Reasons You Might Want to Get a ‘SMART’ Phone

Last year my family purchased me my first smart phone.  It was the famous iPhone by Mac.  I just could not justify the mandatory $30 extra a month for a smart phone and fought it all the way.  Well what makes a smart phone so smart? In essence, a smart phone is a small mobile handheld computer.

WEBSITE ACCESS:
A Smart Phone is known for its multiple features such as: browsing the Internet to check emails, viewing YouTube videos, listening to music and looking at movies. You can also check bank balances, move money around, pay bills and invest right from your phone.  Need a weather report? It can give you that too in your area, in another city or even in another country.

PICTURES/VIDEOS/TXT MSSG
You can take quality high resolution pictures, record videos. (Side note: this is why everyone is getting in trouble lately; someone is always clicking and running footage on you. Privacy invasion LOL!) You can send text message which I hated at first. Okay, you could do that with your old not so smart phone too. However, I like the fact that I can ‘text’ what I want and avoid talking to people who still like to yap on.  I also purchased the “Group Text” option. I paid a one-time fee of $2.99.  Now I send ONE text message out to as little as two people to as many as 200 people.  We had to shut down our church because of power outages recently.  I had 115 member’s cell phone numbers in my cell phone directory.  I sent one message to 115 people in just 2 minutes.  How productive is that?  Do you realize how long it would have been to evoke the calling tree system?  This is so useful for notifying and sending out ‘reminders’ to community groups, choir members, family, your management team of scheduled meeting times.

CLOCK/GAMES/VOICE REMINDERS
It’s an alarm clock, a stop watch and even a compass.  The game features are endless.  My daughter just hooked me onto a ‘Pictionary’ game where you have to guess what the other person is drawing. It also has voice memos where you can record yourself, “pick up milk, eggs.”   Can you see why you hardly see people’s faces anymore for them staring down at their phones?  The possibilities are endless.

PRODUCTIVITY/CALENDAR/TO DO LISTS
Programmers are writing sophisticated software that helps people become more productive.  These software applications are either free or their costs are very minimal.  I downloaded a calendar application to help me be more organized.  I set up alarms that will notify me of that day’s appointments as well as that Day’s To Do lists. When I’m done, I check it off.  What a sense of accomplishment!

ON SPOT DOWNLOADS/GPS
Oh did I mention you can download an application on the spot wherever you are.  We were in Hyattsville, got lost because of a detour.  I pulled over and downloaded a GPS guide for $3.99.  It directed us right to the place we needed to be.  I guess by now you can see the value of a Smart Phone.

VARIETY OF SMART PHONES AVAILABLE
Please note that Mac’s iPhone is NOT the only Smart Phone on the market.  Take a look and find one within your budget and join me on the quest to be more productive. I can’t believe I resisted this purchase at first.  Now I am to the point that I don’t know what I would do without my iPhone.

Do you have a Smart Phone?  If so, what are some features you appreciate?
Join me on for my next blog on The value of listening to Podcasts.

7 Steps to Protect You from Credit Card Fraud

This information comes from an attorney’s whose wallet was stolen.  He writes this warning to his employees. Because he was not prepared, the thieves, within the week, ordered an expensive monthly cell phone package, applied for a VISA credit card, had a credit line approved to buy a Gateway computer, received a PIN number from the DMV to change his driving record information online, just to start . . . .

Here is some FREE Legal Advice . . .

1. DO NOT SIGN BACK OF YOUR CREDIT CARDS. Instead, put ‘Photo ID Required.’

2. When you are writing checks to pay on your Credit card accounts, DO NOT put the complete account number on the ‘For’ line. Instead, just put the last four numbers.  The credit card company knows the rest of the number, and anyone who might be handling your check as it passes through all the check processing channels won’t have access to it.

3. Put your work phone # on your checks instead of your home phone. If you have a PO Box use that instead of your home address. If you do not have a PO Box, use your work address. NEVER have your SS# printed on your checks. (DUH!) You can add it if it is necessary. But if you have it printed, anyone can get it.

4. COPY THE CONTENTS of your WALLET.  Copy both sides of your license, credit card, etc. If your wallet has been stolen CANCEL your credit cards  immediately. But the key is having the toll free numbers and your card numbers handy so you know whom to call. This is NOT the time to be running around guessing where to find your information so you can make the numerous calls. Keep the copies in a safe place.

5.  File a police report immediately in the jurisdiction where your credit cards, etc., were stolen. This proves to credit providers you were diligent, and this is a first step toward an investigation (if there ever is one).

6.  Call the 3 national credit reporting organizations immediately to place a fraud alert on your name. Equifax: 1-800-525-6285, Experian 1-888-397-3742,  Trans Union : 1-800-680 7289

7. Call the Social Security fraud alert number. 1-800-269-0271   The attorney stated “I had never heard of doing that until advised by a bank that called to tell me an application for credit was made over the Internet in my name.”  The alert means any company that checks your credit knows your information was stolen, and they have to contact you by phone to authorize new credit.

BONUS: Keep a copy of your passport on you when you travel abroad. We’ve all heard horror stories about fraud that’s committed on US citizens in stealing passports, names, addresses, Social Security Numbers, credit cards, etc.

“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”

Did you find this post useful?  If so, give us a shot out and by all means share it with someone you care about. Pastors and ministry leaders please pass onto your congregation.  Identity theft and fraud is so common place today.