Buying a new home is one of the most important purchases you will ever make in your life so you need to make sure you are 100% ready before making that leap.

Believe it or not Melinda and I haven’t gotten to this point yet for one reason or another.  The main reason is because we have moved around a lot due to my different jobs and another reason is we aren’t 100% sure where we would like to settle for good.  Personal finances play a part in this equation as well and seeing the amount of foreclosures in America makes me think twice about ever wanting to buy a new home.

For those of you that are in the process of buying a new home and will be planning on moving in the near future here are a few times that might be useful:

• Be sure to put in a change of address at the post office as well as changing your address with your bank, employer and any other place where they might be sending you financial documents or checks.
• Keep all important documents in a safe during your move so that you know everything is safe and secure.
• When buying new furniture and items for your new home using a credit card with a small credit limit is better than using a debit card.
• If your new home doesn’t have a locking mailbox be sure to replace it with one that does as soon as possible.
• Be sure to use LifeLock to monitor your credit because they are relentless in helping you protect your identity so you can have peace of mind while enjoying your new house.

Also, don’t forget to play the  LifeLock for Life Sweepstakes on Facebook where all you need to do is “LIKE” LifeLock on Facebook then visit the LifeLock for Life tab and begin playing by answering different questions for great prizes.  For the month of January and February the questions will be focusing on buying a new home so make sure you play every week for a chance to win some really cool prizes.

Be sure to follow LifeLock on Twitter, Facebook and Google +

I have received compensation for my participation as a LifeLock Ambassador but ALL opinions are my own.

For most people the holiday hustle and bustle has already started or will be very soon so the last thing on peoples minds is protecting their identity. If you have LifeLock they are relentless in helping you protect your identity so you can have peace of mind but that doesn’t mean you should slack off. You still need to take precautions while away from home this holiday season.

If you are traveling and staying in a hotel the first thing you want to take advantage of if possible is the room safe. You want to be sure you lock up all important documents that you may be traveling with like passports, birth certificates, airline tickets, etc. You also want to make sure not to share any personal information and if you are required to you should ask why to be sure it’s a legitimate reason and not someone just phishing for your personal information.

Here are a few others tips that may come in handy while you are on the road this holiday season.

• Try to get your receipts electronically if possible – A lot of retails are offering the option to receive your receipt in paper or electronic form. Getting your receipt electronically will help you keep your information a little more secure.
• Stay Alert – When using ATM’s be aware of people standing around and make sure that they aren’t looking over your should and also be on the lookout for strange looking ATM’s. Also be aware of shoulder surfers when using your credit cards in stores as people may take a picture of your credit card information.
• Have your mail picked up – If you are going to be away from home for any length of time and do not have a locked mailbox be sure to have someone get it for you. This helps reduce the chances of your mail being stolen. If no one can pick up your mail put it on hold at the post office.

Hopefully this holiday season everyone will get a chance to enjoy family time and having LifeLock on your side will allow you to focus more on your family and less on identity theft.

Also, don’t forget to play the  LifeLock for Life Sweepstakes on Facebook where all you need to do is “LIKE” LifeLock on Facebook then visit the LifeLock for Life tab and begin playing by answering different questions for great prizes.  This month the questions will be focusing on safe holiday travel so make sure you play every week for a chance to win some really cool prizes. Also, the sweepstakes runs through 2013 so you will have multiple chances to win.

Be sure to follow LifeLock on Twitter, Facebook and Google +

I have received compensation for my participation as a LifeLock Ambassador but ALL opinions are my own.

It’s hard to believe that it’s November already but the reality of the situation is Christmas is less than two months away. With that being said it’s time to begin shopping for the holidays but if you are like me you shop from the comfort of your own home in your pj’s with a nice hot cup of coffee or hot coco.

I love online shopping because of the convenience but the one thing that I always worry about is the security of my information. There would be nothing worse than my credit card information or even worse my identity being stolen.

I have family that lives far from us so I will typically send them food or something that is ordered online and delivered directly to their house. If you are like me and do most of your shopping online and I am sure most people are these days because finding coupons, free shipping and online deals is so easy there is almost no reason to leave the house. Now I say almost no reason because when it comes to clothing I actually need to go to a brick and mortar store because I have to try on my clothes 99% of the time.

So in the spirit of the holidays and online shopping here are a few tips that I think may be able to help keep your information safe while shopping online this holiday season.

• NEVER buy from a site that redirects you from your original destination. You run the risk of it not being legitimate and you could possibly have your information stolen.
• Never share your social security number when ordering online. There is no reason for anyone to ever ask for this when shopping online.
• If you have a disposable credit card with a pre loaded amount associated with it that would be safer to use than a credit card. Reason being is if someone does get a hold of this information they can only steal up to the amount on the card.
• Use your home computer rather than a public computer as you have no control over the anti virus protection or anything else on a public computer.
• Keep your home antivirus on your computer up to date. This is the easiest way to help protect your information from being stolen.
• Let LifeLock keep you protected while online because they will keep you protect and notify you if and when suspicious activity occurs.

I am not saying that my tips above will stop online theft during the holidays but it will help reduce the chances significantly.

Also, don’t forget to play the  LifeLock for Life Sweepstakes on Facebook where all you need to do is “LIKE” LifeLock on Facebook then visit the LifeLock for Life tab and begin playing by answering different questions for great prizes.  This month the questions will be focusing on online donating so make sure you play every week for a chance to win some really cool prizes. Also, the sweepstakes runs through 2013 so you will have multiple chances to win.

If you aren’t out shopping be sure to join #LifeLock on November 23rd (Black Friday) for an awesome Twitter party at 3 pm PST.

Have fun shopping this holiday season but be safe at the same time!

I have received compensation for my participation as a LifeLock Ambassador but ALL opinions are my own.

Have you ever been asking by a co-worker, family member or a friend to donate to a charity that they may be supporting? I know I have done this on numerous occasions because every year I do one to two MS bike rides where the money that I raise goes to help assist in finding a cure for MS so I hit a lot of different people up for donations.

With the internet not many people collect donations the old fashion way which is in the form of cash but instead people send a link where you can enter your personal information including your credit card number. Thankfully LifeLock is on the scene to help you protect your identify because who wants to be ripped off while trying to help out a charity.

LifeLock offers up many great tips for making donations online but for me the biggest tip is making sure that you search for the “S” when making purchases or donations online, be sure that the Web site is secure and that you see an https:// in the URL.  Another great tip is to make sure you know who you are donating to.  If you are like me you want to help everyone’s charity even the neighbor’s wife’s brother but it is extremely important to know who you are helping out so that you don’t get scammed and find yourself in huge trouble.  I am not suggesting that you stop helping people and charity I am just saying do it safely and if you need a helping hand be sure to turn to LifeLock.

Also, this is a great month to talk about safely donating online because October is National CyberSecurity Awareness Month and National Crime Prevention Month so like I mentioned please be safe while online.

Feel free to share any tips or information you may have on this subject especially if you have ever been a victim of a charity scam?

You may remember that last month I mentioned the  LifeLock for Life Sweepstakes on Facebook where all you need to do is “LIKE” LifeLock on Facebook then visit the LifeLock for Life tab and begin playing by answering different questions for great prizes.  This month the questions will be focusing on online donating so make sure you play every week for a chance to win some really cool prizes. Also, the sweepstakes runs through 2013 so you will have multiple chances to win.

I have received compensation for my participation as a LifeLock Ambassador but ALL opinions are my own.

It’s official; I’m proud to announce I am now a LifeLock ambassador. I am excited to join all the other terrific LikeLock ambassadors and I’m looking forward to the opportunity to spread the word to my readers on what LifeLock is able to offer them.

Having a wife and 3 children of my own LifeLock is it exactly what I’ve been looking for in order to keep my families identity safe. Identity theft is serious and it’s very important to protect yourself and LifeLock is diligent and relentless in helping people do that.

To learn more about what LifeLock has to offer be sure to like them on Facebook and follow them on Twitter.

Now it’s time to have a little fun with the LifeLock for Life Sweepstakes on Facebook. “LIKE” LifeLock on Facebook then visit the LifeLock for Life tab and begin playing where you will learn how different life events affect the safety and security of your identity. Every correct answer will equal one entry into the contest.

Each month, questions will focus on different events in life like keeping yourself protected while shopping online or buying a home. Prizes will include Visa gift cards, LifeLock memberships, and family vacations.

The sweepstakes runs through 2013 so you will have multiple chances to win.  LifeLock for Life Sweepstakes began on September 11th so don’t delay any longer. Enter for your chance to win some awesome prizes.

Also, be sure to stay tuned for more information on LifeLock, you will not want to miss it.

I have received compensation for my participation as a LifeLock Ambassador but ALL opinions are my own.