Credit Card Debts : Causes and Preventation

What is credit card debt?

Anyone own credit card ?

How many credit card do you have?

What credit card means to you?

If you have credit card, then credit card debts will sound familiar to you and you hate the most.

Credit card debts is an example of unsecured consumer debt which acessed through credit cards. Debts results when a client of credit card company purchases an item or sevices through credit card. Then, consumer's debt accumulates and increases with its interest and penalties will be charged when they do not pay the company for the money he or she has spent and bank will report the late payment to credit rating agencies in the book of "blacklist" customer. In addition the late payment penalties itself also increase the amount of debt the consumer has. So how "bad" of using credit card are?

There are few causes of credit card debt:

1.Swipe without thinking and unaware of the risks.

This is the general consensus of consumer groups on the alarming number of cerdit card users below the age of 30 who were blaklisted and later declared brankrupt due to fail on paying their credit card debts.

2.Poor money management skills

Monthly spending plan is essential. Card debts keep on increase day by day because of users without any idea where their money spending on those unnecessarily each month and end up having to charge purchases on which they spent.

3.Saving too little or no.

Normally ,youngest generation are least saving their money in bank where they like to spent almost 70% to 80% of their salary to clothing, food and beverage , car and electronic product. They are lack of the importance saving concept and not border that savings cushion in place will not cause immediate financial strain and increase debt.

4. Buy whatever you want now. Able to pay it off later in "maybe" terms.

For those credit card holders their hands are itchy and every new product that put in on shelves they will like to have one. It seems like those new products (eg.shiny HDTVand luxuries bag) are keep on calling their name to buy them. In result they cannot stand for the seduce and buy it and enjoy the debt painfully for the rest of the entire month.

5. Spending is your comfort activity.

Nowadays lot of people having their rough day, week or month either in workplace or home. Then they will try to make their feeling more happy by buying things on that moment. Sometimes it will causes them overspending of their budget and their life become more bitter and regret feelings rise when they receive the bank statement.

How to avoid credit card debt?

1. Manage your finances

Determine your monthly income and needed expenses by starting with a strategy where establish out a budget and then follow that budget exactly which will help you keep on track before you pull out the credit card for futher spending.

2. Shop for the right card.

It is very important for everyone to really gather around and get a credit card personalized for tour particular situation where try to getting one with no or very low fees and low interest. So, take your time and effort to compare different offers, but with the high saturation of the market which perfect fit for your wallet.

3.Know our credit card interest rate

If we going to use credit card in future while cant 100% gurantee that we will pay the balance in full of each month. Then we are strictly recommend to know the interest rate that charge to us due to late payment. In addition, check the rate of our monthly staements because credit card issuers can raise uor rates for a little or no apparent reason.

4.Pay on time.

Never even ever to make a late payment to anyone including car and house payments because penalties will be charged to every single overdue payment inreult it will increase the money that you owe from credit card company.

5.Use it like cash , not only card.

We must aware that everytime swipe our credit card it looks and feels the same for every single transaction because we treat it as card not money. So, we cannot physically feel our charges climbing higher and higher. Thus,we need to imagine every time we pull out the card as thickness of cashbut with each purchase we feels it become lesser and lesser.

Credit card owner should always remember " Preventation is better than cure".

The Application of Pre-paid Cash Card for Consumer

Nowadays, people can limit their spending with their pre-paid cash card that load funds onto the card and use the money. A prepaid cash card allows consumers to purchase something even when they don’t have the cash to pay for it.

Basically, a pre-paid cash card looks like a credit or debit card, and gives users the ability to purchase products and services with a card but with a crucial difference - users can only spend the balance that has been preloaded onto their card.There is no risk of running into debt as it has no credit or overdraft facility.

The application of pre-paid cash card for consumers :-

• Making hotel reservation
  
• Topping up your mobile phone
• Bill payment and online purchase
  
• Transferring money to friends and family
  
• Withdrawing cash from an ATM
• Petrol filling
  

These numerous benefits of pre-paid cash card :-

• Availability - No credit checks, which means users can get a card without worrying about their credit history. All prepaid card providers will carry out an Identity check to confirm users are who users say they are.

• No debt risk - There is no chance of spending too much as users are limited to the amount that users load funds onto their cards.

• Security feature - Pre-paid cash card holders are protected against theft and fraud by Personal Identification Numbers (PIN). Pre-paid cash cards are safer if comparing to carrying cash because cash cards can prevent cash being stolen or lost.

• The card for travel - As well as being able to top up the card, depending on the specific provider, users will be able to use it at ATMs worldwide. Many providers now offer dollar and euro cards and offer a better exchange rate on their travel cards. Other than that, prepaid cash cards offer a good alternative to travelers' cheques.

The several types of pre-paid cash card :-

Touch n Go (Malaysia)
(TnG) smart card is used by Malaysian for electronic payment system to toll expressway and highway. It is expanding its business to retail purchase by starting with fast food industry that enables consumers to buy burgers or fast-food from 21 outlets such as Burger King, 7-Eleven, Dunkin’ Donut. Besides that, card holders can use their prepaid cash cards pay parking fee before they are entering the shopping malls such as Midvalley, Sunway Pyramid and etc.

Octopus (Hong Kong)
It is an electronic system that makes traveling, dining and shopping in Hong Kong simple and hassle-free. Each Octopus contains a built-in microchip containing all users payment information. Just with a simple 'touch and go' of the Octopus cash card at a processing machine, the system automatically deducts the correct amount. There is no longer a need to carry coins.


EZ-Link (Singapore)
A system is similar to the Octopus Card in Hong Kong and Touch n Go in Malaysia.

The EZ-Link card is a contactless smart card based on the Sony Felica smartcard technology and used for the payment of public transportation fees in Singapore such as Mass-Rapid Transit (MRT), Light Rail Transit (LRT) and public bus services, with limited use in the small payments retail sector. EZ-Link cards being used for payments in Singapore branches of McDonald's. Some schools in Singapore have also started to adopt the EZ-Link card as a way to mark the attendance of students and to pay for food served within the school campus.


There is no interest change, late fees or over limit free for the pre-paid cash card. Nowadays, many consumers bankrupt because of bad debt of credit cards. Pre-paid cash cards are different with credit cards. It will control the limit while credit cards is uncontrollable. So, most of consumers choose to apply pre-paid cash cards rather than credit cards because it is safe and easy to use.

References:
Retrieved from http://www.moneysupermarket.com/c/prepaid-cards/guide/1/ on 1 July 2009
Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EZ-Link on 1 July 2009
Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Octopus_Card on 1 July 2009

Electronic Currency

What is electronic currency?
Electronic currency also known as e-money, electronic cash, digital money, digital cash or digital currency. Electronic currency refers to money or scrip which is exchanged only electronically. Typically, this involves use of computer networks, the internet and digital stored value systems.

ClickandBuy
ClickandBuy is one of the leading payment systems on the internet. For 8 years, their innovative Internet payment and billing system has been one of the established market leaders in Europe and now they are expanding worldwide. ClickandBuy makes it easy to buy and sell online. More than 14,000 merchants benefit from this complete service in 26 countries, which includes 126 different currencies and 46 different payment methods. ClickandBuy is used by Apple iTunes, Skype, msn, T-Online, Electronic Arts, Meetic, Playboy, SanDisk, Yamaha, UNICEF and many more. You just registered and you can simply and securely buy from them.

ClickandBuy’s system offers customers the possibility to make safe and convenient purchases of Internet content and services. ClickandBuy can provide secure, fast and easy payments with all the major international payment and billing methods. Buyers benefit from:

-One-time free online registration

-Secure payment

-Immediate access to paid content with more than 14,000 merchants

-Convenient payment through direct debit, credit card, invoice or prepaid account

-Overview of purchases made in real time

-Transparency and cost control in your personal account management

-An up-to-date overview of open transactions, current subscriptions and invoices

-Good customer service

Security is the top priority of ClickandBuy. All processes meet the requirements for data protection. ClickandBuy places great value on the security of transactions. The security of the ClickandBuy system is multiply redundant and is housed in a high-security computer center. Personal data are handled with high confidentiality. Third parties cannot gain access to it. Customers have access to their data using the user name and password they chose. Everything is guaranteed through 24-hour monitoring by network specialists. ClickandBuy using SSL technology to encrypt all data transferred in both directions between you and us over the Internet.

ClickandBuy allows transparency of your information. ClickandBuy summarizes the following information when you pay for something using ClickandBuy: The merchant from whom you buy; a description of the content/service; price; date, time and length of time you are authorized to have access. They use this information to make a record available for your invoice (which lists all purchases you have made). You can see your up-to-date, password-protected ClickandBuy billing history at any time in ”My Account”.

There are some companies also provide Internet payment and billing system such as PayLoadz, Paystone technologies, Peppercoin, and Digicash. You can refer their related websites at below to know more about them.

Related websites:
https://www.payloadz.com/
http://www.techvibes.com/company-directory/paystone-technologies-corp
http://www.rsa.com/press_release.aspx?id=3323
http://www.peppercoin.com/
http://www.digicash.com/

A Review on a post on e-tailing from My E-Commerce blog

Sarawak handicraft to go for e-commerce – Posted on 31st July 2009.

Sarawak government is strongly urging the local handicraft industry players to venture into the online business. By doing so, through E-commerce, vendors will be able to market their handicraft products on a global scale and at the same time increase Sarawak’s handicraft industry more competitively. This proves to be easier said than done.
As a start, industry players are encouraged to utilize the one-stop e-handicraft mall set up by Sarawak Craft Council. The website, www.right.sarawak.gov.my/Rightmart, will be the gateway for the handicraft industry players to showcase their products and designs online. However, traditional vendors without adequate knowledge in operating a computer will find it difficult to even post the image of their merchandise for sale online.
In addition, there is also a main setback that many fail to take into consideration if all handicrafts were to go for e-commerce. Handicrafts are typically one of the main attractions of many place of interest in Malaysia. For example, Kelantan, Terrenganu, Pulau Pangkor, Kedah, and etc. Expatiates visiting Malaysia are often attracted to such places due to the richness and uniqueness of these handicrafts, often hand-made by the locals for extra income. Thus, if handicrafts were to be made available online, a negative impact will be imprinted on the tourism industry.
In conclusion, all aspects on e-tailing handicrafts has to be taken into consideration before its full scale implementation simply because tourism industry in Malaysia generates RM49.56 billion (US$13.76 billion) in 2008 and the Government will definitely be discontented if the figures were to drop due to incompetence and negligence in implementing e-tailing.

How to safeguard our personal and financial data.

Why we need to safeguard our personal and financial data while online?

The advanced of technology build up the second world of us today. It create conveniences and efficient. People can do his or her purchase transaction of items online without step out their house. Everything can be done at home where just by internet. The only thing we can do is just registered our personal data on the onlineshop website, e-banking website and they gurantee that our data are safe and privacy.

Is it real? Our personal and financial data are 100% safe with them. What your opinion? Emm.. Do you receive junkmail before in your mailbox? 9 out of 10 people will say yes where they found some "nonsense" email which send from XXX company which they start to think did I give or write my e-mail address to them before. If not how they get our email address and even know our name correctly (personal data).

Once again, its prove that internet is not a safe place where millions of computer are connected and the data transfering on sending back and forth through different server on a same time. So, the signifiant increasing numbers of crimes on stealing personal and financial data from third party by using the advanced of technology.Thus, it is dangerous that for every users to disclose some of his personal data in internet with available software in market to prevent hackers to intercept and use those privacy information act as you and use it to purchase things.

So, How can we prevent of being one of the victim ?

1. Secure your mailbox.
Remove incoming mail promptly.Avoid putting bill payments in your mailbox for pickup by a postal carrier ,unless it is unlocked box, drop outgoing payments in Postal Servcies collection boxes.

2. Share your personal information cautiously
Users must cautious on sharing or listing out their privacy personal data including social security numbers, driver's license number and credit card numbers. Don't give out information unless you know the pary with whomyou are dealing with.

3.Review your credit card report and correct any errors.
Do it again each month and year as you receive the bank billing statement with yours receipts to make sure you have not been billed for fraudulent purchasas. If spot any suspicious transactions or charges or duplicated charges where unknown .Then, pleace contact the bank immediately.

4. Store card receipts and other important documents in a safe place.
All those documents including cancelled checks, new checks and account statements should keep properly and not simply throw out. Users need to shred it first before they throw it out. Also shred offers for preapproved credit cards before discarding them.

5.Strong password.
Users should not reveal any passwordthat related our personal and financial data to the other party simply and easily. Users should remembers their own password while log in in any online website and log off while they leave to prevent the other party steal it. Avoid using passwordsthat are easily to guess such as your name , nric number, date of birth, your mother or father name and others. Password that you set please never ever write it down on the paper and out inside in your wallet or beg because it might be steal by theft then they will get your password easily.

6.Use own computer.
When you key in any private information included personal and financial data please doit on your own computer and at home. This is the most safety place instead of work or public maachine to prevent any chances of your own data explode out.

7.Resits using free wireless connections particulary in cybercafes, airports and other public place to check peersonal information.

8. Purchase and use the updated antivirus and antispyware software to get an extra protection.
Remember anything will happen in anytime so what we can do is just prevent by some software to reduce the chances of our personal and financial data fade out.

The threat of online security: How safe is our data?

How safe is our data?

There are several ways to lost our data such as stolen laptops, lost CD or pen drive and systems hacking which contain personal particular of some organisation's employees may expose them to the risk of identity theft. Many organizations have experience of cyber attacks from inside and outside of the organization, even country. The financial losses from cyber attack can be substantial.

For example, there is a case happened on April 2007 at Georgia, where a company lost a CD. The company was hired to handle information by the Georgia Department of Community Health. The CD consists of 2.9 million Georgia residents' data such as names, social security numbers, addresses and members identification for recipients of Medicaid and other medical programme. Those data was not encrypted, therefore potential identity abuse may arise.

Another case happened on September 2006 at Ohio. Hackers broke into the systems of an Ohio hospital and steal personal data of 230,000 patients and their family members plus the financial information of 12,000 donors. It happened when the hospital was upgrading its systems.

How to protect our data?

There are many ways to protect our data, such as:

1) Access control mechanism - Mechanism that limits the actions that can be performed by an authenticated person or group.

2) Passive tokens - Storage devices (e.g. magnetic strips) used in a two-factor autheutication system that contain a secret code.

3) Active tokens - Small, stand-alone electronic devices in a two factor authectication system that generate one-time passwords.

4) Encryption - The process of scrambling (encrypting) a message in such a way that it is difficult, expensive, or time-consuming for an unauthorized person to unscramble (decrypt) it. Encryption helps to secure stored information and information transmission.

Phishing: Examples and its prevention methods

What is Phishing?
It is an form of criminal activity and fraudulent attempt, which usually made through email to steal people personal information and acquire sensitive information such as passwords and credit card details by pretending as a trustworthy person or a business in an electronic communication.

Those phishing emails usually appear to come from some well-known organizations such as banks, ebay and etc, Besides that, phishing emails ask for personal and sensitive information-credit card number, social security number, account number and even passwords also. Usually, phishing emails appear to come from those sites, services, companies or organizations which they do not even have accounts. Moreover, phishing emails always tell people to click a link that is a site to request people to fill in or updated their personal information.

What are the signs of Phishing?
(1) Requests for personal information- Legitimate companies would NEVER REQUEST personal information, especially not a company or an organization such as bank or credit card company which should already have those personal information.

(2) Mistakes- Little things that can often reveal the biggest clues. Most mistakes in grammers, slip up on the finer details and so on.

(3) Addressed as "Customer"- Phishers want to save time, they use generic names like "Dear Valued Customer", so that they do not have to type all recipients' name out and send one-by-one. For example, if your bank, regularly addresses your name in.


(4) "Verify your account"- A legitimate business would not request their customers' passwords, logon names, Social Security numbers and other sensitive information through emails. If receive these kind of emails, do not response. It is a phishing scam.

(5) "Click the link below to gain access to your account"- HTML formatted messages can contain links or forms that people can fill out just as people would fill out on a Website. The link that people urge to click may contain all or part of a real company's name but the link is actually taking people to a sham Website.

(6) Uniform Resource Locator (URL)- Phishers sightly altered by intentionally adding, omitting or transposing letters. For example, the URL "www.microsoft.com" could instead as:

(a) www.micosoft.com
(b) www.mircosoft.com
(c) www.verify-microsoft.com

How to prevent?
(1) Change the passwords on all the accounts- Use a strong password that at least eight characters long, includes letters, numbers and symbols, easy for users to remember but hard for othersto guess. Avoid the name and words in any dictionary, important dates and so on. Protect passwords and change them regularly.

(2) Report the incident- Contact the credit card company or bank if those personal information already given out. Report or send the phishing emails to them so it is easier for them to protect their customers.

(3) Separate email address for different usage- For example, one for financial transaction, one for trusted friends and families and one for public or general use. So, have to do everything well to keep the address for financial transaction purpose as private as possible.

(4) Improve Computer's Security- Phishers hope users have not been applying the latest fixes and try to take advantage of those vulnerabilies. Better use a firewall and anti-phishing software such as Kaspersky Internet Security, Norton 360 and so on. Besides that, Web Browsers like Microsoft Internet Explorer 7 and Firefox 2.0 come with the anti-phishing functions.



Video Sharing to clarify on Phishing Scams in Plain English

REMEMBER!! Legitimate organizations would NEVER REQUEST personal information through emails.

Reference:

Retrieved from http://www.phishtank.com/what_is_phishing.php on 23 June 2009
Retrieved from http://onecare.live.com/site/en-us/article/phishing_prevent.htm on 23 June 2009
Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sqRZGhiHGxg&feature=fvw on 23 June 2009