NLB Blog

Ransomware is a form of malware, or malicious software, used to encrypt sensitive files held in business and personal devices, essentially locking users out of their own data or networks. Once deployed, the ransomware encryption restricts access to files and the victim receives a notice that a “ransom” must be paid to unlock the data or device. The ransom request often requires payment by Bitcoin or other types of anonymous cryptocurrency. Access to data is supposed to be restored once the ransom is paid and the attackers provide a decryption key.

Halloween costumes do not have to break the bank. With the decorations, candy, fall festivals, and costumes it can be hard to keep on budget this month.   A great way to save money is to get creative with your costume. NLB employees have used everything from balloons, to empty milk jugs to create costumes and save money. They shared with us some of their favorite DIY Halloween costumes.

Every year NebraskaLand Bank- Kearney is enthusiastic to put on our Annual Trunk-or-treat event. Where local businesses and organizations construct spooky, cute and fantastical trick-or-treat stations from their company and volunteer vehicles.

We are back with a local business owner, Paul Oettinger. Paul owns Pal’s Brewing Company in North Platte, which has been a popular business in a growing location. 

Caller ID or phone spoofing is a phone scam whereby callers impersonate government officials, financial institutions, or legitimate companies by using fraudulent displays of phone numbers (or “spoofs”) to gain the victim’s trust and get them to disclose personally identifiable information (PII) or sensitive financial information. 

In our Fall Newsletter Mike shares his knowledge on inflation patterns in the economy. 

Need to transfer to and from other banks? We have a simple solution. 

Looking at the fiscal year, have you thought about an HSA for you or for your employees? 

Every day, thousands of people fall victim to fraudulent emails, texts and calls from scammers pretending to be their bank. And in this time of expanded use of online and mobile banking, the problem is only growing worse. In fact, the Federal Trade Commission’s report on fraud estimates that American consumers lost a staggering $5.8 billion to phishing scams and other fraud in 2021—an increase of more than 70 percent over 2020.

Spell check is a feature used by countless people in their everyday typed communication.  It’s accuracy ensures the number of typos in your documents decrease; this allows people to type with ease.  Most people install spell check extensions to make sending emails and writing papers faster.  However a new study shows that spell check extensions on your browsers are collecting your personal information, such as username, email, date of birth, Social Security number, and passwords essentially Spell-Jacking your information.

Gift card fraud affects digital and physical gift cards alike. While fraudsters may approach gift card fraud with a variety of scams, the goal is to steal the funds from the cards while remaining undetected. Most likely, you’ve probably bought and/or received at least one gift card this year. Whether it was for a birthday, holiday, special event or “just because,” gift cards are the most wanted – and the most popular gift in the U.S. for nearly any occasion. Retailers and consumers have felt an increase in gift card scams, with victims reporting over $148 million stolen in the first nine months of 2021, more than all of 2020. Gift card fraud is on the rise, and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) warns it’s a popular method for scammers to steal money. Let’s look at some ways that fraudsters use scams to commit theft.

It's an oldie but a goodie! In today’s episode, we share our conversation with Traci Cummings, a holistic health coach, personal trainer, and owner of Your Wellness Journey. Traci shares her business background, how she keeps herself educated on the science behind diet and exercise, and how she continues to be successful in her own health journey while being a full-time mother