Keeping scams secret is key to con artists' success

I know that you know that taking a hot tip from a cold call is something you're supposed to avoid like the plague. But people get ripped off all the time.

What's the secret to a scam artist's success? Secrecy. The fewer people who know what you know the less likely they'll get in on the action.

And that, a scam artist will tell you, translates into more riches for you.

Or, at least that's what they want you to think.

Con artists often say, "Don't tell anyone about this opportunity." While they want you to think that the secrecy works on your behalf, the opposite is true. You're being discouraged from talking about this so-called opportunity with other folks in your life because someone might say, "Hey, this doesn't sound right."

The more you talk about it, the more likely it is that someone can help you think through why this isn't going to be your big financial score and can help you check it out.

When it comes to scams, truth IS as strange as fiction

A couple of weeks ago, I watched part of "PAPER MOON." Ryan O'Neill is a con artist during the depression who looks through the obituary section of the newspaper, then goes from house to house selling bibles to widows. Tatum O'Neill plays a young orphan whose cunning and savvy only improves business.

Put this one in the life imitates art category. Texas police were looking for a pair of juvenile scam artists who were going door to door luring residents into buying books. The kids said the funds were going to be used to send a local softball team to Australia.

The suspects, who were last seen driving a 2004 Kia with Georgia license plates, asked for cash or a check upfront, promising to deliver the books later. Giving cash isn't a problem, but police said someone actually handed over a check.

While these kids may have just been trying to scam some gas money, giving checks or credit card numbers can cost you big-time if your identity gets stolen.

Do You Owe More Than Your House Is Worth?

An asset management company in New York believes that 15 percent of folks who bought a home last year are underwater with their mortgage – that is, they owe more on their mortgage than their house is worth.

How does this happen? Well, if you took out a 100 percent loan and your house fell in value, you could easily wind up owing more than the house is worth.

Or, if you took out a pay-option ARM and are only making the lowest payment possible, your mortgage balance might have grown faster than your house has appreciated in value.

If you're in this situation and you have to sell your home, you'll need to bring enough cash to the closing table in order to walk away without any problems.

If you don't have enough cash, you'll have to ask your lender for a "short sale." A short sale means the lender will accept less than the mortgage and call it a day. But be aware that short sales can trigger hefty tax bills the following year.

Are you asleep at the wheel?

Navigating Atlanta traffic is enough to give anyone a headache. These days, you can almost tell by the weather how many accidents you'll pass on the way to work.

But according to a study by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, you can increase your chances of an accident greatly by trying to do something else while driving.

For example, more than 7 percent of crashes or near-crashes happen when someone is trying to dial or talk on their cell phone while driving. Another 10 percent of crashes or near-crashes happen because someone is either reading, eating, applying makeup, or reaching for something while driving.

Swatting flies or handling CDs while driving accounts for another chunk of car crashes.

But the biggest problem is how tired people get while driving. Moderate or severe drowsiness accounts for a quarter of all crashes or near crashes, according to the data.

So whatever you do, try to avoid sleeping and driving at the same time.

Buying Holiday Gifts? Steer Clear of Yo-Yo Balls

Yo-yos have been a popular toy for many years. Kids love them, parents love them. But they're hard for really little kids to work.

Somewhere along the line, someone came up with the idea of taking a regular yo-yo and making it into a ball with a rubber-like string attached. While it isn't exactly a regular yo-yo, a little kid can put his or her finger in the loop at the end of the string and pretend that his yo-yo ball is the real thing. Which would be great fun except that these yo-yo balls have already injured more than 400 kids, with several cases of near strangulation reported.

Here's what happens: When the ball comes bouncing back – like a regular yo-yo – the rubber string can easily get wrapped around a child's neck. Because the string is sticky, it attaches to itself, and can be difficult to unwind.

If you want your child to have a safe and happy holiday season, you'll want to take yo-yo balls off the stocking stuffer list.