Protect Your Credit Cards: All of a sudden, only a few hours after you paid for your grocery store purchases with your credit card, someone in Anywhere, USA, is using it to make purchases of his/her own. It’s possible you lost control of the numbers at an ATM, but thieves have many ways to snag your data and misuse it. It’s far more likely you have been victimized by one of the massive data breaches that have made headlines in recent months. It probably isn’t possible to guard against any and all the potential methods the cons use to steal your information, but you can protect yourself by using only secure payment websites. Never store information in your Web browser. Check your account activity daily and act immediately if there are discrepancies.
Check Your Accounts: Investors, particularly those who are just learning the ropes, make mistakes. The first one is not taking an active interest in the market. “I have seen investors lose tens of thousands of dollars because they didn’t check on their accounts every few months,” said John Schmoll at Daily Finance. Set a schedule for periodic checkups with particular attention to fees, which can eat up earnings. Keep your portfolio balanced to minimize risks. At the same time, try to avoid concentrating your investments in the relatively small number of popular stocks that are the core of many mutual funds. Be careful and rational. Letting your emotions make decisions can be the beginning of big losses. Following the crowd isn’t always the best strategy when the crowd is reacting quickly to every uptick and downturn.
Buying Products: Some products lend themselves best to the counterfeit trade. In particular, in the United States, handbags, wallets, watches, jewelry, electronics parts and pharmaceuticals all are vulnerable to copy cat schemers. Look at the sellers before you fork over your cash. Particularly look for a physical mailing address and phone number. If there is no up-front return policy, beware. Check out the vender’s reviews before making a purchase. When ordering pharmaceuticals online, trace the seller’s affiliation with a legitimate manufacturer. If you can’t find such information, you may end up with fake products.