How to not pick a password: The 25 worst passwords you can use

Passwords are everywhere. On the worldwide web these days, you are expected to use a combination of capital letters, lowercase letters and numbers for passwordsto keep your personal data safe.

I seem to havestacked up aboutten different passwords, all of which are stored safely in my head. But what are the most common passwords that are stolen?

Well, unsurprisingly, the most common password stolen by a hacker is ‘password.’ Using ‘password’ as your password is not a clever idea – unless you want to be a sitting duck for hackers.

Password management provider SplashData, has announced its annual list of worst internet passwords, in order of how common they are.

Passwords such ‘123456’ and ‘qwerty’ are on the list, along with strange ones such as monkey (6th) and ‘shadow’ (19th).

Payday Cash Loans: Different Lenders with Diverse Loans

Payday advances are given by many companies, loaning institutions as well as mainstream banks to people in need of short term cash advance. With the growing size of payday loan industry, there are many lenders entering in to the field, each offering different kinds of cash deals and targeting different market.

Basically these loans are designed to cater the financial needs of people belonging to lower to middle class, earning limited sum of money, however, with the growing demand for such short term loans, payday companies have categorized customers under various labels, mostly dividing them on the basis of their priorities. For instance, some borrowers prefer to opt for loans with lower interest charges, others look for fast money transfer while many seek loans that have no credit checking requirement. On these considerations for borrowers, payday lenders have introduced a diverse range of cash advances suitable for different people with different needs.

Some of the popular offers include same day payday loans, bad credit loans, instant online advance, one hour quick cash loans, fax less payday advance, paperless paycheck loans, 750$ short term loans etc. The list is pretty long and continues to expend as more and more lenders are entering the money lending market.

Most widely and commonly used cash loans are online payday advances because they provide the ease of applying for an advance through net, without leaving the comfort and privacy of home. The interest cost is a bit higher than other loans but the money gets deposited in to the borrower’s bank account within the matter of few hours.

Is My Personal Injury Settlement Protected in Bankruptcy?

A personal injury settlement in Michigan may be protected in bankruptcy in a number of different ways depending upon the classification of the settlement funds.

Personal injury settlements may be awarded by Michigan district or circuit courts for different purposes: lost wage replacement, medical expense damages, caretaker or nursing services, and punitive damages, to name a few settlement categorizations. Depending upon which of these categorizations applies to a specific sum of settlement funds, the settlement may or may not be protectible in bankruptcy.

First, what does it mean to be “protected” in bankruptcy? I have discussed the process of exemption of personal assets in a number of different posts on this blog. To be “protected,” particularly in a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, means that the value of the asset is not so much that the “exemptions” provided for in the Bankruptcy Code are not insufficient to remove that value entirely from the legal “bankruptcy estate” that is created upon the filing of a bankruptcy petition so that the bankruptcy trustee assigned to the case by the Bankruptcy Court does not have jurisdiction to seize and liquidate it.

In other words, certain types of property up to certain dollar-amount values are protected from the seizure-and-liquidation power. Everything else in a Chapter 7 bankruptcy is subject to being seized and sold off by the bankruptcy trustee for the benefit of the creditors whose debts are to be discharged.

With regard to personal injury settlements, the Bankruptcy Code includes an exemption of $21, 625.00. This exemption may be used to protect any of the settlement categories described above—but only to a maximum of that amount. A $30,000.00 pain and suffering compensation settlement amount would thus be unprotected to the extent of $8,375.00.

Additional exemptions apply specifically to other categories and only to those categories. For example, there is a no-ceiling exemption that applies to compensation in replacement of lost future wages (also useful for the protection of worker’s compensation settlements). If an overall personal injury settlement of, for example, $100,000.00 included a lost wages replacement of $50,000.00 only, this exemption would protect only the $50,000.00.

In addition, successful application of these and other exemptions and protections may be significantly easier to execute if the bankruptcy is filed while the claim is still just that—a claim—rather than afterward, when it is a liquid lump sum of cash sitting in a bank account.

If you are a Michigan resident considering filing for bankruptcy and are expecting or hope to receive a personal injury settlement and would like to discuss the ramifications of each process, please feel free to give me a call at (248) 977-4182 or email me at jhilla@aronofflinnell.com to schedule a free, initial consultation.

6 Reasons Not to Hire a Bankruptcy Petition Preparer in Las Vegas

People on the verge of a Las Vegas bankruptcy frequently have difficulty assembling the money necessary to pay their lawyers. As a result, they find ways to cut costs, and one way of doing it—so they’re led to believe—is to hire a bankruptcy petition preparer. There are 6 reasons to avoid this route.

1. Petition preparers cannot give any kind of legal advice. Bankruptcy lawyers work more with the law-side of issues than factual ones, which tend to be the same. Thus, which chapter to file in and the benefits of those chapters are off-limits. The other big question is which exemptions debtors should claim. These are often the most crucial legal issues that petitioners need answers to.
2. Petition preparers are watched closely by bar authorities to ensure that they aren’t violating unauthorized practice of law statutes. These laws are designed to protect people from unscrupulous and incompetent representation.
3. Bankruptcy lawyers are professionals who know important information outside bankruptcy topics. Often petitioners need help with the tax implications of filing bankruptcy or its affects on their retirement income. Petition prepares do not necessarily know these things.
4. Bankruptcy lawyers are also required to honor your private information by keeping it confidential.
5. The bankruptcy code devotes a section to petition preparers, and gives debtors legal remedies if preparers make errors. [http://codes.lp.findlaw.com/uscode/11/1/110]
6. According to the U.S. Trustee’s Office (http://www.justice.gov/ust/r05/docs/general/guidelines/bank_pet_prep.pdf), petition preparers are only allowed to type documents for a reasonable fee. That is the limit of their function. A trip to the local public library and you can do this for a lot less.

There you have it. An experienced Las Vegas bankruptcy lawyer is far more valuable to your bankruptcy case than paying a typist to save money.

For more questions about bankruptcy in Las Vegas, please feel free to contact an experienced Haines & Krieger Las Vegas bankruptcy attorney for a free initial consultation by calling 1-800-LAWYERS.

Fed Plan Could Lead Chicago Consumers Into More Debt

Recently, the Federal Reserve laid out a not-so-heralded plan to boost the economy by driving down long-term interest rates in order to stimulate the economy.

But the plan only works if borrowers take out loans now, which sends them into debt. Even with low interest rates, this situation can be a challenge to overcome. In fact, investors didn’t respond well to the plan, with the stock market largely in a sell-off in the days after the announcement was made.

Let’s be clear here, though — credit is a necessary function of our society. Most people don’t have $15,000 to $20,000 to buy a new car. And very, very few people have $150,000 in cash to purchase a new home. So, it’s obvious that banks and lenders are needed in order for our society to function.

However, what usually happens is that people are forced into bankruptcy in Chicago because of the lenders’ hidden fees and ridiculously high interest rates. This can leave a borrower actually paying a lot more than what the item or service is worth. Chicago bankruptcy attorneys have seen time and time again many consumers who have been taken advantage of by lenders.

While low interest rates are beneficial to those who must take out loans to make purchases, they can still add up over time.

According to a recent USA Today article, the $400 billion that the Fed shifted may actually have a low impact on consumers. They may end up getting lower rates on mortgages and fixed-rate loans, yet those holding long-term bonds may seen interest income dip as a result.

Because of the nation’s high 9.1 percent unemployment rate, the move is unlikely to provide long-term improvement. Some experts say the impact on consumers will be minimal. Here are some areas where consumers may see changes:

Mortgages
Mortgage rates are a focal point of the national bank’s plan. The $400 billion in short-term Treasury bonds will be used to buy long-term Treasury bonds by next summer. The money will be reinvested from mortgage-backed securities to help mortgage rates stay low.

Interest rates are already low — 4.09 percent on a 30-year, fixed mortgage — so it’s not interest rates that are the problem. Consumers are nervous about the housing market and are unwilling to invest.

Consumer Debt
Most people’s credit card rates are tied to prime rate, so the Fed’s plan could keep credit card rates lower at least until 2013. Yet, some analysts say the prime rate isn’t based fully on federal funds, but is also determined by the rates at which banks lend each other money and on the market.

So, if the economy and stock market continue to slump, rates could end up rising.

The article goes on to say that those holding long-term bonds will suffer under the Fed’s plan, including retirees hoping to benefit from interest rates later in life. This includes insurance companies, which are heavily invested in bonds. These companies could raise rates to make up for lost income there. Short-term savings and the stock market also will be affected.

Most people hope that the Fed’s plan works to help this country get back on track. But most people don’t have a strong feeling that it will.

Fraudulent Transfers Of “Zero Value” : Analysis Of Statutes And Theories

Many asset protection clients own once-valuable properties which are currently upside down. If a creditor gets and records a judgment the creditor will establish a subordinate lien on the property. The judgment creditor is unlikely to foreclose the judgment when the property has no equity. However, if and when the real estate market recovers and the property’s value comes back the creditor’s lien eventually will be “in the money.” Even though an improved real estate market will enable the debtor to sell the property and payoff the mortgage all the money over and above the mortgage will go to the judgment creditor’s subordinated lien. The debtor will never see any money from this property.

If the debtor conveys title of the property to his spouse, a friend, or a newly formed LLC the judgment creditor’s lien will not attach, and and the new transferee can sell the property at some point free and clear of the judgment lien.  The judgment creditor might try to  reverse the debtor’s transfer as a fraudulent transfer intended to evade the creditor’s judgment even where there the debtor had no  equity in the property at the time of the transfer. Can there be a fraudulent transfer of zero value?

Based upon the definitions in in the fraudulent transfer statutes (Section 726.102 ) I believe that the transfer of a property which is upside down at the time of the transfer cannot be reversed as a fraudulent transfer. The statutes define a “transfer” as the disposition or parting with “an asset.” The statute then defines “assets” as any property of the debtor but  not including the debtor’s property to the extent encumbered by a valid lien. Therefore, real estate encumbered by a valid mortgage in excess of property value is not an “asset” for purposes of fraudulent transfer analysis.  

 

Then there is property which as no value but is not encumbered by a lien. For instance, suppose a debtor transfers share of a new LLC which is just beginning business and has not made money. The debtor’s LLC shares are assets because they are not encumbered by a lien. The shares have no market value. Is the change of ownership of the LLC shares to, for example, the debtor and spouse a type of fraudulent transfer. This  transfer is not excluded by statute definitions, but the debtor still has the argument that a transfer of zero value leaves the creditor in no worse position than before the transfer.

 

Why should you start a Roth IRA?

Have you done enough to secure your future? Have you at least given it a thought? These are questions one must ask oneself before retirement, and that doesn’t mean at the end of their career but at the start. Pensions are a rare commodity today and the employer can no longer leave the responsibility of his post retirement life to his place of work. In early 80s traditional IRAs and 401ks were introduced to substitute a pension. The rules of these IRAs were further modified and in 1997, the Roth IRA was established by the Taxpayer Relief Act. Unlike the other IRAs, Roth IRA allows the investors to direct their income after it has been taxed, into their Roth account where they can then grow tax free. For more details on this particular IRA, refer to the page, roth-ira.org.

Here are some reasons that would convince you to open a Roth account:
· This allows you to invest your income after tax, such that no taxes will be applied to them or the earnings from them, in the future. Thus one will not have to bother about increase in tax rates in the future.
· Unlike a traditional IRA, contributions can be made life long and the investor has the freedom to choose investments with lower expense ratios.
· Further, senior citizens are allowed to make an extra catch-up contribution of $1000 annually apart from the standard $5000 contribution.
· The account owner can withdraw funds even before the age of 59, without paying any penalty if he is disabled or if a sum of more than $10,000 is needed to purchase his first house.
· In case of death of the account holder, the sole heir who inherits the account will be permitted to combine his Roth account with the deceased’s account without paying any taxes.

Syms and Filene’s Basement enter bankruptcy

This week, Syms Corp., operator of discount department stores Syms and Filene’s Basement, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy court in Delaware.  The company is based in New Jersey.

CEO Marcy Syms says that the economic recession and competition from similar retailers led them to bankruptcy.  The company released a statement in the news which said, “Our board has conducted a rigorous assessment of all the strategic options and alternatives available and after careful consideration has come to the conclusion that a bankruptcy filing and liquidation is the best way of maximizing value for all stakeholders.”

There are 4 Syms stores in South Florida.  Two are located in Miami, 1 in Fort Lauderdale, and 1 in West Palm Beach.  The company expects to liquidate within the next couple of months.