see if you can make contact via phone and arrange to do an electronic bank transfer yourself to the parties concerned.
- Again, stating the obvious, but some folk think nothing of leaving store cards or credit cards lying around, or worse still, in the glove compartment of their vehicle! This is plain and simply irresponsible. If your vehicle is stolen, not only does the thief have your wheels, but he then has your permission to go on a shopping spree as well – at your expense! Don’t be stupid. Store your cards responsibly.
- Do not give anyone else your card to use at any time. This is fraud, as their signature does not match the one you have provided on the back of the card.
Let’s all do our part in making cyber crime and financial fraud as difficult as possible for fraudsters to commit, by being more responsible and assertive.
Have I left anything out? Any advice that you can give? Feel free to comment.
When it comes to budgeting, a lot of people tend to either freeze at the idea, or turn and run like hell, because it seems like an overwhelming task.
Relax, it actually isn’t. In fact, compiling a budget is actually a lot easier than you realise, and will make your life a lot easier and a lot less stressful as well.
It will be far easier to see where you may be going wrong once you have everything down on paper and staring right back up at you. You will go from a case of, “It can’t be that much that I spend on take aways” to, “We spent HOW much on take aways??????” Once everything is down on paper, it’s far more difficult to ignore the financial freefalls that have been draining your cash faster than you can zip your wallet closed.
You may be wondering by now, where the envelopes come into the whole budgeting process. Everything will be explained as we go along. Promise.
First things first though. When you take that important step to compile a budget, you will need to know exactly what your income is for the month (or week, depending on how you are paid, of course). This may include a spouses income, as well as rental income from an additional property etc.
Start by taking a sheet of paper (or 2, depending on how large your budget is going to need to be). At the top of the first sheet, list all of your incoming finances.
Once that is done, you will need to then start listing every single expense that you have for the month/week. A typical budget would generally include things like rent (or mortgage payment), gas/fuel, phone bill, medical plan, school fees, groceries, utilities, internet fees, magazine subscriptions, an entertainment allowance, as well as any other expenses that recur each month.
Starting with your income amount on top, list each expense below this, and subtract each amount from your income amount, until you have listed all of your expenses. If you are still in the green after this exercise, well done! Most people end up going into the red before they are finished.
This is where your envelopes will start to play their part. They are normally used for the ongoing expenses that need to be met during the month, such as gas and groceries.
Sure, you budget an amount each month for these two important items, but many times, after the first two-week, you may find that your budget for those areas has run dry. This will be where your envelopes come into play.
Set aside an envelope for each week of the month. Take the money that you have set aside in your budget for groceries, and divide it up evenly as per the amount of weeks in the month. You can also do the same for gas, or any other expenses that recur on a weekly basis.
A fair bit of self-discipline will be needed here though, to prevent yourself from simply ‘borrowing’ from the following week’s budget., as this will defeat the purpose of this exercise.
Once the money in each envelope is finished, then you have nothing left for the rest of the week, until the following week rolls around. It does take some getting used to at first, and you may find that you run out of cash. But I can promise you, that in most cases, there are truly very few items that you will die without having until the following week (emergency medication and things like baby food are obvious exceptions).
After a few weeks have gone by, you will get used to the system, and you may even find yourself with a few pennies or even a dollar or two left over from the budget. Congratulate yourself.
The fun doesn’t necessarily have to stop here though. Bring another envelope into the game, and label it ‘extras’ or ‘overs.’ Should there be anything left from the previous week, put it into this one. You will be surprised at how fast it adds up. These ‘overs’ or ‘extras’ can then be put into a savings account once a month, or they can even simply be set aside to do something fun with. There is no end to the possibilities which this can be used for. Should you wish, you could also use is as an additional debt repayment, or even add it to your initial mortgage repayment.
I am making use of this system ,and it is working very well for me, so I am sure that it will also work very well for many of you out there who need a little help along the way with learning how to budget, and how to spend wisely during the month on essential items.
Comments, ideas or suggestions? Feel free to post them below.
There seems to be a lot of debate surrounding Farmville on Facebook. A lot of people claim that it is an absolute waste of time, while others go on about their friends who play, stating that it “fills their profile pages and walls with useless information.”
Ok, guilty as charged, I play as well. It may sound ridiculous, but it has actually given me a few insights and answers to questions I’ve had, especially regarding that of learning to make additional income. There are a few similarities between Farmville, and earning online income.
Over the past year or two, I have been searching almost endlessly for “that one way online to make enough money to live on.” But, after reading quite a few different blogs, and gaining perspective and advice from the blogosphere, I’ve realised that it often takes many small collective efforts to snowball into one large result.
Just like Farmville, where you try to collect as many neighbours as possible, so that you can reap the rewards, the same principle applies to earning extra income online. The more effort you put in, the more you will be rewarded at the end of the day. All of the seemingly small efforts you make that don’t seem to get you anywhere, will eventually add up to something substantial.
Yes, it takes a lot of time to get going (the same as Farmville). You will initially spend hours working on online articles, or optimising a website or blog (or even multiple sites and blogs) to ensure that they start to bring in additional income.
Like Farmville, where crops may wither, and puppies may run away, you will have your ups and downs with earning online income as well. Some days, you may earn a few dollars ,while on other days, maybe a penny or two.
Some days, you may collect all of the fuel bonuses and mystery eggs, and on other days, you may be a little too slow to do so. It’s a win some lose some scenario. The same principle applies to online income. Some days, you will make it, and other days, you may lose it, or simply not make anything.
The key to making legitimate online income is perseverance. Do not give up, and you will be rewarded accordingly. Always be honest, and don’t try to hide any facts or information from your audience, because they will find you out.
The same as Farmville, it takes a lot of time, and dedication to make a substantial income online.
Comments? Replies?
These days, there seem to be so many different loan options available to us. Ranging anywhere from 3 month short-term loans, right up to 5 year-long term loans.
Financial institutions make it sound so easy to obtain credit. What they neglect to inform you of though, is how difficult and expensive it is to repay these loans. Giving you the option of extending your loan period may make them sound like they are doing you a huge favour, but in the meanwhile, they are the only ones who are really benefitting from these extended repayment periods by means of extremely high interest rates.
One such loan offer arrived in my mailbox a few days ago, offering me “easy cash for whatever you need it for – now.” They make it sound so easy, in that they will grant you the loan, and you can take anywhere from 24 months to 5 years to repay it.
Upon further investigation, however, I realised that the only people benefitting from this arrangement, would be the loan institution themselves, owing to the extremely exorbitant interest rates they are charging. Yes, the rates may be legal, but they are still absolutely ridiculous, in most cases, requiring you to repay almost double what you initially borrowed, and should you extend your loan repayment period, you will end up paying back more than double what you initially borrowed.
In the small print (don’t we just love how all the really important information is normally classified as “small print?”), it states that interest rates vary between 19% and 26% (compounded monthly), and that the repayment amount is also subject to a monthly service fee, and also does not include a once-off initiation fee, which will vary, depending on the amount of your loan.
Don’t get me wrong, but surely, the amount of work required to process a loan for R10 000/$1334, will be the same as that of a loan for R40 000/$5335? So, in my opinion, why should the initiation fee rise per the amount of your loan? Just another way for the financial institutions to extricate a few more of your hard-earned rands or dollars from you.
I don’t know about you, but to me, this form of loan is the fastest way to ensure that you pay twice for whatever you may be taking the loan for, be it a car, or even for a holiday or anything else. Does the item that you are taking the loan for, really warrant being paid for twice or three times over?
Yes, sometimes, emergencies do happen in life, and a loan is your only option, but always think long and hard, and shop around for different interest rates, before committing to the first offer that lands in your mailbox. There is almost always a better, more cost-effective option available.
When the terms “close corporation” or “the corporate world” come to mind, one’s mind would normally conjure up images of an extremely professional, safe, clean and organised work environment.
For the purpose of this post, the abbreviation CC shall refer to Corporate Circus.
Instead, those of us that are a part of it, know that this is so far from the truth that if we didn’t see and experience some of the ridiculous situations for ourselves, we would never believe that they actually happen.
A prime example was hearing about an email that was doing the rounds at a Corporate Circus nearby me, stating that staff would be subject to a disciplinary hearing should they not adhere to wearing their name badges and uniforms. What a joke!
When a workplace imposes such pathetic and ridiculous rules and regulations, it gives me the impression that the hierarchy of the CC (corporate circus) obviously don’t have enough work to do. One would wonder if one of their KPA’s would read as follows, “Performance incentive based upon the imposition of pathetic policies and procedures.”
To set up a disciplinary hearing, takes a lot of time and effort. It often involves calling staff members away from other far more important tasks. It wastes a lot of time – time which could be used far more productively elsewhere.
When will the hierarchy of the CC’s realise that a happy and comfortable worker, is a far more productive worker? Name badges and uniform should be reserved for school children. After all, most of us have been subjected to that for the 12 years of our lives that we were in school.
In general, uniforms are the most impractical pieces of attire for the workplace or CC. They are extremely hot in summer, and in winter, you just about freeze your ass(ets) off because you are expected to parade around in nothing but a flimsy polyester covering, all in the name of “keeping up appearances.”
When confronted on the issue of “corporate attire,” the hierarchy of the CC will often use the fast-wearing-thin excuse of, “It helps promote team work.” Uhm, excuse me, but since when did a pair of pants and a shirt help promote team work? The only thing it achieves is having everyone look like little corporate robots, each trying desperately to lay claim to their very own little space of the cube farm.
This may be purely personal opinion, but quite honestly, when I am dealing with a sales person, or anyone who is in uniform at their place of work, it is definitely not their uniform or appearance that is closing the deal. Quite honestly, the guy can be dressed in a pair of plastic flip-flops and a mesh vest for all I care. As long as he displays a courteous attitude, and knows his product, I am happy. To me, it will never be a case of, “He/she isn’t wearing a name badge, so I won’t do business with them.”
Another area of the CC environment that never ceases to amaze me, is that those who seem to work the hardest and keep the company afloat in terms of profit and sales, are often the ones who are remembered the least when it comes to pay rises or upgrading of essential equipment. One particular establishment comes to mind, where the most profitable department in the CC is the one that has the most outdated equipment, ranging from antiquated office chairs that are a death trap to even place your posterior on, to phones that are malfunctioning to the point where the poor sales person has to stick his head under the desk in order to hear the person on the other end of the line! (Yours truly will refrain from commenting as to where that picture was taken).
“All stationery requests, regardless how small, are to be processed on an official order form only.” You’re kidding me? Not…ok then. At the end of the day, it actually costs the company more for the “official order form” than it costs for the red pen that is needed by the staff member. Next point in question – do they think we eat stationery in our spare time? This is a prime example of being penny wise and pound foolish when it comes to cutting costs in a CC. Curb the use of pens, while spending an exorbitant amount on uniforms. Yeah, that makes sense, doesn’t it? Not!
The CC exists for a reason, but to date, I have yet to establish what it may be. Yes, it helps one pay the bills, but at the end of the day, it turns you into a mindless cube farm inhabitant. Is that really what humans were designed for? I think not. We are creatures of creativity, but the CC tends to stifle that to such an extent, that their employees seldom have any energy or sparks of creativity to their names after a day at the farm, or shall we say circus.
I for one, know that, while I may still be a part of the CC, I am doing my utmost to make sure that it doesn’t suck the life out of me. It isn’t easy, but soon, I will possess the means to be able to walk away from it forever.
Thoughts? Comments? Feedback?
