Ways to Prevent Your Baby Monitor from Being Hacked

We are entering the very beginning of “the internet of things”. The simplest explanation of what that means is that there are now several appliances and electronics that are constantly connected to the internet through Wi-Fi. The purpose is to make life more convenient. Unfortunately, sometimes this interconnectedness can cause security issues. A family discovered this in a very unpleasant way when their nanny noticed that someone had hacked their baby monitor. A stranger was able to talk to, and see, the room the baby was in, the baby, and the nanny who was caring for the infant. How did … Continue reading

Ways to Save on Your Homeowners Insurance

Want to lower your homeowners insurance premiums? Of course, you do! No matter what you are currently paying, your life would be a little bit easier if your premium was lower. Compass Insurance Agency has some advice about things you can do that could result in a lower homeowners insurance premium. When it comes to insurance premiums, it is all about risk. Insurers want to find customers who are low risk. The reason comes down to cost. If your homeowners insurance company considers you to be a high risk, they will probably charge you a higher premium to compensate on … Continue reading

Protecting Your Children from Identity Thieves

Identity theft doesn’t just hit adults. Children are especially vulnerable to it, since they have clean credit and financial histories and no background information or signature on file. This makes it easy for thieves to take out credit and loans in a child’s name. In most cases, the victims and their families never even realize that there is an issue until the child becomes an adult and pursues his or her own credit and financial footprint. Then it becomes obvious: years of bad debt, defaulted loans and possibly a criminal background. The web of identity-related issues can be ponderous and … Continue reading

Your Child’s Safe Haven

I’m not exactly sure what time the world is supposed to end today.  But my guess is if you are reading this blog, the earth is still intact. It seems we can’t learn our lesson enough, previous predictions that have turned out to be oh-so-not-true.  Although, it seems more people are holding weight in the Mayan calendar running out. As if my teens didn’t have enough to worry about (no, they really didn’t think the world was going to end today), there were other attempts to wreck their last day of school before winter break.  Several threats of violence against … Continue reading

How to Prevent Identity Theft: Keeping Your Data to Yourself

Think identity theft can’t happen to you? It is probably only a matter of time, because identity theft is growing in leaps and bounds. New technologies and a more global way of doing business has made it easier than ever for thieves to pretend to be you. With thousands and thousands of databases that can be compromised, such as the gas station where you just swiped your car, and hundreds of people who see your card on an annual basis, such as the waiter who just served you dinner, the odds of not being a victim of identity theft is … Continue reading

Your Guide to Insurance Savings

Everyone has to carry some form of insurance, whether it is homeowners insurance, renters insurance, auto insurance or private medical insurance. Being able to find ways to reduce the amount that you have to pay on your premiums is important. With less money leaving your family budget for insurance, you’ll have more money for savings and other needed expenses. 1. Raise your deductible If your insurance deductible is less than $500, consider raising it to at least that amount. The higher your deductible, the lower your insurance rate. The deductible is the amount that you will pay first before the … Continue reading

Protecting Your Holiday Cash

Happy Cyber Monday!  The day many of us celebrate finding phenomenal deals on holiday gifts for loved ones, and then wallowing in mild discontent knowing that even though we saved some dough, we’re still out a good chunk of change. Like it or not, Cyber Monday has morphed into the biggest online shopping day of the year.  This is great news for tech-savvy individuals, but if you are a parent or grandparent, who hasn’t embraced the convenience of online shopping, today can be bittersweet.  While you’d love to take advantage of the amazing online sales, there’s a bit of hesitation … Continue reading

Where Were Your Ancestors In 1940?

There are always interesting things to be found on the Ancestry.com blog. Today’s find is a really neat collection of infographics. An infographic is just what the name implies, a pictorial representation of information. The set of infographics that I found on the Ancestry.com blog includes one for each state in the United States, with pictures that show what was going on there around the time that the 1940 census was taken. The infographic which is pictured with this blog post depicts the state of Massachusetts, where I was born. Apparently, there was a lot going on there in 1940, … Continue reading

Special Needs Blog Week in Review – June 24 – 30, 2012

Every week, the Special Needs Blog Week in Review brings you a quick summary of each of the blogs that were posted here in the past seven days. It makes it easier for you to find out about the ones that you might have missed. The Special Needs Podcast Roundup went up on June 25, 2012. This week, I’d like to point out an episode of NPR’s “Weekend Edition Sunday”. The episode was called “Planes, Patience, and Slightly Kid-Friendlier Security”. This is a good one to listen to for parents who will be traveling by plane with their children this … Continue reading

Insurance Blog Week in Review – June 24 – 30, 2012

Once a week, the Insurance Blog Week in Review brings you a fast way to “ketchup” on all the blogs that were posted here in the past seven days. There can be anywhere between twelve and fourteen blogs that appear. What did you miss? A Brief Comparison of Health Care Plans Obama’s plan includes coverage for adults and children who have a pre-existing condition. Romney’s plan includes coverage for people who have a pre-existing condition – but only if they have had continuous health insurance coverage. The Insurance Podcast Roundup went up on June 25, 2012. This week, I’d like … Continue reading