Category: Uncategorized

2019 Fall Maintenance Tips

Before the cold of Winter settles in, Autumn is best time to take quick look around your house to identify any potential problems. We collected the top most suggested tips to help you protect your home through the winter. 

14 tips for keeping your house in tip-top shape, inside and out.

EXTERIOR

  • Stow your mower
  • Store hoses & Turn off outdoor water
  • Drain and turn off sprinkler system
  • Clean Gutters and downspouts
  • Visually Inspect your roof
  • Trim dead trees, plant limbs, and perennials
  • Aerate the lawn

INTERIOR

  • Have Fireplace Inspected and cleaned
  • Install weather stripping around windows & repair any cracks
  • Have your HVAC unit serviced
  • Replace your furnace filter
  • Insulate exposed water pipes
  • Clean your dryer vents
  • Check your fire extinguishers & smoke detectors

4 Social Media Tips for 2017

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Internet and social media in particular have made it easy to share more of our personal lives with our friends. But, it’s also become easier to share with people we don’t even know.

Online privacy isn’t just about protecting your personal information (name, address and birthdate) to help prevent identity theft. It’s also about protecting you and your family from public embarrassment, from private conversations going public, and from stalking and bullying.

If you’re unsure whether you and your family are exposed or protected online, take a look at these four social media tips and adopt the ones that make sense for you. And, make this year more secure than last.

1.

Review the privacy and security settings on your social media accounts.

Take an hour or so to evaluate and update the privacy settings on all the social sites you use. Facebook will probably require the most attention, because there are so many ways to share personal information (maybe more than you’re aware of) and so many options for limiting access to your info. You can control who sees your posts, who posts to your timeline, who contacts you, who looks you up and whether search engines can link to your timeline.Review the privacy settings on your other social media accounts, too, from LinkedIn down to Twitter, Snapchat and Pinterest.If you only use a site to connect with a small circle of friends, then you can probably select the most restrictive privacy settings for the greatest protection. For help, try these social media privacy setting tips from the Center for Identity at the University of Texas at Austin.

2.

Think twice about what you share online.

Sharing information about yourself is the whole point of social media. But, once you’ve shared online, it’s very hard to un-share. Certain information may always be available to someone who knows where to look. And, even if your accounts are private, someone in your network may share what you’ve posted with their own network. You can truly never know how far your posts may travel, so think twice before posting:

  • Your full birthdate. Share the month and day, if you like, but leave out the year you were born.
  • Photos with geotag information that may allow strangers to identify where they were taken and thus where you live or where your kids go to school. Check your smartphone camera settings to turn off geotagging ask Google for instructions, if needed.
  • The address or other identifying factors of your home, office or child’s school. Even a photo showing the license plate number of your new car could reveal too much.
  • Photos of other children unless you have their parents permission.
  • Your travel plans. Posting about your trip before you leave or while you’re gone lets others know your home is unoccupied.
  • Anything you wouldn’t want someone outside your network to read, such as a rant about your job or sensitive information about your work. Such posts have led to people getting fired.

3.

Do not allow strangers or untrustworthy people into your social networks

may be flattered by a pretty stranger’s interest, or blinded by your pursuit to reach 1,000 friends. But, it’s simply not safe until you know who they are and why they want to get closer to you.In a similar category are the casual acquaintances you just made at all those holiday parties. Let the relationships ripen before you give them access to your personal information. And, be careful about your real-life friends who connect with anyone and everyone via social media; your secrets may be available to strangers through them.

4.

Monitor your youngest children’s social media use and make the risks clear to your older children.

Children of all ages can be naïve or just careless about the impacts of online sharing. It’s hard for them to grasp that something they share online today could impact their college or job opportunities long after the post was made. Plus, they could be putting their personal safety at risk by sharing too much with the wrong person.Even once you allow them freer access online, it’s wise to monitor them until you feel confident in their decision making. Discuss frankly the risks that come from sharing too much, and the practices that reduce those risks. By staying involved, you can have an impact on how your teens use social media even when you’re not looking over their shoulder.

The Internet is a big place, and, while our own social networks may feel familiar and secure, they sometimes aren’t. So, connect and post with care, and adjust your privacy settings before sending that next Tweet.

Reposted with permission from the original author, Safeco Insurance.
Top image by Flickr user Jason Howie used under Creative Commons Attribution-Sharealike 2.0 license. Image cropped and modified from original.

10 Tips to Help Prevent Identity Theft

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Shopping online. Visiting the doctor. Buying gas. In nearly all of the things we do from day to day, there’s the risk of identity theft.

You could unknowingly give your information to a fraudster thinking you’re shopping at a legitimate site. Your doctors office could experience a data breach. Or, you could come across a tampered credit card reader at the gas pump.

The risks your identity faces go on and on. So, what can you do to stop it? Unfortunately, virtually no one today can completely negate the risk of identity theft. But, we can all take some important steps to help prevent it.

Here are 10 sensible habits to adopt that will help you protect your identity:

1.

Limit what you carry in your wallet, and know what’s there in case it goes missing.

First things first, don’t carry your Social Security card on a regular basis. Instead, keep it in a locked safe at home. Have a form of identification or some other card with your Social Security number (SSN) on it? Carry a photocopy of it instead of the real thing, and cut out or otherwise render your SSN unreadable. As for credit cards, only carry the ones you need. Finally, make photocopies of the front and back of the cards you always keep in your wallet and store them in your home safe. If one (or all of them) goes missing, you won’t have to search high and low for the card issuer’s contact information.

2.

Keep your computers, software and other electronics secure and up to date.

This means using strong passwords or enabling passcodes to remember not to write them down. It also means installing firewall, spyware and virus protection. Keep everything up to date (and backed up) for the latest security enhancements. For your portable devices, consider installing software to remotely wipe your data or locate the device if it’s ever lost or stolen.

3.

Don’t over share.

Does every entity that asks for your (or your child’s) SSN really need it? Take a moment to think instead of automatically jotting it down. At the very least, maybe only the last four digits will do. In addition, be careful what you share online. Posting your full address, phone number, license plate number or your birth date online, even if it’s in a photo, may help others piece together a full picture of your identity.

4.

Do check your credit reports throughout the year

You’re entitled to a free credit report from each of the three bureaus once a year. And, since the information on each report is oftentimes largely the same, you can stagger your requests and receive a different report once every four months. Once you receive it, check your report for accounts and other activity you don’t recognize. Even a credit check from a company you haven’t done business with could be an attempt at identity theft.

5.

Keep an eye on your accounts.

Your account statements can alert you to identity theft sooner than your credit report, in most cases. Check regularly for unauthorized charges or withdrawals and other illicit activity, such as address changes or additional cards you didn’t request.

6.

Watch your surroundings

Whether you’re using the ATM or a portable device, you want to be sure others nearby aren’t watching as you type in your PIN or password. And, just because you don’t see anyone nearby doesn’t mean they’re not there. If you’re using a shared or public WiFi, everyone else on the same network may see the data, including passwords or account numbers, you submit. Be sure to conduct sensitive transactions on secure networks.

7.

Reduce your mail

Start by opting out of pre-approved credit card offers by calling 1-888-5OPT-OUT and following the prompts. This should stay in effect for five years and help curb the risk of someone else obtaining a new credit card in your name. Next, sign up for paperless billing with your financial and service providers and/or schedule automatic payments through your bank. The less mail containing personal and account details that comes to your home, the less likely it is to fall into the wrong hands.

8.

Be skeptical when someone asks for your information.

Scam artists don’t always have to steal your information. Sometimes they convince you to give it up willingly by telling you via a phone call, email, snail mail or text that you won a prize or need to verify your account. To claim the prize or account, you’ll, of course, need to supply some sensitive information. Requests like these are almost always inauthentic and what’s known as a phishing scam. So, stay on guard and contact the entity through a known, verified method to inquire about the matter, rather than providing personal details on the spot.

9.

Mind your garbage.

If you’re throwing out account statements or other documents with personal information, you’re making it easy for dumpster divers to learn a little, perhaps a lot, about you. They may even learn enough to take over one of your accounts. So, shred your sensitive documents and then recycle them don’t just throw them out in the garbage.

10.

Tidy up at home

Tax returns, credit cards you use infrequently, checkbooks, passports, birth certificates; these and other important documents should all be stored under lock and key. Whether it’s in a home safe or a locking desk or file cabinet is up to you. And, don’t leave the code or key in an easily discoverable place.

Despite your best efforts, you may still discover that your identity has been stolen, If so, take immediate action to:

  • Fill out the Federal Trade Commission’s Identity Theft Affidavit.
  • ake your affidavit to the police and file a report. Be sure to get a copy for your records. It will come in handy if you need to close fraudulent accounts, straighten out your credit report and more.
  • Call your financial providers to request new account numbers and, if needed, cards.
    Contact one of the three credit bureaus to place a fraud alert, which will encourage creditors to contact you before opening new lines of credit, on your credit report. The bureau you contact will share it with the other two.
    Experian: 1-888-397-3742
    Equifax: 1-800-525-6285
    Transunion: 1-800-680-7289

And, if you’re involved in a data breach and offered free credit monitoring, be sure to take advantage of it.

In today’s world of hyper connectivity and speed, it’s easy for your information to end up in the wrong hands. But, by being cautious with how you use and share your information, and checking for misuse, you can help keep your identity secure.

Reposted with permission from the original author, Safeco Insurance.

Top image by Flickr user GotCredit used under Creative Commons Attribution-Sharealike 2.0 license. Image cropped and modified from original.