Scammers impersonating utility companies or your local government love to play dress-up.  They'll show up at your door looking very official,  offering to provide a free energy audit to identify ways in which you can cut down on your utility bills.  Don't let them in.  Only allow utility workers whom you have called ahead of time into your house, and even then ask for identification.  Still feel uncomfortable? 

Did you know the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requires each of the nationwide credit reporting companies (Equifax, Experian and TransUnion) to provide you with a free copy of your credit report, at your request, once every 12 months? 

"It's important for all of us to know what's on our credit reports. You won't get your credit score, but you can verify the information on the report and see what creditors, insurers, employers and other see when they run credit checks on you," said CSLEA Foundation Chairman Kenny Ehrman.  "Looking over your credit report helps guard against identity theft as you will be able to tell what's yours and if something is on that report, that isn't yours."

If you receive a call from someone claiming to be from your bank and asking for your account information, quickly hang up. 

"No matter how real this person sounds, no matter how demanding or intimidating this caller is, immediately hang up your phone and call your bank," said CSLEA Foundation Chairman Kenny Ehrman.  

Unwanted phone calls are beyond annoying, for senior citizens they can be terribly confusing.  This year the number of unwanted calls may increase due to the upcoming elections.   Unfortunately, there is not a lot you can do to stop the political calls from coming in, as political calls are excluded from the federal government's do not call rules.

Traffic breaks may be an everyday occurrence for a highway patrol officer, but not for the rest of us, which is why some drivers aren't sure how to react when it happens directly in front of them.  Traffic breaks are used by law enforcement officers to slow or stop traffic in emergency situations, to remove hazards from the roadway or to prevent collisions in heavy fog or heavy traffic.

With the record setting Powerball Lottery jackpot growing beyond one BILLION dollars this week, many people are buying tickets, and for some, this may be the very first time.  That's what happens when such excitement abounds.

The fun of ringing in the new year is over and now it's time to get busy at the task at hand - changing your online passwords.   It's not a fun chore, but it's something that should be done as frequently as every few months.  

As you set your garbage can curbside for collection, give some thought to what's inside it.  Do you have boxes in the trash from Christmas gifts that advertise you have a new big screen TV, a new iPad, a new wireless speaker system, a new computer?  

It's next to impossible, in a split second,  for law enforcement officers to determine if a toy gun minus its required orange tip is real or fake.

How many times this holiday season has a store clerk asked you for your phone number to process your purchase through a rewards system?  Chances are you reply aloud with your 10-digit number.

Cyber Monday has come and gone and that means items you ordered online are on their way.   If you're expecting parcels to be delivered to your home and there's a chance you won't be there the moment they arrive, alert a trustworthy neighbor who can intercept.

The holiday shopping season is upon us and if you're one who takes purchases out to the trunk of your car and returns to continue shopping in stores in the same shopping center,  think about getting in your car and moving it to an entirely different parking space.

We trust our health and our lives to our physicians and that's why it is vital that you check you physician's license with the California Medical Board

It's ridiculous for someone to think you would divulge your personal identifying information over the phone to a complete stranger, right?   Wrong.