The Survive and Thrive Boomer Guide

Can you really just go to the Equifax website and get $125?

Although dozens of people have said on Facebook that you can easily get the $125 from the Equifax data breach settlement, the answer is no, you can’t. When you go to the Equifax Data Breach Settlement website to the File a Claim page, you need to list what activities you did related to the breach that cost you money. For up to 10 hours, you don’t need to provide any documentation.

You’ll be asked if you want money or free credit monitoring. If you request money, you have to say that you have credit monitoring for at least six months.

I listed time spent freezing my credit reports, which I did earlier this year. So, we’ll see if I get the $125 or a lesser amount.

What to do about Capital One’s gigantic data breach

A massive data theft at Capital One exposed personal information, in some cases including Social Security numbers, of more than 100 million people. It’s the largest amount of data stolen from any bank to date. 

Consumers should assume that their Social Security number has been exposed between this breach and breaches of other major companies’ databases, such as Equifax’s, said Ed Mierzwinski, U.S. PIRG’s federal consumer program senior director. U.S. PIRG recommends all Americans should freeze their credit reports for free to safeguard their financial security. Click on the following link for details on how to do this: https://uspirg.org/feature/usp/freeze-your-credit. 

“The Capital One breach impacting 100 million Americans is the largest-known breach of a bank,” said Mierzwinski. “The hacker stole people’s credit applications which help make up their financial DNA – and in some cases included Social Security numbers. This information could be used to steal our identities or drain our finances.”

Baby boomers offer wonderful, wise, and witty words

It’s summer and despite the heat in many areas baby boomers are offering words of wisdom.

They’re writing about:

• Why you should do what makes you happy today.
• A summer day at the beach.
• Why you need to keep practicing if you want to get better.
• The cons of moving to Florida.
• Techniques that marketers, politicians, and others use to manipulate people to pad their bank accounts.
• Facebook's $5 billion settlement for consumer privacy lapses and Expedia's $570 million settlement for negligence that led to a massive data breach.

Laurie Stone of Musings, Rants & Scribbles reports on these articles in the Best of Boomer Blogs #607. Click here to get the links to the articles. And be sure to join in the conversations. Boomer bloggers love to hear from readers.

Copyright 2019, Rita R. Robison, Consumer and Personal Finance Journalist

Table saws sold at Lowe’s are being recalled by Chang Type due to fire hazard

Chang Type Industrial Co. is recalling about 258,000 Porter-Cable 10” table saws in the United States and 990 were in Canada.

The motor can overheat, creating a fire hazard.

Chang Type has received 61 reports of the table saw motors overheating and causing fires. One consumer reported smoke damage to their home. No injuries have been reported.

T-Mobile-Sprint merger still a bad deal for consumers

The U.S. Department of Justice said Friday it wouldn’t challenge the proposed merger of T-Mobile and Sprint. The approval comes as the two wireless companies have reportedly agreed to a divestiture plan to sell some of their assets to satellite TV company DISH to help that company build a new wireless network.

Consumer Reports, which opposes the merger, said the DISH deal will do little to address the serious concerns that a combined Sprint-T-Mobile would harm competition, and harm consumers and others in the marketplace who depend on that competition.

“The reported deal would eliminate Sprint, an established competitor in the wireless marketplace, and replace it with DISH, an unproven newcomer that has no experience in building its own wireless network, which it will need to build essentially from scratch,” George Slover, senior policy counsel for Consumer Reports, said.

Facebook to pay $5 billion for privacy lapses, but consumer groups say changes the company agreed to won’t solve its privacy problems

Facebook will pay a record-breaking $5 billion penalty, and submit to new restrictions and a modified corporate structure that will hold the company accountable for the decisions it makes about its users’ privacy, to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that the company violated a 2012 FTC order by deceiving users about their ability to control the privacy of their personal information.

The settlement requires Facebook to conduct a massive overhaul of its consumer privacy practices. The settlement also makes major changes to Facebook’s operations, and CEO Mark Zuckerberg no longer has sole control over privacy.

“Despite repeated promises to its billions of users worldwide that they could control how their personal information is shared, Facebook undermined consumers’ choices,” said FTC Chairman Joe Simons. “The magnitude of the $5 billion penalty and sweeping conduct relief are unprecedented in the history of the FTC. The relief is designed not only to punish future violations but, more importantly, to change Facebook’s entire privacy culture to decrease the likelihood of continued violations.”

Baby boomers enjoy the richness of summer

It’s summer and I’m beginning to get produce from my garden – strawberries, raspberries, lettuce, spinach, and a couple of summer squashes. I’m looking forward to cucumbers and green beans soon.

As baby boomers power through the summer, they’re writing about:

• Whether you’re over spoiling or over training your dog.
• How to brainstorm content.
• Decision to enjoy an urban lake for a festival turned out well, despite the heat.
• How upsetting it is when you don’t get the hotel deal promised.
• A scam where callers claiming to be from Medicare are asking people for their Medicare numbers, Social Security numbers, and other personal information in exchange for free DNA test kits.
• Why things are better than they seem.

Carol Cassara of A Healing Spirit writes about these articles in the Best of Boomer Blogs #606. Click here to get the links to this week’s posts.

Enjoy our boomer blogger articles. And, be sure to tune in next week for more great content.

Copyright 2019, Rita R. Robison, Consumer and Personal Finance Journalist

Equifax to pay up to $700 million for 2017 data breach

Equifax has agreed to pay $575 million, and possibly up to $700 million, as part of a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and 50 states and territories. The settlement alleges that the credit reporting company’s failure to take steps to secure its network led to a data breach in 2017 that affected about 147 million people.

In its lawsuit, the FTC alleges that the Equifax data breach exposed millions of names and dates of birth, Social Security numbers, physical addresses, and other personal information that could lead to identity theft and fraud.

As part of the proposed settlement, Equifax will pay $300 million to a fund that will provide affected consumers with credit monitoring services. The fund will also compensate consumers who bought credit or identity monitoring services from Equifax and paid other money as a result of the 2017 data breach. Equifax will add up to $125 million to the fund if the $300 million isn’t enough to compensate consumers for their losses.

White mugs being recalled by Lifetime Brands due to burn and laceration hazards

Lifetime Brands is recalling about 150,000 Fitz and Floyd Nevaeh white can mugs in the United States and 3,500 in Canada.

The mugs can crack or break when used with or filled with hot liquids, posing burn and laceration hazards.

Lifetime Brands and Fitz and Floyd have received reports of seven incidents where the mugs cracked after holding hot liquids with one report of a consumer receiving minor burns.

How to plan for retirement

It’s never too early to start saving for retirement. Compound interest will help your savings grow over the years, so the earlier you start saving, the better.

When you’re job hunting, be sure to compare the types of retirement savings plans offered, if any. Most companies no longer offer traditional pensions, which guarantee a monthly income in retirement and place the investment risk on the plan provider. Instead, they provide a match to employee savings in a 401(k), which places the investment risk on individual employees, asking them to choose their own retirement investments with no guaranteed benefits. 

A 401(k) is a tax deferred account, meaning taxes are paid when you withdraw money. If you withdraw money before age 59½, you’ll pay a penalty. You can contribute up to $19,00 a year. You’ll have a specific number of investments to choose from in your employer’s plan.