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New 'chip' credit card technology won't prevend online fraud
Storing data on a chip makes credit cards more secure - but only for in-store usage
 The self-imposed U.S. deadline for new credit card technology is here. It's designed to reduce counterfeiting, but does not address a growing challenge: online fraud.
October 1st marked the day credit card issuers and merchants were supposed to transition to plastic cards that store data on a chip, rather than a magnetic stripe that can be easily counterfeited, and install payment terminals that read the new cards. Henceforth, liability for fraudulent transactions will fall on whichever party has the lesser technology. So if a purchase that turns out to be fraudulent is made at a store that couldn't read a chip-enabled credit card and thus swiped along the magnetic stripe, that merchant must foot the bill. And if the merchant has a chip-capable payment terminal but the credit card used did not have a chip, the bank pays.
Chip technology is also called EMV, which stands for Europay, MasterCard and Visa, the companies that developed it in the 1990s. It has been the standard across much of the rest of the developed world for a decade.
Here's what we've learned from the rest of the world's experience with this technology: Storing data on a chip makes the credit card itself much more secure because it isn't easy to produce counterfeits - a key problem with cards that store data on a magnetic stripe. This reduces point-of-sale fraud, the kind that involves buying something with a fake credit card at a physical retail counter.
But it does nothing to stop fraud from happening when the card is not present - like during online transactions. And we've seen that when other countries shifted to EMV, card-not-present fraud increased, in part because criminals were looking for alternate avenues to commit credit card fraud.
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Face-to-Face Contact May Beat Email, Phone for Staving Off Depression
TUESDAY, Oct. 6, 2015 (HealthDay News)
Older people who spent more time communicating in person showed fewer symptoms of mood disorder.
While your days may be filled with electronic communications, a new study suggests that face-to-face contact may have more power to keep depression at bay, at least if you are older.
The research doesn't prove that personal conversations are more valuable than email and phone calls. Still, study author Dr. Alan Teo, a staff psychiatrist at VA Portland Health Care System, is convinced there's a connection.
"Meeting friends and family face-to-face is strong preventive medicine for depression," said Teo, who's also an assistant professor of psychiatry at Oregon Health & Science University. "Think of it like taking your vitamins, and make sure you get a regular dose of it," he said.
It may seem obvious that interacting with other people -- in a positive way -- is good for your health. Indeed, "from prior studies we know that having social support and staying connected with people is good for your physical and mental health. It even helps you live longer," Teo said.
"What we didn't know is whether it matters how you stay connected with friends and family," he added.
The investigators examined the results of a 2004-2010 survey including about 11,000 people aged 50 and older. After adjusting the statistics so they wouldn't be thrown off by factors such as high or low numbers of certain kinds of people, the researchers found an association between the types of interactions people had with others and their likelihood of depression symptoms two years later.
Rates of depression didn't seem to be affected by the level of communication by phone, letters and email. But those who communicated the least with friends and family via in-person meetings -- every few months or less often -- had a higher rate of signs of depression.
Two years later, 12 percent of those people showed signs of depression, the study found. By comparison, 8 percent of those who had in-person contact once or twice a month and 7 percent of those who met others once or twice a week showed signs of depression.
But the study only showed an association between more personal time spent with family and friends and lower chances of depression, and not a cause-and-effect relationship.
The study was published in the Oct. 5 issue of the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.
Read the complete atricle.
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From health.harvard.edu We've all experienced that warm, happy feeling when hanging out with a dog. But can pet ownership directly improve our health?
A Special Health Report from Harvard Medical School explores just that. In Get Healthy, Get a Dog, medical editors Elizabeth Pegg Frates, M.D. and Lisa Moses, V.M.D. reveal the many ways that dogs can improve the lives of humans.
Although a direct causal relationship isn't proven, a growing body of evidence suggests that having a dog can decrease cardiovascular disease, help people handle stress, and reduce feelings of isolation and loneliness.
From the report:
There are many reason why dogs are called humans' best friends: not only do they offer unparalleled companionship, but a growing body of research shows they also boost human health. Owning a dog can prompt you to be more physically active - have leash, will walk. It can also:
- help you be calmer, more mindful, and more present in your life
- make kids more active, secure, and responsible
- improve the lives of older individuals
- make you more social and less isolated
Just petting a dog can reduce the petter's blood pressure and heart rate (while having a positive effect on the dog as well).
Get Healthy, Get a Dog, a new Special Health Report from Harvard Medical School, details the many ways that dogs can improve the lives of humans.
The health connection is often a two-way street. People who are overweight and sedentary tend to have dogs that are overweight and sedentary. In fact, obesity has reached epidemic proportions in the canine community - affecting more than half of dogs - just as it has among humans. So if you have an unhealthy, overweight dog, that may be a red flag that you're unhealthy yourself.
Get Healthy, Get a Dog offers healthy lifestyle changes for both you and your dog to further boost the benefits described above. If the two of you already exercise together, it offers ways to expand your activities.
If you don't own a dog but would like to adopt one, Get Healthy, Get a Dog guides you in choosing a companion that will suit your lifestyle. It also covers the role of service dogs in the lives of humans and ways to benefit from contact with canines if you don't own a dog. It also includes a special section on optimal dog nutrition, plus a chapter on exercise, so you know exactly what your dog needs to stay healthy and fit.
Although dogs are wonderful motivators for getting moving, they are not just a means to a healthier end. Adopting a dog is a commitment that will last for many years, and you must be ready and willing to take on that responsibility. If you do, it's likely you will be richly rewarded with one of the most satisfying, loving, and active relationships you'll ever experience. |
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Renew Memberships Online
At the request of our members, RAUS is pleased to provide the ability to renew their membership online and pay by credit or debit card. Just go to our website at www.raushome.com and click on the Online Dues Renewal button. If you are considering converting to a Lifetime Membership, click on the Membership button and select Life Membership.  
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Veterans Day in the United States
From wikipedia.org
 Veterans Day is an official United States federal holiday that is observed annually on November 11, honoring people who have served in the U.S. Armed Forces, also known as veterans. It coincides with other holidays including Armistice Day and Remembrance Day, which are celebrated in other parts of the world and also mark the anniversary of the end of World War I (major hostilities of World War I were formally ended at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918, when the Armistice with Germany went into effect). The United States also originally observed Armistice Day; it then evolved into the current Veterans Day holiday in 1954.
U.S. President Woodrow Wilson first proclaimed Armistice Day for November 11, 1919. In proclaiming the holiday, he said
"To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with solemn pride in the heroism of those who died in the country's service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations.
The United States Congress passed a concurrent resolution on June 4, 1926, requesting that President Calvin Coolidge issue another proclamation to observe November 11 with appropriate ceremonies. A Congressional Act approved May 13, 1938, made the 11th of November in each year a legal holiday: "a day to be dedicated to the cause of world peace and to be thereafter celebrated and known as 'Armistice Day'."
In 1945, World War II veteran Raymond Weeks from Birmingham, Alabama, had the idea to expand Armistice Day to celebrate all veterans, not just those who died in World War I. Weeks led a delegation to Gen. Dwight Eisenhower, who supported the idea of National Veterans Day. Weeks led the first national celebration in 1947 in Alabama and annually until his death in 1985. President Reagan honored Weeks at the White House with the Presidential Citizenship Medal in 1982 as the driving force for the national holiday. Elizabeth Dole, who prepared the briefing for President Reagan, determined Weeks as the "Father of Veterans Day."
U.S. Representative Ed Rees from Emporia, Kansas, presented a bill establishing the holiday through Congress. President Dwight D. Eisenhower, also from Kansas, signed the bill into law on May 26, 1954. It had been eight and a half years since Weeks held his first Armistice Day celebration for all veterans.
Congress amended the bill on June 1, 1954, replacing "Armistice" with "Veterans," and it has been known as Veterans Day since.
The National Veterans Award was also created in 1954. Congressman Rees of Kansas received the first National Veterans Award in Birmingham, Alabama for his support offering legislation to make Veterans Day a federal holiday.
Although originally scheduled for celebration on November 11 of every year, starting in 1971 in accordance with the Uniform Monday Holiday Act, Veterans Day was moved to the fourth Monday of October. In 1978, it was moved back to its original celebration on November 11. While the legal holiday remains on November 11, if that date happens to be on a Saturday or Sunday, then organizations that formally observe the holiday will normally be closed on the adjacent Friday or Monday, respectively.
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 Keep Us Accurate
To be sure your benefits are properly recorded, please advise the association when you change your name or address. If you receive inaccurate membership cards or other correspondence, we want to know. We do not mind reissuing membership cards. |
 Identity Theft Protection Service For RAUS Members
AllClear ID is the technology leader in the identity protection and credit monitoring market. The patented identity protection technology developed by AllClear ID makes it simple for you to protect your identity, and easy to take action if your personal information is compromised. RAUS members will enjoy a 20% discount off the regular monthly rate.
Just go to our website at www.raushome.com and click on the Discounts button and select Technology & Security. From there, go to the AllClear ID login page and input the following Activation Code: "raus". This will allow you to register and receive the discounted rate. |
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Membership Dues
| AGE RANGE | LIFE DUES | | 40 or less | $325 | | 41 to 45 | $300 | | 46 to 50 | $275 | | 51 to 55 | $250 | | 56 to 60 | $225 | | 61 to 65 | $200 | | 66 to 70 | $175 | | 70 and up | $100 |
 Annual dues are $15 per year. Discounts apply for multiple year memberships: 3 years for $37 and 5 years for $60. Like memberships are available based on the age of the member at the time of the Life conversion. A Life Membership is exempt of dues increase and covers both the member and the spouse. |
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About RAUS
We are a non-political military association organized in 1970 to secure quality benefits for our members at rates only available to groups. Qualified retired and active members of the United States armed forces and related departments may join.
Membership benefits include discounts and perks, self-help and financial calculators, time-savings and educational resources, along with TRICARE Supplement, CHAMPVA Supplement and other insurance products.
RAUS is partnering with other organizations to establish a long term win-win relationship based on mutual benefits and information available to military families.
For more information, visit our website at www.raushome.com.
RAUS Eligible Defense Departments
* AIR FORCE * ARMY * MARINES * NAVY * NATIONAL GUARD *
* COAST GUARD * NOAA * CIVIL AIR PATROL *
* PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE * COASTAL & GEODETIC SURVEY *
* ACTIVE & RETIRED * OFFICERS & ENLISTED *
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Sincerely,
DONALD T. RUCK, President Retired Association for the Uniformed Services, Inc. |
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