USALLIANCE Blog

Criminals are constantly finding new ways to access your money or personal information and evolve their tactics every week. Here are some common examples of scams people may be using to trick you into revealing your personal information.

If a time-traveler from the 19th century landed in your living room, you’d likely have a hard time explaining the way our world works – especially the way we deal with finances. Your visitor can watch as you hold an oblong object in your hands and proceed to order a full summer wardrobe, new bedroom furniture or maybe even airline tickets. Who would have imagined we’d be able to do all that and more or without ever touching a dollar bill, coin or even a credit card?

It’s tax season, and while that may mean you’re drowning in forms and paperwork, for scammers it means millions of taxpayers they can potentially dupe out of refunds or scare into making irrational moves. Here’s what you need to know about tax return scams and how to avoid them.

If you’re interested in learning to invest, you’re in the right place. We know that when you’re new to the game, investing can feel intimidating. Between the different types of investments you can make, accounts you can open, and strategies you can follow, there’s a lot to consider. We’re here to tell you it doesn’t have to be overwhelming. To help get you started, we’re going to break it all down right here.

If you hear the term Certificate account and are unsure of what that means, don’t worry, you are not alone! Certificate accounts are investment tools utilized by those who want to maximize earnings on their extra funds. Rather than letting your money sit in a low-interest savings account, put your money to work for you in a customizable certificate account and watch your earnings soar!

Saving for your retirement can seem overwhelming. Where do you even begin?

Like many imposing tasks in life, it's all about taking that first step. Opening an individual retirement account (IRA) can be a great first move.

Ah, investing. The clarion call of a Warren Buffet-esque existence is hard to resist. But before you go make a fortune off graphene stocks, here are some basic do’s and don’ts.

With most employers, a new job comes with new benefits.

Sometimes this includes a vacation package, health care and a 401(k). Often times, your 401(k) is the one benefit that you’d much rather read later. And before you know it later turns into three years. So before you close your benefits folder and lock it away in your office drawer, get the 4-1-1 on some 401(k) basics. 

What exactly is a data breach?

Let’s start with an example. In 2013 Target announced that nearly 70 million customers’ names, credit card numbers, expiration dates, card verification codes, mailing addresses, and email addresses had been hacked from their credit and debit card devices used during the holiday shopping period.

The 2013 Target incident is the best explanation of exactly what a data breach is — someone hacking into a secure system to steal all of your account information. 

It’s considered to be a modern-day robbery of your cash and savings accounts.