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Identity Theft Protection Services You Can’t Live Without

The recent epidemic of computer hacking and security breaches has raised awareness about credit and identity-theft protection services. One company, IdentityHawk, uncovers threats to your identity to help stop fraud before it happens. And now, they are offering a free 30-day trial.

While the market is flooded with countless of identity theft protection services, a few unique features offered by IdentityHawk piqued our interest. The first is its Identity Health Score service, which makes it possible for consumers to measure their risk level of identity theft and pinpoint weak spots. Most services inform consumers of an identity theft or security breach after they’ve become a victim. However, IdentityHawk’s unique service provides a clear picture of where your identity is at risk and how it might be used without your knowledge. What’s more, it identifies suspicious activity across the Internet and alerts you before criminals commit the crime.

In addition to the Identity Health Score service, we were impressed by the free 30-day trial. Just for sampling IdentityHawk, users receive the most complete, 24/7 identity theft protection and credit monitoring software, including three free credit scores, email and text alerts, $1 million identity theft insurance, and access to identity recovery experts. Most importantly, with IdentityHawk, consumers gain peace of mind.

Watch out for Check Fraud

A common check fraud is done by stealing mail from post office boxes or when you leave mail outside in your mailbox. Once mail is stolen, the crooks then look for any personal or business checks they can find. Then they acid wash the writing on the checks, but not the signature part and write the checks to another company. Sometimes they may have their own fake company, so they write the checks to their own company and cash it. By the time the fraud is reported by the check owners, the criminals are well gone.

This type of fraud was more common 10-20 years ago, but now the banks watch out for it more carefully. In addition, banks and check companies have become more sophisticated and built more security into the checks.

It is also recommend to use special pens which cannot be acid washed. In addition, you should check your bank accounts online every few days for any questionable activity.

If you are looking for secure business checks for your company, take a look at Deluxe.com. They have been around for 95 years since 1915, doing this. Their company checks offer security with 22 advanced security features. Their checks are also compatible with major accounting software like Quickbooks, Sage, Accpac and more.

Getting yourself some credit cards

For some people getting one or more credit cards is a priority. This is because the credit card represents a sense of freedom, status and, of course, spending power. But as the saying goes – “with great power comes great responsibility”. Using a credit card calls for a lot of self-restraint and smart thinking. If you fail to do these things, you will soon find yourself in a whole world of financial trouble. This is something you don’t want.

There are two simple ways to stop this happening. The first and most important thing is to avoid temptation and impulse buying. Earning $15,000 a month and spending $13,000 on shopping sprees (whether you are a man or a woman) is not a good habit to have. You need to think of saving money and making your expenditures meaningful. Ideally you should use your credit card only in an emergency, like paying a hospital bill, buying a hard to find textbook online etc.

The other thing you should do is to find a good credit card. Since there are a variety of them out there, you might think “hey, I’ll just go with this one because they came to me first”. Do not take this approach with credit cards it will only get you in trouble. Go online and read up on credit card reviews. See what professional reviewers have to say about each brand of credit card. For example, chase credit cards have a very good reputation and have lots of good features that could be useful for you. By making the right choice and going with a credit card that has a good track record, you will be doing yourself a great favor.

A Stitch in Time…Avoding Bad Credit

Bad credit is not something you think about until the time comes for you to take a loan. So before you get to the point where loans are refused to you on those grounds, take some steps to avoid that situation.

Check your credit report. This can help you avoid trouble in several ways. More often than not, you are likely to find inaccurate information in the report. At this point you should immediately file a dispute with the credit bureaus and the creditors. Doing this before you apply for a loan or a credit card will save you a lot of trouble.

But what if the data is not wrong? There is a positive side to this as well. Now you know exactly how much you owe and to whom. The next step here is to talk to your creditors. By explaining to them as to why you are unable to pay them, you can negotiate a new payment plan or even a lump sum payment. Don’t be afraid of doing this as it is in your best interests. Do not resort to debt settlement companies. The benefit you gain from them is soon lost as you start to realize the long term impact on your finances when you use one.

Try to make your payments on time; this is one of the best ways to keep your credit score in good stead. But the best advice of all is, don’t buy what you can’t afford. If you follow that piece of advice, your chances of getting into monetary trouble drop drastically.

Debt Settlement – The Negative Side

Debt settlement sounds like a dream solution, on the surface. Briefly, it is a situation where a financial company negotiates on your behalf to bring down the amount owed, so that you can pay it off. Anyone would jump at the chance to clear their debt by paying only 50 percent of the total sum owed. But there is a catch as always.

Understand this; the lender is willing to settle only because they want to get what they can from you, rather than run the risk of not getting anything at all. So what interest does the debt settlement company have in getting you the best possible discount? This is where the not-so-obvious payment to the company is involved.
More often than not the best deal is arrived at because the company’s fee is a percentage of the amount saved. For example, let’s say you owe $50,000 to your creditor and the debt collection company negotiates for a 50 percent reduction. That means you save $25,000. If the company’s fee is 25 percent (the usual amount), you end up paying them $6,250. Sometimes they charge a fee, usually 15 to 18 percent, based on the total debt. Referring to our example, that would be a fee of $7,500 to $9,000. For person who does not have a way of settling debts, having to pay $9,000 is a lot of money. In other circumstances, the company will charge a flat rate for the time period it takes you to settle the lump sum.

For $9,000 you can find a very good attorney who can help you sort your problems in a safer way. So before you engage in any type of dealings with a debt settlement firm, seek professional advice. Otherwise you may live to regret it later.

The Different Types of Bankruptcy

Debt is an unfortunate facet of life that some people have to face. Sometimes it becomes impossible for a borrower to pay off the debts that are owed. To protect the individual or the company to a certain extent, the government has made available bankruptcy proceeding that they can resort to. This helps them avoid certain lawsuits that can be brought against them by the creditors. It also allows them a chance to protect properties and stay in possession of some assets.

Chapter 7 – This is the least uncomplicated of bankruptcies. Individuals, business partners and even married couples can apply for this. A representative from a Credit Counseling Agency has to interview the party in question before the filing takes place. Along with an appearance in court, the proceeding usually last about three and a half months. Upon a successful outcome the party in question is released from past unsecured debts. Thereafter a trustee is entrusted with the task of identifying assets that will be exempted from bankruptcy. Whatever is leftover if liquidated and used to pay off the creditors.

Chapter 9 – This law is meant for municipalities. Because municipalities could be public agencies or political subdivisions it tends to be much more complicated.

Chapter 11 – Used by business corporations, there are no trustees in this situation. The corporation has to formulate a reformation plan, which may include plans to recover productivity, repay debtors by selling assets, debt consolidation, merging, etc.

Chapter 12 – Designed for farmers and fishermen only, it allows them to keep their assets and pay the creditors with future earnings.

Chapter 13 – Similar to the previous chapter, it allows the individual to keep their property and pay creditors with their future salary. An agreed percentage of the salary (10 percent or more) is allocated to pay off the debts.

Posted By: Debt Settlement Online