Whether you are an early bird or a last-minute filer, there is no denying we are firmly into Tax Season. As we reconcile another year of earnings and income, the Federal Trade Commission and the Internal Revenue Service would like to draw attention to an ever-present concern – Tax Identity Theft.
Perhaps you’ve been on the receiving end of financial advice to invest your savings. That is sage advice, but a bit vague. There are many options available out there with varying degrees of risk. It all depends on your financial goals and how much risk you can tolerate. If you prefer low risk to earn reward, a fixed term CD might be the right investment opportunity for you.
On May 11, 2018, a new rule went into effect that requires financial institutions to gather additional information from legal entity (business) customers. The Certification Regarding Beneficial Owners of Legal Entity Customers requirement, or "Beneficial Ownership" for short, was created to help government and law enforcement fight money laundering and terrorism by identifying exactly who benefits from a company's revenue and who actually controls the goings-on within the business.
The bad guys just LOVE tax season.
This year, they've been busy coming up with lots of new ways to get their greedy hands on our hard-earned refunds.
It seems like there's a week for everything these days. National Pickle-Eating Week. International Pencil-Sharpening Week. Train Your Dog To Jump Rope Week.
Meltdown and Spectre.
Care to guess what these two words represent? They're not rock bands, and they're not new Marvel villains ready to face off with the Avengers. (Disclaimer: Ok, so my Marvel-ous coworkers have corrected me; there are actually some minor Marvel characters named Meltdown and Spectre. These aren't 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.
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?”
