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The Identity Theft Resource Center recommends fraud alert monitoring services as a proactive way to protect yourself from this crime. Jay Foley of ITRC specifically mentioned Debix and Trusted ID. Both cost close to $12 a month and require that you first place a “fraud alert” on your credit reports.
Other FREE steps you can take to minimize the chances of becoming a victim:
Register your phone numbers on the National Do Not Call Registry.
Stop pre-preapproved credit card offers by submitting your information here. You will be asked to include personal information, but it’s ok: this service collects information for the three credit bureaus (Experian, Equifax and TransUnion).
Cut down on the other types of junk mail by signing up for the Direct Marketing Association Mail Preference Service.
You’re entitled to free annual credit reports by all three credit reporting agencies. But don’t request all three all at once. Stagger them. Obtain one, then order one from another credit reporting agency four months later, then another from the last credit reporting agency after that.
State senator Victor Crist will try to garner support for his Senate bill 612, which would, among other things, regulate the towing industry. If you have a towing experience you would like to share - as a consumer, company owner or tow truck operator, email your comments or story to .
Teach students an early lesson about money management. Consider it an investment in their future - literally. Consumer Credit Counseling Services of Florida offers free workshops from time to time. It also provides free pamphlets of information for spenders - and savers - of all ages.
The makers of Totino’s and Jeno’s frozen pizzas are recalling 414,000 cases of product because of possible E.coli contamination.
Here’s a list of the affected brand names, products and “sku numbers” took look for:
Totino’s Party Supreme 42800-10700
Totino’s Three Meat 42800-10800
Totino’s Pepperoni 42800-11400
Totino’s Pepperoni 42800-92114
Totino’s Classic Pepperoni 42800-11402
Totino’s Pepperoni Trio 42800-72157
Totino’s Party Combo 42800-11600
Totino’s Combo 42800-92116
Jeno’s Crisp ‘n Tasty Supreme 35300-00561
Jeno’s Crisp ‘n Tasty Pepperoni 35300-00572
Jeno’s Crisp ‘n Tasty Combo 35300-00576
For a product replacement clip the UPC (bar code) symbol from each pizza box, send the UPC’s, along with your name and address to:
Totino’s / Jeno’s
P.O. Box 200 - Pizza
Minneapolis, MN 55440-0200
Toss the product itself.
You can also call (800) 949-9055 if you have additional questions.
Community Aging and Retirement Services, Inc. helps seniors maintain their independence. The non-profit provides services in Pasco, Pinellas and Hernando counties. The Bill Payer program offers assistance in paying bills, reconciling accounts, and balancing your checkbook. For more information, call (727) 862-9291 or send an email to: .
Crooks no longer need much of your personal information to steal your identity. By combining some real and fake credentials, thieves can open accounts in your name, obtain mortgages, and create one big mess that you won’t benefit from, but will definitely have to clean up. Monitoring your credit reports is always a good idea. But it won’t necessarily spot synthetic identity theft.
So in addition to ordering your credit reports at least once a year, some experts also recommend using identity monitoring services. They scour public records to find other potential pieces of your background (or the background of someone claiming to be you). You can find many of them by simply putting “background checks” into an internet search engine. These reports may generate information on consumers with names that are similar to yours, but it may be a way for you to spot activity that someone could mistake as yours.
***10/11/07 UPDATE***
Until you can attend an Operation Weblock session, C-SAFE has recommendations for business continuity that can benefit networks for all companies and agencies. Continue checking back with C-SAFE for more dates and locations of cyber safety classes for citizens and companies.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is holding cyber safety classes for IT professionals, network managers and anyone who manages systems for companies, agencies, and government entities. Operation Weblock will be in Tampa on October 11th and 12th. It’s free but you must register in advance.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission has issued a recall for a million cribs made by Simplicity, Inc..
Consumer Credit Counseling Services is offering a free class for parents and students to help them become more money-wise. As students flood college campuses, this is a good time to learn the in’s and out’s of credit.
The free class is tomorrow, Tuesday, 9/18 from 6:00-7:00p at the CCCS Tampa office: 208 South Hoover Blvd., Suite 200, in Tampa. It’s located right off of Kennedy Blvd, just before you get onto the Howard Frankland (if you’re heading westbound).
Call 1-800-741-7040 option 4 to reserve your spot.
Click here for advice on how to explain recalls to your child
Mattel is voluntarily recalling 8.8 million toys, just two weeks after recalling more than a million toys under its Fisher-Price label.
The big concerns: lead paint and magnets that are easily removed and become choking hazards.
Mattel has created an online search feature that will enable you to input the toy and find out if it’s subject to the recall. You can also call 1-800-916-4997 for more information about the Sarge toy from the “CARS” die-cast vehicle line.
Toys recalled because of the potential for magnets to detach include:
Polly Pocket Play sets,
Doggie Day Care play sets,
Barbie and Tanner play sets,
and Batman and One Piece magnetic action figure sets. You can also call 1-888-597-6597 for more information about these toys.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission urges parents to do their part of the recall process, and remove the toys from their kids’ collections. You can also sign up for free recall alerts.
The IRS can’t dictate how you manage your workers, but it does have an Employer’s Tax Guide that can help you correctly classify those who work for you. Employees who believe they have been misclassified can fill out this questionaire, and for free, the IRS will make the determination.
If you believe you’re entitled to unemployment benefits and your former employer disputes that, contact the Florida Agency for Workforce Innovation.
Florida’s Bureau of Unclaimed Property will auction off items from abandoned safety deposit boxes on August 4th in Orlando. A preview is available on August 3rd.
You can fnd out if you have unclaimed property online.
Florida statutes 323.002 and 715.07 cover some parts of the towing (aka wrecker) industry, but not all.
In Hillsborough County, the Public Transportation Commission regulates parts of the industry that handle governmental tows (i.e. if you’re in a car accident and your vehicle needs to be removed; or if your vehicle needs to be moved for safety reasons). But in cases when your car is towed from a lot where you should not have parked, or improperly towed from a place your vehicle has a right to be, the PTC doesn’t have authority to regulate.
That’s why it plans to lobby legislators to make a change in the law to allow them to enforce regulations on aspects of towing outside of governmental uses.
But that may only cover Hillsborough County. In other areas, your local police department of sheriff’s office may be able to assist. And/or, you may have to resort to small claims court to recover funds or restitution you believe you’re owed.
ConsumerSearch searches reports and reviews to break down which sites meet consumers’ needs.
Kayak is a good place to begin. It searches hundreds of websites to find the best deals.
Experts like Hotwire for its airfare “clearance sales.”
Mobissimo has good deals for international travel.
Priceline is good for bargains on luxury hotels. But remember: if you name your own price, you don’t find out the identity of the hotel until the transaction is complete and your credit card is charged. READ THE FINE PRINT IF YOU GO THROUGH THE “NAME YOUR OWN PRICE” PROCESS.
For packages that include airfare, hotel and car rental, try Expedia.
A statewide task force arrested five people for racketeering and conspiracy to commit racketerring, among other charges, in connection with mortgage fraud. Investigators say the companies involved include Advanced Mortgage Solutions, Consumer Lending Resources, Premier Quality Renovations and Florida Beautiful Construction - all based in Hillsborough County.
Most cases started with a consumer’s desire to renovate their home, or needing home repair. Before doing business with a contractor or a company for this type of work, make sure the individual and company are licensed with the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation. Some counties also require occupational licenses - so check with your individual county.
Three Bay area counties have consumer protection departments that can offer advice and complaint history on companies that operate within those counties: Hillsborough, Pinellas, and Pasco. Pasco county’s consumer protection office can be reached at (727) 847-8110.
The home repairs and renovations consumers contracted for were to be paid by home loans, or mortgages. Make sure to check up on a
mortgage broker license before sharing personal information and taking out a home loan.
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