June Video Message – 2021
Hello and welcome to the inaugural edition of Haider’s Hits – a quarterly blog post with timely insights to help you Invest with Clarity and Live with Purpose.
Today, I’d like to talk about your extended car warranty, you know the one that they’ve been trying to reach you about? Actually, I’m talking about scams and I’m sure you’ve probably gotten a fair share of these types of calls and emails.
Did you know the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center recently recorded over 460,000 complaints and more than $3.5 billion in losses to individuals and businesses, the highest in their 20-year record. These scams are getting very sophisticated and it’s harder to spot the red flags.
So, this month I want to give you a couple quick things you can remember to avoid being a victim of one of these scammers and some things you can do if your information has been compromised.
- Scammers will pretend to be from an institution you are familiar with. They will commonly impersonate or claim to be from the IRS, the Social Security Administration, or another government organization. The callers will say you owe money and that you must pay, or legal action will be taken. In emails they may have official logos, or your caller ID may even reflect the government agency’s name. Let me be clear on this. The IRS or the Social Security Administration will never make first contact via a phone call and claim you owe them money or that your social security name is blocked or under investigation. You’ll receive a letter with details and steps you can take. If you do receive a call, simply hang up the phone. Please do not engage the caller.
- Scammers will tell you how to pay. They often insist that you pay by sending money through a money transfer company or some other means of transferring cash value. For example, asking you to put money on a gift card and then giving them the number on the back.
Others may actually send you a check (that will later turn out to be fake), tell you to deposit it, and then turn around and send it to them as part of a money laundering scam.
The bottom line is you have to be vigilant and use common sense. Anyone can fall victim to scams. If somebody did fraudulently convince you to pay them, call your bank, money transfer app, or credit card company and see if they can reverse the charges.
If you gave personal information, go to [[https://www.IdentityTheft.gov IdentityTheft.gov]] to see what steps you should take, including how to monitor your credit.
If a scammer took control of your cell phone number and account, contact your service provider to take back control of your phone number. Once you do, change your account password and make sure your password is lengthy and includes numbers, letters and special characters. Short passwords can easily be hacked using computer programs.
Remember, be vigilant and use common sense. Avoid clicking on suspicious links, and never give out personal information to a stranger over the phone.
For additional information you can visit the FTC’s website for helpful articles about scams and avoiding them. That website is www.consumer.ftc.gov
Now quickly on what I’m watching in the markets and the economy.
- Inflation is the big concern and what people are watching like hawks. Is it transitory or is it here to stay? Everybody has their eyes on everything from lumber prices to gas prices. The Federal Reserve is saying the rise in rates is transitory but we are going to continue monitoring inflation and looking ways to hedge against it.
- As we head into the July 4th weekend it feels like we are having the great American reunion. As our economy re-opens we’re watching how that benefits corporate profits and investment portfolios.
- Please call me if you’d like more detail on how these things are affecting your financial plan. Also, please feel free to share this with your friends, family and co-workers.
Thanks for joining me today. Please remember to pass this along to your friends and family and I look forward to sharing more in the next edition of Haider’s Hits.
