$ Strategies: the Keep

I plug every hole I see but sometimes there are holes I cannot; so, I take the extreme measure of building a credit-keep: an impenetrable fortress of security, buried deep in my fortified city.

Credit-rating agencies are the keepers of the rivers of commerce; credit flows. By default, our credit is open. With the right information, signatures, verifications, and paperwork credit lines are established through these three agencies. What does Identity Theft really mean? Money. I define Identity Theft as the moment someone has convinced these agencies that they are me. If someone is slick enough to slide the right information past the right sentinels of commerce, these agencies will have no choice but to accept the debt on our behalf. The trick is to dismiss the guards and close the gate.

And there are many guards, many for-profit companies eager to provide the monitoring necessary to protect your open credit. For a monthly fee, they will scan the universe for intruders. But is this money well-spent? In a word, 'no.' You will pay these agencies to protect you from something that you can do much better for yourself at a minimal cost with a maximum benefit. For anyone willing to put a little effort into their financial health, credit-monitoring is a scam. How? Simple: a credit-lock.

Let me say that this solution is not for everyone, all of the time. That said, this solution is for anyone willing to fortify their credit. But it requires work and discipline. You must open and close your credit with planning and intention. It also costs money, not much but some. It's easy to use, and secures us against the greatest risk: unknown, unauthorized credit lines. The process is relatively simple. You sign up at each of the agencies. You request a lock on your credit, pay the fee, and create a password. Then, when you want to open your credit for some perspective creditor to view, you create a temporary lift of the lock and pay that same fee again. This means that if you want to open a new credit-card, buy a house, or a car, you will have to plan for it.

Although it takes effort, a credit-lock insures our exposure is vastly limited. Having to intentionally use our credit means we considered new lines more closely. I highly recommend it. Then again, if new lines of credit is critical to your long-term business strategy, maybe this isn't for you. In that case, you could do worse than to pay the right people to monitor your credit. But come on, if you're wealthy enough to be opening and closing accounts regularly, you've got people whose sole job is to take care of that. The effort it takes to live with a credit-lock is how the rest of us remain bulletproof.

Donald Chump Treasure

The basic question when it comes to 'The Donald' and his run is whether the Office fits. Please.

His candidacy has always been about the luxurious nature of his candidacy. His singular message encompasses many traditional GOP points of view, including the Putinesque strongman image of the 'Doer.' Doesn't matter the problem, he knows the guy. The Donald gets it done. For every question, he has no other answer: the Donald's a Doer. He loves everyone, everyone loves him, and he knows what's best. The shinny, golden, god-like level of the Chump's narcissism is not run-of-the-mill.

No, it's the best, most classy, luxurious, highest quality in Town. He sets the bar.

Although there would be no greater Democratic gift than his nomination, Donald's Treasure is for the GOP. His candidacy represents an opportunity to pivot. Over the next year, the bashing of the Chump's 19^th century's views will allow this party to redefine itself and finally join the 21^st century. The Donald raises many issues worth discussing: immigration, healthcare, women's rights, and the legitimacy of Obama's “official birth-certificate.” Okay, not the last one; that's more of an example of this pivot-point. The value of The Donald is the distance the GOP can run from him. This distance is directly proportional to their remaining relevance. Run Republicans run.

Why is he so popular right now? Because it's right now. Activists are the only ones engaged at this point and they love him. Let's hope more than the GOP candidates challenge his message. What would be really nice is if the other side seizes this opportunity for real dialogue. Then both sides can come together for a single purpose:

Pile-on the Chump!

May the truth of this Treasure be the moment the GOP has a real conversation with the American People.

Their failure insures their status as the inevitable third-party.

$ Strategies: The Fortified City of Wealth

The best financial defense is your effort: spend time; remain alert, proactive; monitor exposure. Keeping the avenues of commerce open while avoiding obstruction is a balancing act. As Sun-Tzu might say, 'though a general does not lose, it does not mean he wins.' Victory does not simply come from a good offense but requires a solid defense. Sun-Tzu warns the invader to consider the great cost when attacking a fortified city. Financially speaking, we can vastly limit our exposure and create that fortified city of wealth.

A simple example of a great defensive habit is to log-out. Why should I make the effort if the system will automatically deactivate access to my account after being idle for a specific interval? Fair point. For the most part, that protects most of us most of the time. If being secure most of the time is good enough for you, then why worry? For me, I'm concerned about those moments when automation fails. I close each secure session every time. The second a system is hacked sufficiently, all open accounts become targets. Anyone with the bad luck of being connected to a breached system's core runs the risk of exposure. During this time, the system's security will find it challenging to detect your absence when the hackers raid and manipulate your information. Because you did n

ot log-out, their activity appears as your activity. It takes so little effort to click the link. That's why it's there. Use it.

A tight ship does not leak. Any hard-copy with my personal data is stored or burned. Period. One thing we control is what comes out of our homes. We can toss our junk mail out; we can be lazy and fail to go through it. On the other hand, we can imagine the many pieces to the Identity Theft puzzle. Junk-mail constitutes a few. Credit-card offers are a prize, like a game-piece ready for play. Denying any single avenue makes theft difficult for thieves; denying all of them makes it impossible for anyone. I choose to burn; others prefer to shred. Ashes, when scattered, are not as easily reconstituted as bits of paper. Maybe some alien, quantum magic exist out there where spread ashes can be reincarnated. I guess I'll take my chances. What I am not willing to take a chance on is shredding.

Of course, large-scale shredding that is directly recycled is perfectly safe for industry. But it's different when it comes to my limited, personal information. I plug every hole I see.

$ Strategies: Powerful, Easy Passwords

If you ever suspect a favorite website has been hacked, run a malware and virus scan on the devices used to access the site, then change your password. For sites with financial accounts such as online banks, utilities, or credit cards, create unique passwords that are not used with any other type of site. If a hacker gets your password from a favorite shopping site, social media site, or even from work, they can't empty your checking account and clone your credit cards.

The creation of passwords is tricky and exhausting. Never: use the same password for everything, use birth-dates, sports jersey numbers, addresses, ID numbers, pet or family names, or use the word 'password.' And if a word appears on any of your social media platforms, don't use it. The challenge is to create one you can remember that isn't your last name followed by one, two, three. So what do you do? You can come up with lists of passwords, get a password generator, or try the key-and-lock approach.

This method breaks the password into two pieces. The first half is a standard password like BlueB04. The second half is related to the specific site. This could be the first letters of the site's address, the company name, or any other information relating to the account. In effect, a single password becomes many. Examples: BlueB04Costco, BlueB04SBUX, BlueB04XYZ123 … With financially significant sites like a bank, you could use a special code or pin between the two parts. Example FIN for financial would look like: BlueB04FINXYZ123 – the longer the password the better.

There is a different technique altogether. Instead of picking some absurd concept to encode on a keyboard like BlueB04, use the keyboard as a landscape and plot a pattern the same way most phones are opened. For example, a straight, horizontal line would be 'qwerty.' Your password becomes a simple, geographical pattern on the keyboard, like a little journey or dance your fingers play out in a specific way. Think of a picture-key. This method consists of circles, taps, and swipes over an image. Simply translate that to the keyboard. You start at a point and walk a predetermined path. This makes the password easy to remember, super-fast to enter, and can be quickly changed by simply starting with a new key but following the same shape.  

The ultimate strength of a password is its randomness. Personally, I use a combination of both techniques in three sections: first, a pattern; second, a standard; and third, a site-related. Example: qwertyBlueB04XYZ123. This tactic produces powerful, easily-managed passwords.

The Enemy's Flag Flies Over US Capitals

Why did the US Civil War happen? Simple: the power to make money; aka the right for the rich to stay rich despite the cost to humanity.

The institution of slavery created centuries of wealth for many of the world's governments. The practice is Biblical. But it becomes increasingly difficult to treat people as animals when they are increasing seen as human. The US was not the first nor the last to abolish this source of unethical labor. And like the Exodus, it came at a great cost to the nation resisting change. But unlike the ancient tale, the force facing the American Pharaoh named Jefferson Davis was a well-regulated army of soldiers supported by a diverse middle-class, not a mass of ragtag slaves lead by a psychic magician across the parted river into the empty desert under a watchful eye.

The American Civil War began over the establishment of California – a state free from slavery. The South felt boxed in. Without direct access to the Pacific, maximizing profits from their ill-gotten gains became untenable. With this irreplaceable export route blocked, they formed a new country and went to war for the right to exist; they had to protect the old-fashion way. Over the preceding decades of increasing restrictions to their business model and in light of the contemporary trend of world governments abandoning the practice altogether, the South saw the writing on the wall and like the Luddites raged against the machine of progress. 

The Confederate States of America was the attempt to create a foreign country within US boarders based on the institution of slavery. The Confederate Battle Flag symbolizes a foreign country's aggression upon this soil. What other enemy is favored with such an honor? Such logic requires zombie-like cognitive dissidence. How much longer will the enemy's flag fly over US capitals?

$ Strategies: A Worst Case Scenario

Identity theft is ugly. When it strikes, recovery takes a lot of work; but the injury never heals. Using a false identity for gain is not limited to the riches of bank accounts or credit cards. Criminals use our very online presence to create havoc. We all live with data-risk. We cannot protect ourselves one-hundred percent. It helps to accept this. It also helps if we know how to protect ourselves from the greatest risks. Then we can relax, knowing our exposure is limited.

As Sun-Tzu might say, 'a man who knows himself and his enemy may not win but cannot lose.' There are many avenues into our accounts. They exist for the benefit of our access. Being mindful of that process is important. Passwords, PINs, login names, security questions, smart phones, codes, and biometrics are just the beginning. The ability to separate the authentic from the usurper seems never ending. 3-D printed plastic fingers become keys to locks that cannot be reset – nature provides only one set of fingerprints. Even the complexity of biometrics are now in question. Though it may never be perfect and constantly struggles to keep up, security always improves. As it does, we are wise to take advantage of the technology to monitor and limit our exposure.

So, in this worse case scenario, what is the one thing we can do? The single most important behavior is involvement. Review statements. Check credit ratings. Intentionally limit the number of credit lines. Research an institution before opening a financially-related account. Follow best practices.

There are many things we must be aware of when we share our data online. Never open links in unsolicited emails (better yet, don't open them but report them as spam). Never send account numbers, PINs, or passwords via email or enter personal data into an unsecured site. Use only secure or encrypted sites. You'll know because the address line begins with https:// Limit the number of credit cards used online to one (if possible). For the most part, don't save credit card numbers in any digital format; enter them manually every time. And remember, managing each password is important.

The truly damaging identity theft happens when someone breaches the walls of our credit and is allowed to operate as if from within. From the importance of simple passwords to the ultimate tactic of impenetrable security, my next few post explore strategies to plug these holes.

$ Strategies: Credit Card Hygiene

Recently, I had the rare experience of losing my credit card after a visit to a certain colored box for a movie. This is the second time I've ever lost a card. Unlike the first, its absence eluded me. The bank called after someone turned it in at the branch, only a few hundred yards from this colored box. To my relief, the last charge was the movie. They invited me to retrieve the card. I declined.

I told the banker to destroy it. I would order another. Why? My father taught me to avoid even minor threats. Sure it's unlikely that whomever found my card copied the sixteen-digit account number and three-digit card number. Doesn't matter; I'll never have to know because I ordered a new card with a new set of digits. What's the benefit of retrieving the card? Convenience. The cost? Theft. What's the cost of getting a new card? Inconvenience. The benefit? Security. I will say this just once because I could say it at every point: financial security is the ship that keeps us afloat in society; you cannot be too careful with the integrity of its hull.

A few ideas about plastic:

Don't sign. Instead of signing the back of your card, write the words 'see ID.' Once it's a habit, it doesn't take any more time to produce your ID with your card when making purchases but it makes it difficult for criminals to access your credit, should they find a card that has yet to be reported lost.

Pay down, not off. Instead of paying off the card with the smallest balance, pay the minimum on all your cards except the one with the highest interest rate. With that card, pay it off or as much as you can as soon as possible. Carry the largest balance on the card with the lowest interest rate. And it goes without saying, never miss a payment or pay late – it's too expensive.

Pair your cards. Pair your cards to your costs. For example, use one card for gas and groceries; one for online purchases and reservations; another for large acquisitions; etc. Resist the urge to have an 'emergency card' that lies dormant; credit agencies do not look favorably upon them. Personal fiances suffer when too many credit lines are open at any given time but it is good to have enough active lines to pair different cards with different expenses. This not only helps with budgeting and flexibility but fraud. Credit-card companies like to see predictable buying habits. When something unpredictable happens, they are easier to work with and often the first to spot the fraud.

Credit-cards are the common, daily oil of our financial machine – the engine of the ship. If we don't pay attention, the fluid becomes grimy, gritty, dirty, useless, and then potentially dangerous if the engine heats up and breaks down – bankruptcy. But if we take a few extra moments each day to be mindful of this important yet mundane aspect, we keep the oil clean and the engine running smooth, getting us where we want to go.