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Welcome to Video Week on SpendOnLife! Every day this week we’ll highlight an interesting video from around the web on credit or identity theft. So grab some popcorn, and enjoy!

How South Dakota Became America’s Credit Card Capital

Today, we selected a snippet from PBS Frontline on the history of the modern credit card. It’s from 2004, but still relevant because it explains how and why Sioux Falls, South Dakota came to be the major mecca for credit card companies (Hint: they liked ..read more

It’s Friday again, and that means it’s time for the weekly SpendOnLife grab bag! Here we share some of the week’s more interesting tidbits from the world of credit and identity theft. Enjoy!

CARD Act Infographics

Two cool infographics about credit have come out recently. The one at left (click it to enlarge) from Economic Crisis Blog sums up Americans’ debt level and lists the key protections (and loopholes) of the CARD Act. The infographic at right (click it to enlarge) from BillShrink ..read more

Some trends are indicating that Americans are trying to pay down debt and save more. But according to a new study released by Prosper.com, more Americans are turning to debt consolidation. The survey showed that over the last six months, more and more people have been signing up for peer-to-peer debt consolidation loans and in January they hit an all time high, comprising 59% of loans on the site. Typically debt consolidation loans only equal about 45% of loans.

“Credit card ..read more

Sure a new dishwasher, flat screen or spa weekend would be nice, but what about using that tax refund to pay down debt? That’s the plan for plenty of Americans, according to the National Retail Federation. Every year the organization polls Americans to see what they’re really going to do with that tax refund. And this year a big chunk of taxpayers say that check from Uncle Sam will go towards paying down debt. Here’s how the numbers break down:

44% ..read more

The Federal Reserve Board conducts a Survey of Consumer Finances every three years. The most recent survey was conducted in 2007 and included about 4,500 families (chosen randomly) to represent all economic groups. The survey includes all types of financial data, but of particular interest are the statistics on the amount of credit card debt consumers owe.

2001 vs. 2007: a few notable credit card statistics From 2001 to 2007, the percentage of families holding credit card debt rose from 44.4% to ..read more

If you’re like me, the term "identity thief" conjures images of computer-savvy hackers who swindle your personal information from the internet. But identity thieves come in all shapes and sizes, as evidenced by these surprising cases of fraud that have cropped up in the news recently.

Young NYC socialite steals ex-friend’s credit card  

This is most likely a PR stunt, but Kashmir Snowdon-Jones (some rich model / socialite in New York City) apparently had a falling out with a friend and took revenge ..read more

Have you filed your taxes yet? If you’re like me, the answer is "No." There’s been some great tax-related stuff published in the past few weeks that may help to get you motivated for your 2009 filing.

Tips for preparing taxes

Get organized. If you follow these do-ahead steps from FinanceFreelanceLife, filing taxes should be a walk in the park (er, at least not a walk through Dante’s nine levels of hell).

20SomethingFinance helps you make the big decision: To Itemize or Not ..read more

The convenience of shopping online is alluring. You can shop from the comfort of your home and receive your new goods without setting foot in a store. When you shop online, though, you have to be more aware of thieves and fraudsters who’d like nothing more than to get their hands on your credit card information.

Fraudsters can get access to your personal information online by setting up fake stores, which can look amazingly similar to the real thing. They may ..read more

Javelin Strategy & Research has issued its 2010 report on identity fraud occurrences from 2009. Key highlights from the report show that while the instances of identity theft reached record numbers in 2009, victims spent less time and money recovering from the crime.

Key statistics 11.1 million adults were victims of identity theft in 2009 The total fraud amount was $54 million The average victim spent 21 hours and $373 out of pocket resolving the crime 4.8% of the population was a victim of identity ..read more

Consumers trying to deal with the debt they cannot repay after losing jobs have been cast as the true victims of the collapse of the derivatives market. Even as the CEO of General Motors is awarded a $1.7 million contract to run a business that is majority owned by the federal government, many middle class consumers are facing the loss of their homes after making mortgage payments for years.

The banks have not been sympathetic to their plight either, and ..read more