Author: Ben Campbell

In the era of electronic payments, millions of Amercians use their credit cards at several payment points or ATMs each day. Unfortunately, cash machines and payment points have been heavily targeted by card skimmers in recent years who attempt to steal personal data and, ultimately, thousands of dollars from cardholders’ accounts. What Is Card Skimming? Source: Freepik Card skimming is a term the FBI uses to define the malicious practice of stealing data from a credit or debit card once inserted into an ATM or payment point. The device, which can scan and read the data on a bank card,…

Over the past few years, restaurants across the U.S. have begun eliminating traditional tipping. Businesses have instead opted for service fees and, in some cases, dynamic pricing to cover employees’ salaries. Now, a question being asked is, could the removal of tipping actually lead to cheaper dining experiences for customers across the nation? The End of Traditional Tipping Source: Freepik Tipping has been an integral part of the dining service across the U.S. for the past century. Yet, this could be set to change. After the COVID-19 pandemic, businesses began trialing new practices that aimed to reshape the industry, including…

It’s a sad moment when we open up a packet of our favorite cookies only to notice its contents have shrunk from eight to six. This frowned-upon practice is known as “shrinkflation.” Shrinkflation has become all too common in recent years as companies try to achieve record-high profits despite periods of inflation. However, it has now garnered the attention of President Joe Biden, who is calling for an end to the unfair practice.  Shrinkflation Becoming Increasingly Apparent to Consumers Source: Freepik Shrinkflation, according to the Cambridge Dictionary, is a term used to define products that have seen a size reduction,…

Last year, before Taylor Swift set off on her highly anticipated Eras Tour in March, experts predicted it would boost the American economy by a staggering $4 billion. However, according to a Japanese investment bank, Swift’s tour’s initial impact on the U.S. economy may have been exaggerated. The Eras Tour Source: Freepik For the past year, Taylor Swift has been touring around the United States and beyond for the past year on her iconic Eras Tour.  Last year, QuestionPro, a research company, predicted the “Karma” singer’s tour could bring over $4.5 billion to the American economy, per Fortune. Local Economies…

The Boomer generation grew up in an era with many advantages, including thriving industries, cheaper homes, and stable jobs. However, the later groups of Boomers, born during the iconic era of Beatlemania, seem set to suffer when they retire due to a lack of savings and lower retirement wealth, according to a report from Boston College. Baby Boomers Source: Freepik The age group known as Baby Boomers consists of anyone born between the years 1942 and 1954. However, a second group of Boomers, often referred to as Generation Jones, was born between 1955 and 1964. According to a recent study,…

Instacart is a popular food delivery company within the United States that offers customers the option of having their preferred groceries delivered right to their door. Instacart has always offered recipes on its site, but now, the company is using AI to create the recipes and photos. And they are so bad that they are breaking the internet. Instacart Had Its Big Break During the Pandemic Source: Shutterstock Instacart first opened its doors and started delivering groceries around San Francisco, California, in 2012, but it wasn’t until the COVID-19 lockdown that the company started making headway. When many Americans were…

Prioritizing financial stability in the form of a typical 9-5 job pays the bills for most Americans. However, no job can guarantee with complete certainty that employees won’t be suddenly laid off, and it can’t hurt to have multiple sources of income. However, you don’t have to be Warren Buffett to increase your net worth by way of several streams of passive income. Creating Several Streams of Income Source: Freepik There are numerous ways for anyone to begin generating extra money, even from the comfort of their home. While getting started has several upfront costs, building several streams of passive…

A new trend in the modern workforce is emerging that adherents are calling “chronoworking.” Supporters of chronoworking believe that by aligning work hours with a person’s natural circadian rhythm, called a chronotype, they can achieve higher levels of productivity and mental acuity than they ever thought possible. More people are ditching traditional work hours and fine-tuning their work day to push their performance over the top. Break the Shackles of the 9-5 Source: Bench Accounting/Unsplash One of the benefits of the struggle the world went through during the COVID-19 pandemic is that people figured out that remote work and nontraditional…

Workers at a thrift store in Pennsylvania couldn’t believe their eyes after discovering someone had donated a Lego mask made from 14-karat gold. The precious item sold for nearly $20,000 during an online auction, making it one of the greatest thrift stores finds in recent years. Goodwill Workers Discover Rare Find Source: Wikipedia Searching for anything of value at a thrift store is a hobby for many Americans. Some find expensive clothing, others luxurious ornaments, but no one ever expects to come across anything made from real gold. However, this became a reality for a group of workers in a…

A TikToker believes she has uncovered a grand conspiracy in which Walmart aims to drastically increase the number of people signing up to its service, Walmart+. It’s centered on the noticeable removal of self-checkout desks throughout many American stores. But is there really any truth to her claims? Reduction in Self Checkouts Source: Wikipedia Over the past few years, major grocery and retail chains have been reducing the amount of self-service desks in their stores. Walmart, Costco, and Wegmans began removing the kiosks in 2023 after reporting an increase in technical faults and a rise in intentional shoplifting or “shrinking,”…