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VOLUME 1 - ISSUE 9 / October 2007

New Visa Credit card scam

A new scam surfaced involving credit card fraud. According to reports, fraudsters call Visa card holders claiming they are representatives of the card security department and that they are calling to inquire if somebody else used their card. “The caller has enough real verifiable information to make the contact seem very plausible,” said a Better Business Bureau official. Although the scammers already have the victim’s credit card number, mailing address, and the bank the card was issued from, they call to ask for the security card number printed on the back of the card, because without that number they cannot use the card. Officials urge people, who receive these types of requests via phone or email, to call their credit card company and inform them that somebody is trying to scam them.

Source: http://www.2news.tv/news/local/10213946.html

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Universities Rethink Unarmed Police

The tragedy at Virginia Tech has prompted renewed debate about the arming of campus police. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, 81 percent of public universities had armed police agencies in 1996, the latest year for which figures are available. The department expects to see a slight increase in its upcoming report, due in November. Among schools and states considering changes to their policies is Iowa, where Gov. Chet Culver, a Virginia Tech alumnus, is pushing for a measure to arm officers at the state's three public universities. Education officials in Nevada are set to take up a proposal to allow some college faculty members and staff at eight public colleges to carry guns as part of a special reserve officer corps. On the other hand, Oregon lawmakers recently rejected a proposal to allow college officers to carry guns, leaving serious law enforcement issues up to state and local police. "There are police forces that have the responsibility to make life and safety decisions, and they don't have the full equipment to do it," says Raymond Thrower Jr., president of the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators. "It's like giving a firefighter a car and telling him to go put out the fire without the truck and the rest of the equipment."

Source: USA Today (09/20/07) P. 1A ; Johnson, Kevin

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Halloween Safety Tips For Kids

A few common sense practices can keep trick or treating safe and fun:

Tips for trick or treaters:

  • Stay on Sidewalks
  • (If no sidewalk) walk on the left side of the road facing traffic
  • Obey traffic signals
  • Stay in familiar neighborhoods
  • Wear clothing with reflective markings or tape
  • Approach only houses that are lit
  • Stay away from and don't pet animals you don't know

Tips for parents:

  • Ideally, young children of any age should be accompanied by an adult
  • If you buy a costume, look for one made of flame-retardant material
  • Older children should know where to reach you and when to be home
  • Know where they're going
  • Although tampering is rare, tell children to bring the candy home to be inspected before consuming anything
  • Look at the wrapping carefully and toss out anything that looks suspect

Tips for home-owners:

  • Make sure your yard is clear of things that can trip young ones
  • Make sure you have your porch light on & that the area is well lit
  • Battery powered jack o'lantern candles are preferable to a real flame
  • Pets get frightened on Halloween. Put them up to protect them from cars or inadvertently biting a trick-or-treater.
  • Non-food treats: plastic rings, pencils, stickers, erasers, coins

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House OKs making private security in Iraq subject to U.S. prosecution

Hired to protect U.S. diplomats, private security companies like Blackwater can own their own helicopters, buy their own body armor and set their own rules of engagement. Their guards don't answer to the U.S. military or, as recent cases suggest, anyone else.

This reality has aroused Congress, where the House passed a bill Thursday that would make all private contractors working in Iraq and other combat zones subject to prosecution by U.S. courts. It was Congress' first major response to a deadly shooting last month involving Blackwater employees.

Read the entire article...

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