Black Friday is just four days away – are you ready? Are your finances?
In addition to staying within your budget this holiday season and finding the perfect gift for your mom, be sure your holiday spending is safe and secure with a few important tips from our partners at Kasasa.
We like to find just the right thing for everyone on our list, but sometimes that items we are eyeing online is coming from a website or vendor overseas. As part of the security of Dakota West Card Services, we watch for purchases from online stores based overseas, but it is also a good idea to know the retailer from which you are making your gift purchases.
Avoid purchasing from ads embedded into social media websites, such as Facebook or Twitter. Instead, search for the item on a known website such as Amazon, or even through a local seller. In addition to protecting your finances, it may also be protecting your identity.
Scams and frauds also increase during the holidays, so be certain where you are sending donations. Lastly, never purchase gift cards or eCards for someone you don’t know – they may be trying to take advantage of your being on Santa’s “Nice” list.
As always, if an offer or a deal or a website sound too good to be true, call your local branch and we will be willing to help you make the best choices to keep you, and your finances, safe this holiday season.
Happy Thanksgiving from everyone at Dakota West Credit Union!
Prepare For Your Holidays With Travel Alerts
What are your plans for the holidays? It may still be a little early to finalize where you’ll be sitting down to your Thanksgiving dinner or where you’ll be unwrapping presents this Christmas, but there is one way to make sure your holidays are not filled with unwanted surprises: call your local branch and set up travel alerts for your Dakota West Mastercard® Debit and Credit cards.
While we monitor your usage for charges that may be unexpected, we also want to be sure your card is fully accessible if you are going to be visiting family across the state, or back home from your current work location. By providing specifics of where you will be during this increased travel season, we can be sure your cards are always available when you need them.
Of course, because there is often more activity on your card, the risk of a fraudulent or unapproved transactions can be prevented when card controls and travel alerts are in place. In addition to notifying us before you hit the road, you can also take advantage of the MY Cards mobile app to set locations based on your travel, transaction alerts, and even turn your debit or credit card on and off in real time.
While many of our members may decide not to travel far this season, It's still a good idea to take control of your Dakota West cards with an extra layer of protection this holiday season. Even if you are just traveling to Fargo to see your new grandbaby or headed to Deadwood for New Year’s Eve, as soon as your plans are final, give us a call before you go. Let us help keep your cards, and your money, safe.
Member Calendar - December 2020
Did you remember to "fall back" this morning? With the arrival of earlier sunrises for the next few weeks, we begin our preparation for the seasons of giving thanks and welcoming the joys of Christmas.
There may not be as many community activities on the December Calendar, but we certainly can reflect on the passing year and all that we can celebrate that made an unusual calendar year into a memorial holiday season.
We may be grateful for our families, our friends, our communities, our schools, our churches, our health, or our even our small victories in a year of tough odds. We may not get to gather together to trim the tree or ring in the new year with the same traditions we have in years past, but we can create new traditions, and continue to recognize that this season accentuates the gifts that are most important to all of us: each other.
Member Calendar - November 2020
Welcome to Autumn – officially – although the weather of late still feels a bit like the previous season. So what! The fall fun is underway in many of our communities, and looking at the November Calendar, it is time to start planning for your Thanksgiving meal. It’s been a year to truly give thanks for what is most important in our lives: our families, our freedoms, our health, and our traditions.
Whatever November holds for you, we are here to provide you with the guidance you need to plan for the coming holidays, to express our gratitude to our members, and to enjoy the first fall of snow together. Happy Birthday North Dakota, and Happy Thanksgiving to you!
