Curiosities 62

ON GUARD ONLINE

If you haven’t thought much about how to stay safe online, it’s high time — especially after the massive hack of the consumer credit reporting agency Equifax, which may have compromised 143 million people’s Social Security numbers and other personal data. Many experts say identity-theft services such as LifeLock, with their pricey monthly fees, aren’t worth the money and do little to help prevent data theft in the first place. But many online safety steps are common-sense and free, or nearly so, whether they guard against opportunistic thieves hoping to make off with a credit-card number or sophisticated cybercriminals holding your files for ransom.

Don’t assume it’s out for everyone

Before you go into a panic, check your circuit breaker to make sure your power outage isn’t just an overloaded circuit. If that’s not the issue, start checking with your neighbors and nearby friends, keeping in mind that since most towns operate on a grid system, you may lose power while the houses across the street still have it. Knowing who’s got power will help you figure out your next steps.

When you’re shopping for a bargain, sometimes the dollar store is a great place to snag deals. In fact, you might be tempted to spring for items simply because they cost a dollar. After all, what do you have to lose?

The fact is, some dollar store deals can be a terrible buy if you don’t know what you’re getting into. Sometimes you’ll compromise on quality or safety, and sometimes even $1 might not be the best deal for what you get. Read on to see which dollar store items you’re better off without.

BUYER BEWARE

Imagine curing a headache instantly by simply rubbing wax on your forehead or building sculpted muscles by holding – not lifting – a vibrating weight. The makers of these too-good-to-be-true products made those promises, but didn’t deliver. Cheapism has compiled some of the biggest scam products most people have probably thought of buying.

THE LOOK AGAIN

Fashion fads come and go. It’s just that sometimes when they go, it feels like a weight has been lifted. No matter how old you are, looking back through photos from the time in your life when you were trying to be cool can be funny – or painful.

Don’t be so clingy

Of course it’s great to show your affections, but too much can make men feel stifled.

In Alabama, it is illegal to have an ice-cream cone in your back pocket

SAVE MORE WITH LESS EFFORT

With coupon and deal sites continuing to sprout, Cheapism has updated its roundup of the best coupon and deal sites for 2017. Use this guide to fight the flood of promotional emails and discover discount codes that actually work and real money-saving coupons and deals — ideally, to add savings to already smart shopping habits.

Coming in hot – and in arguably much higher volume than this past summer — are a slew of autumn movies to be psyched about this year. From Halloween-time horror to Oscar hopefuls, browse through for TheWrap’s lengthy list of 34 fall movies worth obsessing over.