November 2024

As the holiday shopping season gets underway, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Cybersecurity and Critical Infrastructure Protection issued an advisory with tips for consumers to protect themselves from scams and fraud.

Among other things, the advisory recommended that consumers buy only from reputable merchants; exercise caution when receiving unexpected calls or emails; monitor their credit card and financial statements; and use a credit card to pay for online purchases. It also cautioned consumers not to give out personal information or account information to anyone via phone.

Here are some quick tips to keep you and your pocketbook safe:

1. Buy only from reputable merchants.

2.  Stay informed of common scamming tactics, share your knowledge with others, and remain skeptical of unsolicited calls, emails and texts, especially those creating a sense of urgency.

3. Exercise caution when receiving unexpected phone calls and emails from your financial institutions, unsolicited texts and embedded links. Confirm the legitimacy of requests by directly contacting the requesting entity through official channels.

4. Practice safe online behavior. Be cautious about the information you share online. Avoid oversharing personal details on social media platforms.

5.  Don’t be pressured to purchase an item or pay for a service quickly. Take time to think, research, and talk to someone trusted. Fraud and phishing scams often capitalize on creating a sense of scarcity or fear of missing out. Legitimate businesses will give you time to decide.

6.  Regularly monitor your financial and card credit statements for unauthorized or suspicious transactions. Report any discrepancies to the credit card or financial institution immediately.

7. If an online deal looks too good to be true, it likely is. Be suspicious. Scammers often offer products at significantly reduced prices. If a luxury item or an electronic device is offered at an extreme discount, it’s likely counterfeit or will never be delivered.

8. Don’t give out personal or account information to anyone who calls.

9. Don’t rely on caller ID. Criminals can fake their identities and locations on phone calls.

10. Never pay someone who insists you pay via a gift card or using a money transfer service. Also, never deposit a check and then send money back to someone.

11. Use a credit card to pay for online purchases. As required by law, credit card companies provide a fraud liability guarantee which limits liability for unauthorized charges to $50 ($0 if the card was stolen and the card company is notified prior to purchases being made).

12. Enable Two-Factor Authentication (2FA.) Strengthen the security of your accounts with 2FA, making it harder for attackers to gain access.

13. Never allow permissions to an unknown app and use different passwords for each downloaded app.

Looking to make changes to your Medicare coverage? Now’s the time: Medicare’s Open Enrollment Period started October 15 and goes until December 7. But as you compare your coverage options, keep an eye out for scammers — they know about Open Enrollment, too.

Scammers often pretend to be from Medicare, or connected to Medicare, to try to steal your money or personal information. They might contact you and say they need your Medicare, bank account or credit card number for your “new” Medicare card. That’s a scam — Medicare sends its cards to you automatically for free.

Scammers might also say they need your Medicare number for a “medical equipment claim” you don’t remember making. That’s a scam, too. They want to file fake claims using your Medicare number.

Stay clear of these and other Medicare scams during Open Enrollment, and any other time:

1. Don’t give personal information to someone who contacts you unexpectedly and claims to be from Medicare. Medicare will never unexpectedly call, email, text, or message you on social media to ask for your Medicare, Social Security, or bank account numbers. They also won’t try to sell you anything or tell you to pay for your Medicare card. That’s always a scam.
2. Don’t trust your caller ID. Your caller ID might show Medicare’s name or phone number, but caller ID can be faked. It could be anyone calling from anywhere in the world.

If you think a call might be real, hang up and call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) to check. – Federal Trade Commission Report

Did you turn 73 this year, or perhaps are much older? A required minimum distribution (RMD) is the minimum amount you must withdraw from your tax-deferred retirement accounts every year after a certain age. At some point in your life, you may have put money into tax-deferred retirement accounts, such as Individual Retirement Accounts and 401k workplace retirement accounts. 

The key word here is “tax-deferred.” You postponed taxes on your contributions and earnings; you didn’t eliminate them. Eventually, you must pay tax on your contributions and earnings. RMDs make sure that you do that. You must start taking RMDs by April 1 of the year after you turn 73. Let’s say you celebrated your 73rd birthday on July 4, 2024. You must take the RMD by April 1, 2025. You’ll have to take another RMD by Dec. 31, 2025 and by Dec. 31 each year after that. (For tax year 2022, the age for starting RMDs was 72.) This applies even if you are still employed.

Please note that taking two RMDs in one year can possibly increase your taxable income and put you in a higher tax bracket.
What type of retirement accounts require RMDs? Traditional IRAs, Simplified Employee Pension (SEP) IRAs, Savings Incentive Match Plan for Employees (SIMPLE) IRAs, 401(k)s, Nonprofit 403(b) plans, Government 457 plans, Profit-sharing plans and other defined contribution plans.
Roth IRAs are funded with after-tax contributions, and they don’t require RMDs until after the owner dies. 

Don’t skip an RMD. If you do not take any distributions, or if the distributions are not large enough, you may have to pay a 50 percent excise tax on the amount not distributed as required, according to the IRS.

Please consult your tax advisor for complete details. By law, investment companies are required to send an RMD notice by January 31 of each year.