PANORA TELCO • ( 641 ) 755-2424 | GUTHRIE CENTER COMMUNICATIONS • ( 641 ) 332-2000 Do Not Call Registry The National Do Not Call Registry lets you indicate you don’t want to receive telemarketing calls. Register your home or mobile phone numbers for free at www.donotcall.gov or by calling 1-888-382-1222. After registration, most of these calls should cease within 90 days. However, some calls can continue to be made to you including those from political groups, charities, and companies with whom you’ve had contact. Before You Dig, Call 811 All sorts of utility lines, pipes, and cables could be buried on your property and easily damaged by even shallow digging. This can result in service interruptions to your entire neighborhood. So before you grab a shovel, grab your phone and call 811 to have utility lines marked. The affected local utilities will send a locator to your property, free of charge. Then you’ll know what’s below and be able to dig safely. To learn more, visit www.iowaonecall.com. Shopping online is so convenient. However, to reduce the security risks associated with it, you must take precautions. They include using a credit card (rather than a debit card) to get maximum buying protection, checking your credit card accounts frequently for unusual activity, and not shopping while on a public Wi-Fi network. Perhaps the most critical precautions, however, are the ones related to choosing the sites from which you make purchases: Do your homework. If you’re wary of a site, perform your due diligence. The Better Business Bureau has an online directory and a scam tracker, and Yelp and Google are full of retailer reviews. Take the time to conduct thorough research before you give a seller your credit card number. Keep in mind that online reviews can be faked, so if you see nothing but glowing reviews from unverified buyers, be suspicious. Follow your instincts and make the purchase elsewhere. In addition, make sure you have a physical address and a working phone number for the seller. If things go bad, at least you’ll have a place to take your complaint. Call them before you order so you can clarify a return policy and where to go with any issues after the purchase. Stick to trusted sites. Search results can be rigged to lead you astray, especially when you drift past the first few pages of links. It’s generally best to stick with major, big-name retailers or companies with which you have an established relationship. Look for the lock. Never buy anything online from a site that doesn’t have SSL (secure sockets layer) encryption installed. You’ll know if the site has SSL because its URL will start with “https” instead of just “http.”An icon of a locked padlock will also appear, typically to the left of the URL in the address bar or the status bar down below, depending on your browser. When Shopping Online, Choose the Sellers Carefully
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