Justin Lavelle

Email Scam Targets You At Work

If you thought most email phishing scams were so obvious that only clueless victims could fall for them, recent headlines will have proven you wrong. A new breed of phishing scam, targeting some of the world’s most well-known companies have cost these firms over $2 billion in more than 12,000 successful attacks, according to the Financial Times.

So if you work in any type of office, or even if you don’t, take note because email phishing scams are getting a lot smarter and more insidious. The days of fishy emails typed out in broken English and asking for wires to unfortunate Nigerian princes may be coming to an end.

Know Your Hidden Home Costs

The “renting vs. owning” debate is a classic one that tends to flare up when either home prices or rents make a steep rise. At this juncture in the economy, rising rents are making headlines, and not just in the usual metropolises like Manhattan and the Bay Area.

When faced with the decision to continue renting or buying, there are a number of lifestyle and financial factors to consider. You can visit rent vs. buy calculators, such as this one, to get a basic grounding for your city. It’s also a good idea to meet with a realtor to understand what types of homes are available in your price range and to gather more local intelligence on the market than hypothetical calculators can give you.

Legal Term Tuesday: Accomplice

This is the latest entry in BeenVerified’s legal term library designed to help you better understand public record information, criminal records and related terminology. The information in this article is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.

Being charged as an accomplice can cover a wide variety of support roles and crimes. From helping to plan out a crime in detail to concealing a small piece of evidence, a conviction for being an accomplice can be as consequential as the person convicted for the crime itself. Read on to find out the exact details and how being an accomplice impacts a person’s public record.

Legal Term Tuesday: Embezzlement

As a close relative of fraud, embezzlement is a particularly nasty crime as it involves the violation of trust. This type of crime often implicates people in high places who manage assets for the common good, as well as employees and business partners. But is embezzlement a felony or a misdemeanor? And how will it appear on a public record? Read on to find out.

According to the Free Dictionary by Farlex, embezzlement can be defined as “the fraudulent conversion of another’s property by a person who is in a position of trust, such as an agent or employee.” The entry goes on to distinguish embezzlement from its sister crime, swindling, in that a swindle is based on a lie or trick to obtain property, whereas embezzlement is based on the misuse of a position of trust. Embezzlement evolved as a distinct crime from larceny, the latter of which relies on the “felonious, trespassory taking of property at the outset.”

Legal Term Tuesday: Money Laundering

This is the latest entry in BeenVerified’s legal term library designed to help you better understand public record information, criminal records and related terminology. The information in this article is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.

You might know that money laundering is associated with organized crime families, as well as a wide variety of other criminal activity. But what exactly is money laundering and how much money is “laundered” each year? And how serious a crime is it? Read on for the answers.

Legal Term Tuesday: Securities Fraud

This is the latest entry in BeenVerified’s legal term library designed to help you better understand public record information, criminal records and related terminology. The information in this article is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.

Securities fraud is an umbrella term that encompasses a number of financial crimes. Read on to learn the details of the specific crimes and consequences.

Securities fraud encompasses any type of deceptive practice related to the buying or selling of investments using false information and in violation of securities laws. Securities fraud includes insider trading, Ponzi schemes, boiler room operations, and accounting fraud according to Wikipedia.

Netflix's Love: 5 Dating Lessons

The new Netflix show Love has endless lessons in what not to do for those looking to navigate dating and relationships. Unfortunately we can’t cover them all here, but we did pick the top five dating and relationship blunders from Mickey and Gus.

If you haven’t watched the show you can binge watch it on Netflix and come back after to read this blog to avoid the slight spoilers below.

New Online Dating Scam: "Sextortion"

The New York Times recently published a major article on the unseemly side of online dating. It looked at the experiences of a wide cross section of online daters and came back with tales from the victims of scams, a phenomenon we have covered on this blog extensively before.

Beyond scams, the article notes a new online dating scam has emerged: “sextortion.” What exactly is it and how worried should you be? Below is an outline of the threat and some basic steps on how to avoid it.

Online Dating: The New Normal?

From a pop culture perspective, online dating has increasingly gone from niche to mainstream in the last few years. Apps have played a big part in recent years, with people increasingly accepting of the benefits technology can offer in helping to find a suitable match, whether for a short-term fling or potentially, a long-term partnership.

TV shows and movies now regularly feature characters who are utilizing online dating services, while a new generation of apps such as Tinder have made it quick and easy to meet other singles in your immediate area.

The Worst Place For a First Date

Picking a first date location can be tricky, particularly if you met online or are going on a blind date. Will there be chemistry? Will the venue be quiet enough for conversation? How much money are you willing to spend on an activity with a person you are likely never to see again?

While you may want to impress your date with dinner at a fancy restaurant, you will likely come to regret that big bill when he or she doesn’t answer your call for a second date. And sitting across from someone you have just met for over an hour can also be an awkward experience…especially if it turns out that your online chemistry didn’t make the jump to real life.