It’s the most wonderful time of the year! We all recently stuffed ourselves on turkey, shopped for deals during Black Friday, and wept with tears of joy or sorrow (depending on who you root for) while watching the Iron Bowl. With those fall moments behind us, the holiday season has officially begun!

We here at Bank Independent love the giving season, and we need your help to make it our best yet.

Family, friends, our health, a roof over our heads and a meal on our table...it's not difficult to come up with reasons we are thankful this holiday season. At Bank Independent, our Helping Hands program reminds us throughout the year of not only these blessings, but also those in our community who may not share them.

Even if you've never heard the term "Internet of Things" or its more-often-used abbreviation "IoT," you've probably thought of it. You've definitely used it. And you've probably been frustrated by it. Maybe, even, you can't live without it.

On September 7, 2017 Equifax, one of the "big three" credit bureaus, announced a cybersecurity incident that enabled fraudsters to access the personal information of about 143 million consumers.

Financial exploitation is one of the most common forms of abuse committed against older Americans. According to a Metlife study, an estimated $2.9 billion is lost annually to scams explicitly targeting seniors. 

As a current branch employee (and former teller) with Bank Independent, one of the most common questions I hear from our customers is, “Why do you always ask for my ID?”

Did you know that ransomware can infect your mobile phone? Even though the national news keeps us aware of the viruses and malware attacking computer networks around the globe, a lot of us remain oblivious to the cyberthreats looming over our mobile devices--including ransomware.

I recently had the pleasure of attending the fourth annual NASA in the Park event to celebrate the long-lasting relationship between the city of Huntsville and NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center.

And it was out of this world.

More than 70 percent of college graduates began their career owing more than $37,000 in student loans in 2016.