2012 - The Year of the Breach

A recent study conducted by the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA) and McAfee Inc. revealed that 400,000 Yahoo! accounts and 6.5 million LinkedIn passwords and millions more at other major sites suffered Identity Theft breaches in the first half of 2012. 

Too many people believe that unless they have credit cards, they do not need ID Theft Protection.  More than 25% of Americans received alerts advising them that their personal information was lost, stolen or compromised.  These breaches included online passwords, email addresses, credit card numbers and more.  And, since many ID thefts are never reported, it is likely that far more actually suffered a breach.

There are numerous companies now offering identity theft protection products, and all of them provide a measure of security.  Xpress Healthcare offers LifeLock® ID Theft Protection.  Everyone who has ever seen a LifeLock commercial on TV knows that they are the biggest and the best proactive program available. 

With Xpress Healthcare, we actually offer LifeLock® at only $19.95/month/family. That’s right, per family!  You’ll pay more at LifeLock’s® own website!  To make this offer even more inviting, this ID Theft Protection is offered as only one of several benefits included in this particular plan.  At the same price, in addition to LifeLock, members receive discounts on pet care products and services, roadside assistance, legal services and cash back rewards mall. 

Whether you purchase your ID Theft Protection through Xpress or not, do not wait!  Get yourself protected before you become a victim!

Meanwhile, here are some steps you can take to avoid becoming an identity theft victim.

Change online passwords regularly.  The above-referenced study found that 28% of people never change their online bank account passwords. This is a major mistake.  Do not make your passwords your birthday or anniversary or other dates or words that are easy to figure out.  Mix lower case and upper case letters, and use numbers in your password.  Longer passwords are easier to hack than short ones.

Keep a close eye on your computer.  About ¼ of Americans store sensitive information on their computers.  Whether laptop or desktop, this is not a good idea.

Only access private sites while connected to a secure wireless network. The chances of someone hacking into your personal online accounts are reduced if you only access private sites when you are connected to a secure wireless network.

Be sure you have security software on your smartphone. With so many of us accessing the Internet using our smartphones, the NCSA study found that 64% have never protected their mobile devices from viruses. The bottom line is that whether or not you have credit cards, you should have identity theft protection. PERIOD.  And I highly recommend that you get the program everyone knows, LifeLock®, through Xpress Healthcare to protect yourself at the lowest cost. To learn more about LifeLock, visit http://julie.joinxpress.com/lifestyle-select.html

I Never Did Like Roller Coasters

I Never Did Like Roller Coasters

When I was a child, I may have liked roller coasters.  But I don’t remember it if I did.  I know I do not like them now.  That terrible feeling of my stomach seeming to drop is not what I call fun.

Now that I’ve been in network marketing for several years, I have discovered an entirely different kind of roller coaster.  I’ve discovered that our excitement level, our motivation, and our businesses can reach the same kind of highs and fall to the lowest of lows.

I have experienced it, and still do on occasion.  I don’t believe that anyone who is really honest with themselves can say they never lose their motivation or that they never have a bad week or month with their business.  Early on in the industry, I rode some of the worst roller coasters I could imagine.  As time went on and my skills and experience grew, the ups and downs leveled off a great deal. 

Today, after about eight years in network marketing and two of them with my Xpress Healthcare business, once in a while I feel unmotivated.  I lose my focus.  Although I write business fairly consistently, occasionally I don’t get new business for few days.  However, I bounce back quickly now when I feel unmotivated.  It will last a few hours at most.  Usually, I just take a break from my desk, and my focus returns when I get back to work.

In this industry, there are many people who simply do not stay around long enough for those high-highs and low-lows to level off.  They never reach the point where their lack of motivation is brief and infrequent.  It is a shame, because if they were more patient, they may turn out to be a great leader in their company.

I try my best to “ride in the car” with my new team members on that roller coaster.  I will help them in any way I can and offer training and mentoring.   When it comes right down to it though, everyone must learn to ride themselves and allow those huge climbs to the top and steep falls to the bottom smooth out over time.  Those who are successful do.hose huge climbs to the top and steep falls to the bottom smooth out over time.  Those who are successful do.

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To learn about Xpress Healthcare, visit http://joinxpresshealthcare.com