February 23, 2017

cafecreditdotcomFormed in 2011 with the passage of the Dodd-Frank financial reform act, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau aims to keep citizens safe from unfair or deceptive practices by businesses. One of the ways the government organization accomplishes this task is by maintaining a database of complaints made by consumers against companies. And people have certainly taken advantage of this service since its creation two years ago. In that time, the CFPB has received more than 700,000 complaints aimed primarily at Continue reading

Continue reading...

November 15, 2016

TimParkinsonFrom a young age Americans are taught to keep a close eye on their Social Security number. After all, this unique code acts as an identifier for everything from bank accounts to medical records. If it falls into the wrong hands, all of your personal information could become compromised. To prevent this from happening, the government requires companies to keep Social Security numbers private while advising individuals to reveal it only to trusted parties.

But in today’s digital age there’s Continue reading

Continue reading...

June 27, 2016

Password protection has been an essential element of online security since the beginning of the Internet age. But as hackers become better at infiltrating digital defenses, many companies have started switching to more advanced user verification methods. For instance, millions of customers at Wells Fargo and Bank of America regularly use their fingerprints to access their accounts from mobile devices. This practice will only grow as more companies include fingerprint-scanning technology in future smartphone models.

And biometric security doesn’t stop Continue reading

Continue reading...

April 8, 2016

By now, anyone with an online presence knows that you need to think carefully about what you post on social media. Just one ill-considered joke or comment made in anger can haunt a person for years, harming their future prospects and reputation. Along with these everyday hazards, those who come from wealth run a number of additional risks if they flaunt their fortune too flagrantly online. Not only does this tacky act make them susceptible to thieves, but it also Continue reading

Continue reading...

March 31, 2016

Last month, the FBI and Apple became entangled in a legal battle that many assumed would rage for months. The conflict centered on an iPhone owned by one of the perpetrators of the San Bernardino mass shooting. While the FBI accessed most of the device’s data through the cloud, the government claimed a security system installed on the phone prevented them for obtaining the rest of its information. Apple refused to help the feds bypass the security feature, however, claiming Continue reading

Continue reading...

March 16, 2016

The horrific events of last year’s mass shooting in San Bernardino shocked the nation. Along with the sheer violence of the attack, the fact that it occurred in an office building made many Americans deeply uneasy. Debates about workplace security soon started to rage throughout the media and the Internet. To the nation’s pro-gun advocates, San Bernardino represented another instance where they believe people could have been saved if only they had been carrying a weapon themselves.

While there are Continue reading

Continue reading...

February 22, 2016

Last week, a judge ordered Apple to help the FBI unlock an iPhone used by one of the perpetrators in the San Bernardino mass shooting. Despite the gravity of the case, the tech giant refused the government’s request on the grounds that such an act would compromise the security of all its customers. “We feel we must speak up in the face of what we see as an overreach by the U.S. government,” said Apple CEO Tim Cook in a Continue reading

Continue reading...

June 25, 2015

Ownership of private property is one of the United States’ oldest economic principles. But like many other seemingly everlasting ideas, modern technology has enabled companies to put this concept to the test. For instance, a few years ago Keurig’s single-cup coffeemakers became a big hit with consumers. Rather than brew an entire pot of coffee, those in need of a jolt simply place a small pod of grounds into the machine and wait a few seconds for their drink to Continue reading

Continue reading...

April 15, 2015

From The New York Times

Growers and sellers in Colorado’s legal marijuana industry may only deal in cash, leading to major problems with banking and security.

https://nyti.ms/1zchdUI

 Questions:

  1. With cannabis legal in Colorado, why can’t banks deal with merchants?
  1. Is there a double standard merchants face in the cannabis industry?

From The New York Times

 

Continue reading...

February 26, 2015

The recent hacks of Sony and Home Depot show just how much damage data breaches can do to big businesses. But a company doesn’t have to be multinational in order to attract the eyes of hackers. In fact, experts estimate that 44 percent of small businesses have been the victims of cyber attacks. According to the National Small Business Administration, each breach costs companies an average of $8,700 in damages.

“Cybercrime is in the news all the time, but there’s Continue reading

Continue reading...