Online shopping protection!

Because holiday shopping is very important for all of us, we can announce you that online holiday sales will increase 21% this year. This is not o problem until we dicover that with this occasion some of us will be the victims of identity theft. You can find below ten tips to protect you Your identity while holiday shopping online.

Huntington Bancshares Incorporated Press Release:

Online holiday sales are projected to increase 21 percent in 2007, according to Forrester Research. But while consumers continue to increase their use of holiday shopping, there is also widespread fear that they will be the victims of identity theft. That's why Huntington Bank has developed ten tips that shoppers can follow to make for a safe and secure holiday season whether consumers are celebrating Christmas, Hanukkah or Kwanzaa.

"At Huntington we understand how time-starved our customers are and how convenient online shopping can be," said Timothy J. Scholten, senior vice president responsible for Huntington's online banking. "Huntington's online banking site continues to be one of the top 10 sites in the country. We want to share our expertise with shoppers to give them peace of mind about their online transactions."

Make your list, check it twice and follow Huntington's ten cyber shopping tips:
1. Check your accounts daily for any activity you did not initiate. This
is especially needed during the busy holiday shopping season. You
should be able to log on quickly and check to see if there is any
unusual activity in your bank or credit card account that you did not
initiate. If there is, contact your bank immediately.

2. Do business with companies you know and trust. Research a company
before revealing personal or financial information online. Confirm an
online seller's physical address and phone number in case you need to
get in touch with them. If you get an email or pop-up message from the
seller while you're browsing that asks for financial information,
don't reply or click on the link in the message. Legitimate companies
don't ask for this information via email or pop-ups.

3. Watch out for fake "look-alike" sites. Some con artists disguise their
Web site as a well-known company's site. Check your browser's address
bar to make sure you're always using the correct Web site address. If
the Web site seems suspicious, leave it immediately and call the
company.

4. Check a company's privacy policy before doing business with it. A
company should allow you to know what personal information its Web
site is collecting, why and how it will be used. If you can't find a
privacy policy -- or if you can't understand it -- consider taking
your business to another site that's more security-conscious and
accommodating to customers.

5. Only provide personal information if you're on a secure Web site.
Once you are logged in, make sure the Web address starts with "https"
("s" means it's secure). For added safety, check for a site
certificate before submitting information on a secure page. Confirm
the owner of the certificate by clicking on the padlock icon at the
bottom of most browsers. You should see the owner listed as well as
the site address. This address should match the Web site address at
the top of the page; if they do not match, you may be at a fraudulent
Web site and should not enter personal data.

6. Never respond to emails asking you to "confirm" recent transactions
after you shop. These likely are "phishing" scams sent to lure private
information from you.

7. Maintain a paper trail. Print and save records of your online
transactions, including the product description and price, the online
confirmation/receipt, and copies of any email(s) you exchange with the
seller.

8. Do not share your passwords with anyone and never provide your social
security number, birth date, or mother's maiden name in an email.
9. Make sure all of your security software is up-to-date before you do
your online shopping. That includes anti-virus software, anti-spyware,
and firewalls.

10. Use a separate email account for your online shopping. You can set up
a free email account online through several different services.

About Huntington
Huntington Bancshares Incorporated is a $55 billion regional bank holding company headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. Huntington has more than 141 years of serving the financial needs of its customers. Huntington's banking subsidiary, The Huntington National Bank, provides innovative retail and commercial financial products and services through over 600 regional banking offices in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. Huntington also offers retail and commercial financial services online at huntington.com; through its technologically advanced, 24-hour telephone bank; and through its network of over 1,400 ATMs. Selected financial service activities are also conducted in other states including: Dealer Sales offices in Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee; Private Financial and Capital Markets Group offices in Florida; and Mortgage Banking offices in Maryland and New Jersey. Sky Insurance offers retail and commercial insurance agency services, through offices in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Indiana, and West Virginia. International banking services are available through the headquarters office in Columbus, a limited purpose office located in both the Cayman Islands and Hong Kong.

Source: Huntington Bancshares Incorporated

Holiday gift tips

Because you already had the occasion to see how to make smart shopping for holiday season, now you can see advices about what to buy and.... for who. Every holiday season I wonder what to buy for my mother, father, sister or boyfriend. Let's see what specialists recommand us and advice us to buy for impressionating gifts!

Florida Department of Citrus Press Release:

Every year shoppers struggle to find the ideal holiday present for everyone on their list. As shopper's ideas run stale, it gets even harder to find the perfect gift while following proper etiquette. Floridian etiquette expert Peggy Post, great-grand-daughter-in-law of Emily Post and author of "Excuse Me, But I was Next ... ," offers tips to help simplify holiday giving:
-- Don't stress about an unexpected gift.

The first and most important
thing to do is graciously thank the person for the gift. Then, you
must decide whether to get the person a gift or not. It's acceptable
to thank the person and leave it at that. Or you could say "I don't
have yours yet!" and buy a gift and deliver it later.

-- Stand-by gifts are good to have on hand. It's a smart idea to keep
some nice gifts on stand-by should you receive an unexpected visitor
or get invited to a last minute dinner party. Make sure that your
stand-by gifts are gifts that you would enjoy receiving also. Items
such as journals, cookbooks, holiday scented candles, and picture
frames serve as great stand-by gifts ideas.

-- Give the gift of Florida sunshine. Skip unhealthy holiday cookies and
send the gift of health with a beautiful gift basket of Florida
oranges, grapefruit and tangerines to friends and family. Juicy,
tasty and rich in nutrients such as vitamin C, folate and potassium,
Florida citrus offers a gift of good taste. Gift fruit can be
conveniently ordered online at www.pickfla.com and delivered to
a loved ones' doorstep.

-- Avoid re-gifting. Re-gifting is dangerous and should be avoided. The
potential to cause hurt feelings is the best argument against
re-gifting. That said, if you received a beautiful sweater that
doesn't fit you, you can certainly pass it along to your best friend,
just be honest where it came from.

-- Be cautious when exchanging gifts in the workplace. Don't give a gift
to your supervisor that's just from you. Other employees may resent
what they see as an effort on your part to curry favor. If you really
want to do something for the boss, get together with the others in
your department and give a gift from the group.

-- Communicate your thanks. Accompany any gift with a hand-written note
expressing thanks. If you've verbally thanked someone in person for a
gift, technically, a thank-you note isn't obligatory. But, it's never
wrong to write a thank-you note because hand-written notes are
remembered, and will stand out as warm and personal
relationship-enhancer.

The Florida Department of Citrus is an executive agency of Florida government charged with the marketing, research and regulation of the Florida citrus industry. Its activities are funded by a tax paid by growers on each box of citrus that moves through commercial channels. The industry employs approximately 90,000 people, provides a $9 billion annual economic impact to the state, and contributes hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenues that help support Florida's schools, roads and health care services.

Source: Florida Department of Citrus