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STRATEGIC ISSUES...ONLINE 
For week of February 13, 2006, Issue #249
Featured Articles:
1. Free Interest?
2. Focus on Fraud:  Corporate & Identity Theft, Part 17 - Notes
3. Tech Tip Weekly:  Protecting an MS Excel Workbook
4. Compliance Calendar
 
If you would like to have further information on any of these articles, let us know.  We would appreciate receiving your comments and/or suggestions, anytime!
acarroll@pmcpa.com
 
 
1. Free Interest?
 
The new oxymoron...FREE INTEREST...ya sure!
 
We are sure that you know that there is no such thing as a free lunch but what about "free interest".
 
You see all the time that regional, national and even some local retailers advertise interest free financing for one, two or more years without interest.  Did you ever wonder how they could possibly do this? 
 
Here's how...(let everyone that you know who is considering getting into the "plan" in on the little secret).
 
Let's say that you go to your friendly "Great Purchase" store and get one of their free financing deals for two years, interest free.
 
Is it really interest free?  Well, maybe...If you make all the required payments (including the final one) on time with no excuses for missing one.
 
In our example, let's say that you finance $3,600.00 for two years.
 
"G P" sells your receivable to a Bank and each month you will receive a statement to pay from that bank.
 
They will suggest a minimum payment and, as long as you make that payment amount, on time, there is no interest that is a part of the payment you make.
 
Typically, that payment amount would be $30.00 or so.
 
Now, if you made all of those payments on time and at the minimum, at the end of the twenty-three month period you would have paid down $690.00 (23 x $30.00) leaving a balance of $2,910.00 which, guess what...is the required 24th payment amount.
 
OUCH!
 
If you miss any payment or are late anywhere along the way, for any reason, your "free" ride is not only over, but all the interest has been conveniently calculated for you FROM DAY ONE is added to the balance due.
 
This interest is typically calculated at 22%!
 
So, in our example, let's say all the payments were made on time at the minimum and then WOW!, the 24th payment wasn't...Balance now due...$4,432.00 including $1,432.00 of interest.  Plus interest continues to accrue at 22%!
 
So, if you or someone you know gets into one of these "deals" make sure the full balance is paid on time within the "free" period.

2.  Focus on Fraud: Corporate & Identity Theft

As was introduced nearly four months ago, this weekly column has presented (in outline note format) various aspects of corporate and identity theft purely as informational background.  This installment is the last (for now) and revisits some of the notes from the first column.  Thank you for following the columns weekly, and if you missed any or want to re-review any please look to the Archives web page at www.pmcpa.com for Strategic Issues Online from October 17, 2005 and on.

To re-iterate...

Identity theft can be prevented.

Contrary to popular belief, most identities are stolen from businesses, fewer stolen from dumpsters or by online hackers.

Because identity thefts occur so often in the workplace, businesses are also victims.

Since 2000, identity theft has escalated worldwide and continues unchecked.

The reason to a large extent is that there is no international security standard to protect personal information, such as the identities of US citizens.

Federal laws do require all businesses to secure personal identifiers and document it or risk being fined; but there is no guidance for businesses on how to do this. Federal laws do promote database and computer security, but computers do not steal identities; people do.

 

3. Tech Tip Weekly: Protecting an MS Excel Workbook

Sometimes, you may want to protect an MS Excel workbook by preventing users from adding or deleting sheets.  Or, you may want to ensure that the workbook's window size or position is not changed.  Here's how:

1.  Choose the Tools, Protection, Protect Workbook command to display the following dialog box.
2.  Choose the appropriate option and click OK.

Structure prevents any of the following changes to a workbook: Adding a sheet, deleting a sheet, moving a sheet, renaming a sheet, hiding a sheet, or unhiding a sheet.

Windows protects the workbook window from being moved or resized.

3.  You can supply a password or not, depending on the level of protection you need.

To remove protection from a protected workbook, choose the Tools, Protection, Unprotect Workbook command.
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