39 PPP Fraud Prosecutions So Far, and Counting | Small Business Trends

September 14, 2020 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans have aided more than 5 million small business owners, providing a much-needed lifeline during the Coronavirus outbreak crisis. The overwhelming majority of business owners are legitimate and will use the money as intended to retain employees and stay operational.

But the PPP program has attracted a few rotten apples. And you won’t believe how rotten they are.

To date, the Justice Department has filed 39 PPP fraud cases, charging about 56 defendants. Defendants are charged with bilking taxpayers out of tens of millions of dollars. Luckily, the Feds have recovered a large part of the loan proceeds already.

And what’s been recovered tells a wild tale.

Google Pay vs. Apple Pay vs. Samsung Pay | business.com

September 11, 2020September 9, 2020 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

You no longer need to carry a bulky wallet filled with numerous credit cards or cash.

Paper money is so 2015. Today’s mobile payment platforms streamline transactions for consumers by combining cash, credit cards, debit cards and gift cards in one mobile application – you just pull out your phone when you’re in the checkout line and tap to pay your bill. But which app should you use?

What’s the best mobile payment app?

Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay are popular options that are compatible with many merchant card readers, credit cards and banks, but there is also Chase Pay, MasterCard PayPass, PayPal and Visa Checkout to consider.

Understanding Trademarks vs. Copyright | business.com

September 11, 2020September 9, 2020 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Learn about the subtle differences between trademarks and copyrights.

As a business, you want to protect your assets. This can mean anything from writing a good privacy policy to taking plagiarists to court. When you’re producing graphics for your website, whether it’s a logo for the corner navigation or an illustration for a blog post or landing page, those are assets to your company. You might have paid a graphic designer for them or made them yourself, but either way, they’re worth protecting. So, can you trademark them? Find out with this guide on how to get a registered trademark, how to submit a trademark, and how to decide whether a copyright or trademark is right for your valuable assets.

Why Your Next Leather Goods Could Be Made Of Fungus | Digital Trends

September 10, 2020September 9, 2020 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Your next leather jacket, pair of shoes, or bag could be made from specially engineered fungi, if research coming out of the University of Vienna, Imperial College London, and RMIT University in Australia turns out to be prophetic. Scientists at these institutions have been investigating the possibility of creating a sustainable leather substitute made from mushroom material — and it may compare very favorably to both traditional animal-based leather and the more recent plastic-derived versions.

If You Have AT&T, Alexa Is Now a Giant Speakerphone | Digital Trends

September 10, 2020September 9, 2020 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Amazon Alexa can now make and receive calls if you’re an AT&T customer, essentially turning your smart home device into a giant speakerphone.

The tech giant announced the new feature called “AT&T calling with Alexa.” Starting Wednesday, September 9, AT&T customers can use Alexa-enabled devices to answer incoming calls or start a new call, even if their phone is far away or turned off.

The new feature only works for AT&T customers in the U.S. that have a compatible HD-voice mobile phone like an iPhone or the Samsung Galaxy.

What is Risk Management and How do You Implement it? | The Startup Magazine

September 9, 2020 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

One of the most important parts of your strategy as an entrepreneur trader is your risk management. Entrepreneurs know all about risk. But many novice traders will initially focus on the impetus to enter a trade but will fail to focus on when to exit a trade. Similar to knowing when to sell your startup. Before you initiate any risk, you should go through several steps to determine the risk you will assume, and the potential reward that is associated with that risk. Your risk management should cover your long-term investment approach, each trading strategy as well as each trade you decide to execute on online trading.

Different Levels of Risk Management

Risk management is the process of determining how much capital you are willing to risk. The process starts with the amount of capital you are willing to invest in any asset. This could be on a house, for your college savings, your retirement, or for your discretionary trading. This part of risk management is referred to as asset allocation.

6 Tips for Finding Your Target Audience | The Startup Magazine

September 9, 2020 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Business is all about finding the right customers and attracting them by all means possible. The difference between a successful business and a struggling business is that a successful one has managed to attract customers and find the target audience while the former is still chasing after everyone.

What does the target audience mean?

A target audience can be defined as a particular group of people that are likely to purchase your products or services.

Why is it important for a business to understand its target audience?

There are many benefits of understanding the target audience as a business. Some of the common ones are: It will give direction on how to spend advertising money, helps in how to attract customers, and also guide you on what specific services or products to offer.

The ‘brushing’ scam that’s behind mystery parcels | BBC News

September 8, 2020September 7, 2020 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

If you’ve ever received a parcel from a shopping platform that you didn’t order, and nobody you know seems to have bought it for you, you might have been caught up in a “brushing” scam.

It has hit the headlines after thousands of Americans received unsolicited packets of seeds in the mail, but it is not new.

It’s an illicit way for sellers to get reviews for their products.

And it doesn’t mean your account has been hacked.

California wildfires: Gender reveal party blamed for fire | BBC News

September 8, 2020September 7, 2020 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Officials have blamed a gender reveal party for one of several wildfires raging in the US state of California.

A “smoke-generating pyrotechnic device” at the event sparked the El Dorado fire, which has now spread over 7,000 acres.

It is one of more than two dozen blazes across the state.

California is currently experiencing a record heatwave, with Los Angeles reporting its highest ever temperature of 49.4C (121F).

The National Weather Service described Sunday as “one of the hottest days since weather records began across much of south-western California”.