Avoiding Holiday Shopping Scams and Fraud

Hi All,

Its that time of year for holiday shopping.  As of the day of this writing Christmas is 12 days away and Hanukah is....tonight.  Start the wrapping and the getting the gift bags out!!!

But with the holiday season comes fraud and scams and other holiday shopping problems.  How to avoid these unfortunate events you ask?  Read on.   We'll have a baker's dozen plus one links to help you navigate through the holiday season with no problems - hopefully at least!

How to Avoid Holiday Shopping Scams and Fraud - AARP

Online Holiday Shopping Scams to Watch Out For - CNNTech

6 Holiday Shopping Scams and How to Avoid them - NBC 

Fake Amazon Gift Cards...and other Cyber Scams Tempt Holiday Shoppers - Detroit Free Press

Holiday Shopping Scams to Avoid - Experian  

14 Dangerous Holiday Shopping Scams - Inc. 

4 Scams To Avoid While You Do Your Holiday Shopping - Motley Fool

How to Spot Fake Fingerlings and Other Holiday Shopping Scams - Forbes 

Don't Fall For These Holiday Shopping Scams - Lifehacker 

Holiday Shopping Scams: How to Identify Fake Sites - WFLA.com 

Holiday Shopping Scams - Tis the Season For Data Protection - TrendMicro

6 Tips For Avoiding Phishing, Malware...and Hacks While Holiday Shopping Online - TechRepublic 

How to Avoid Online Holiday Shopping Scams - Consumer Reports 

Hope the links won't be needed - but if they are you can at least be a little prepared.

Happy holidays!
Regards,
Stu

Hack the System

Hi All,

Many of us have heard the phrase 'to hack'...it's a computer term that means 'to modify (a computer program or electronic device) or write a program in a skillful or clever way. 

It also refers to a tip, trick or efficient method for doing or managing something - like hacking a chocolate chip cookie recipe...

In the context of this post though it refers to 'life hacks' that make your life easier' and problem free - or at least more problem free.

Click on this link from Lifehack.com to find an article titled '100 Life Hacks That Make Life Easier'.

From BoredPanda comes an article titled '40 Life Hacks That Will Change Your Life'. 

From 1000 Life Hacks comes an article titled (appropriately enough) '1000 Life Hacks'.

But wait...there's more. 

From TwistedSifter.com comes 'The 55 Most Useful Life Hacks Ever'.

And from James DIY on YouTube.com comes this 15 minute video titled '35 Amazing Life Hacks Everyone Should Know!'

Reddit has a whole set of Life Hack posts - check this link.

And, finally, Pinterest, everybody's favorite pinning board, comes this page of LifeHack pins.

Enjoy the links - hopefully they'll make your life simpler, easier and less stressful!

Regards,
Stu

House Cleaning Tricks

Hi All,

Slow blog day today - as you'll see...but I did come up with an interesting idea for an entry.

Especially since the holiday season is right around the corner and we all (mostly) try to keep a neat/clean house....

From the PennyHoarder comes an article titled 13 Simple House Cleaning Hacks to Save You Time and Money.  Who knew that vinegar and onions and rubbing alcohol were so useful!

From the traditional publication GoodHousekeeping comes this article - 50 Cleaning Tips and Tricks.

And from Listotic comes 55 Must-Read Cleaning Tips & Tricks.

And from WomansDay comes 30 Spring Cleaning Tips - Quick & Easy House Cleaning Ideas.

Finally, click on this link from MarthaStewart.com for an article titled 10 Clever Cleaning Tricks.

Enjoy the links and the article - and here's to keeping a cleaner, neater home in the future!  Cheers.

Regards,
Stu