Clark Howard

@ClarkHoward
Skype warning: Virus could seize your computer

Skype warning: Virus could seize your computer

By Dave Siff
updated 2:47 PM EDT, Fri October 12, 2012
If you use Skype -- and tens of millions of people do -- there's a cyber-threat you need to be aware of.

The virus is cloaked in a message that says "lol is this your new profile pic?" and invites you to click a link. Don't do it!

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Drive a Toyota? Recall notice could be coming

Drive a Toyota? Recall notice could be coming

By Dave Siff
updated 3:59 PM EDT, Wed October 10, 2012
Toyota is recalling more than 2.5 million cars in the United States, to fix a problem with the power window switch that could cause a fire.

It's part of a worldwide recall of nearly 7.5 million vehicles. The automaker says the issue is with the switch on the driver's side, which may feel sticky because of an uneven application of grease during assembly. If a driver applies "commonly available" lubricants in an attempt to fix the problem, a fire could result. Toyota says it isn't aware of any accidents resulting from the window switch issue.

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Online banking threat isn't over yet

Online banking threat isn't over yet

By Dave Siff
updated 10:14 AM EDT, Wed October 10, 2012
If you're a customer of SunTrust Bank, be warned: You may have trouble accessing your accounts online today.

Bloomberg reports, the group claiming responsibility for a wave of recent attacks on bank websites is at it again this week. The group says SunTrust's website will be hit Wednesday, followed by Regions Bank on Thursday.

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Cheers! U.S. workers top beer index

Cheers! U.S. workers top beer index

By Dave Siff
updated 9:38 AM EDT, Tue October 09, 2012
In case you ever doubt you've earned a cold one at the end of a hard day's work, here's some good news: you've actually earned 96.

Time magazine reports on a study from UBS (packaged nicely in this infographic from the Economist) which factored median hourly pay and average beer prices in 150 countries. Beer prices are higher in the U.S. than in many other countries, but so are hourly wages. So, it takes the average American worker just five minutes to earn enough money to buy a beer. The average for all countries in the survey is 20 minutes. In India, it's almost an hour.

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Fast food: Who's the fastest?

Fast food: Who's the fastest?

By Dave Siff
updated 1:38 PM EDT, Mon October 08, 2012
According to Wendy's slogan, "It's better here." While that may be a matter of taste, there's no disputing the chain puts the "fast" in fast food.

Wendy's customers have the shortest average wait time at the drive-thru, according to a survey from QSR magazine. At two minutes and 10 seconds, Wendy's far outpaced the competition. Taco Bell is second-fastest, but lags a full 20 seconds behind Wendy's. Burger King brings up the rear, with an average service time of three minutes and 20 seconds.

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Wal-Mart wants to be your new bank

Wal-Mart wants to be your new bank

By Dave Siff
updated 9:16 AM EDT, Mon October 08, 2012
With $447 billion in revenue last year, Wal-Mart clearly knows how to get people to spend money. Now, the company wants to help its customers manage their money as well.

Wal-Mart and American Express have announced a new prepaid card called Bluebird, which the companies are calling an alternative to debit and checking accounts. The focus is on customers who are fed up with the high fees associated with many checking accounts -- the "unbanked, underbanked or unhappily banked," as Amex's Dan Schulman put it during a conference call Monday.

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Do you have the right credit card?

Do you have the right credit card?

By Dave Siff
updated 2:58 PM EDT, Fri October 05, 2012
Credit card delinquencies are at an 11-year low, indicating Americans are handling their finances more responsibly.

But while more people may be paying their credit card bills on time, do they have the right card?

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Unemployment drops below 8%

Unemployment drops below 8%

By Dave Siff
updated 9:12 AM EDT, Fri October 05, 2012
The second-to-last jobs report before the election is better than expected, but not all the news is good.

The Labor Department says non-farm employers added 114,000 jobs to their payrolls in September. The unemployment rate dropped to 7.8 percent, the lowest level in more than three years, as more people returned to the workforce. Economists surveyed by CNNMoney.com expected 110,000 new jobs and an unemployment rate unchanged from last month's 8.1 percent.

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Healthy Food Discounts

Healthy Food Discounts

By Eric Goldson
updated 2:27 PM EDT, Thu October 04, 2012
A little incentive to eat healthy.

For more ways to eat healthy the Clark-cheap way, click here.

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Toys 'R' Us has launched a new service where users can stream and download content aimed at kids.

Video R Us: Toy giant enters streaming biz

By Dave Siff
updated 6:33 AM EDT, Thu October 04, 2012
Parents looking for kid-friendly movies and TV shows online have a new option.

Toys 'R' Us has launched toysrusmovies.com, a new service where users can stream and download content aimed at kids. There are more than 4,000 titles available.

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