Fall 2007

What’s New on the Net

Here’s a look at new Web sites that can help you manage and protect your money:

Avoid fake check scams: The Alliance for Consumer Fraud Awareness, a coalition of consumer and business organizations and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, has created an interactive Web site at www.fakechecks.org with tips for avoiding check scams. The site features online videos and tests for consumers. For years, the FDIC has been doing its part to warn consumers about fake check scams by publishing informative articles in back issues of FDIC Consumer News at www.fdic.gov/consumernews.

Defend against identity theft: The federal government’s Identity Theft Task Force, of which the FDIC is a member, has launched a new Web site at www.idtheft.gov to help consumers spot and stop ID theft. For more guidance from the FDIC, see back issues of FDIC Consumer News.

Use an interactive calculator: Mymoney.gov, the federal government’s one-stop source for financial education resources, now has interactive calculators you can use to help save for retirement, prepare for college expenses, buy a home, compare monthly payments for fixed and adjustable-rate mortgages, and determine the current value of U.S. Savings Bonds. Find these calculators at www.mymoney.gov/calculators.shtml. Also remember that the FDIC has an interactive, online calculator that helps consumers determine the insurance coverage on their deposit accounts at an FDIC-insured institution. To access our Electronic Deposit Insurance Estimator, go to www.fdic.gov/deposit/deposits/index.html.