As we go about continuing our series on starting and running a small business, I wanted to take a break to share some resources that focus on keeping your personal information safe. These also have the added benefit of helping reduce junk mail and keeping you out of debt. Sound to good to be true? Take a look at these:
www.donotcall.gov. This is the National Do Not Call Registry. If you register your phone number (I registered my entire family) on this list, it keeps telemarketers from cold-calling to solicit you. The process is quick and simple. It will not stop calls from charities, surveyors, or companies with which you have an existing business relationship, but it can dramatically reduce the number of solicitations you get. Not to mention annoying phone calls during dinner! Many of these calls are not even legitimate businesses, and many people (especially the elderly) have been scammed out of their personal data.
www.optoutprescreen.com. This one is my favorite. Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), the Consumer Credit Reporting Companies are permitted to include your name on lists used by creditors or insurers to make firm offers of credit or insurance that are not initiated by you. The FCRA also provides you the right to “Opt-Out”, which prevents these companies from providing your credit file information for these offers. Simply put, if you Opt-Out, for five years you will not receive unsolicited credit offers tempting you to go into debt. Again, I Opted-Out my entire family.
During the holiday season, you can never be too careful with you personal information. Use these two resources, and sleep a little better at night. If you would like some additional tools for running your small business, get a copy of my free e-book 30 For 30: 30 Tools to Take Your Small Business to the Next Level. Leave a comment below and share with the rest of us a way you protect your personal information. Click the share buttons to share this with anyone else.
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