“Tidbits From TNT” Sunday 8-25-2024

TNT:

Tishwash:  Economist talks about the mechanism for reviving the Iraqi economy

Economic expert Mustafa Hantoush said today: "What the Central Bank of Iraq is doing by empowering foreign banks or foreign investors at the expense of the Iraqi banking system is a fatal blow to future opportunities to advance the Iraqi economy through the banking system."

According to his statement to Mawazine News Agency, the expert Hantoush described the experiences of foreign banks or foreign investors who own national banks as failed experiments, pointing out that they have caused financial disasters for many countries.

The economic expert explained: "Most countries in the world give a very specific percentage to foreign investors in the banking sector in order to preserve capital and profits as an economic cycle within the country."  link

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Tishwash:  Mohammed bin Rashid: Iraq has become the first destination for UAE exports

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum confirmed today, Sunday, that Iraq has become the first destination for Emirati exports by 41%.

Bin Rashid said, via the (X) platform: "Several years ago, we announced our national economic goals.. and announced that our foreign trade target for the year 2031 is 4 trillion dirhams annually, a goal that represented a major challenge at the time."

He added, "Today, our economic relations with various countries have been consolidated, as our trade with India has increased by 10%.. with Turkey by 15%.. and with Iraq by 41% to become the first destination for Emirati exports, followed by India, Turkey and others."  link

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Tishwash:  To deter escalation and protect his country's forces.. A senior American general visits the Middle East

A senior US general is scheduled to tour the Middle East to emphasize the importance of deterring escalation and protecting US forces in the region. The

US Joint Chiefs of Staff said on Saturday that General CQ Brown will visit Egypt, Jordan and Israel in the coming days, where he will meet with his counterparts and a number of officials to discuss the situation and tensions in the region. The

Joint Chiefs of Staff statement indicated that Brown's visit demonstrates the long-term US commitment to the Middle East.

The statement stressed that General Brown will reaffirm the importance of deterring escalation and protecting US forces in the region, and Washington's support for Israel in defending itself and coordinating efforts to provide humanitarian assistance to civilians.

The statement also explained that the visit reflects the importance of reaching an agreement that returns the hostages, ends the violence and allows the entire region to focus on the next steps towards a more secure and stable Middle East. link

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Tishwash:  Rafidain warns of the risks of accessing customers' personal and financial information

Rafidain Bank warned, today, Saturday, of the risks of accessing customers’ personal and financial information through electronic and telephone fraud.

The bank stated in a statement received by {Euphrates News} a copy of it, that: "It is keen to educate its customers and the public about sound practices in using electronic services in general, and to direct the customer to take caution and care, to ward off the risks that may result from any attempts to access the customer's personal and financial information, through electronic fraud, telephone fraud, viruses and spyware, and identity theft."

Rafidain Bank advised its customers to: "Adhere to the following instructions:

- Avoid easy knowledge of the password, maintain its confidentiality, avoid using common and well-known passwords that are easy to predict, and change them periodically.

The bank advises its customers - for their security and safety - to refrain from using known information such as date of birth, phone number, or any part of the customer's name that is easily recognizable as a password.

- Avoid disclosing the password and personal data and maintain the confidentiality of the salary card number (Master or Visa Card), Internet banking, and the mobile banking application, and not to disclose them even to bank employees.

- Update the customer's information and data, whether his salary is domiciled or otherwise, whenever there is a change through the branches.

- Continuously verify your account movements (via account statement, movements in the mobile application), and if you doubt any of them, review your branch or the Banking Awareness and Public Protection Department in the General Administration of the Bank.

The bank noted "examples of fraudulent messages:

Phishing messages..
- These messages are sent to you by impersonating an employee at your bank, where he sends you messages asking you for information about your bank account or credit card under the pretext of verifying its numbers.
- Fraud through the trick of browsing your account
- Many users have been trapped on social networks through the trick of "Find out who browsed your account on Facebook" or any other social network.

Prize winning messages..
- Such messages claim that you have won valuable prizes or a trip to a certain country, and the sender of the message asks you to pay a certain amount to receive your prize, never do that.
- Fundraising fraud.
- Collecting money in a deceptive manner, as these scammers publish fake stories about a patient in need of treatment or a poor family or others and ask for donations from social media users.

Online job offers:
- If you apply for a job online, you will definitely be asked to fill out an application form. You can do so, but be careful not to write down your bank account number and credit card.
Tips to protect yourself from fraud attempts:
- Do not interact with people who ask you to pay a small amount of money to get a prize or gift or other offers.
- Do not agree to transfer a conversation with a specific person outside of social networks, such as communicating via WhatsApp or providing this person's email address.
- Verify the identity of people who message you due to an emergency while claiming to be your friends or relatives.
- Messages that include spelling and grammatical errors are always suspicious and you should be careful of them.
- If you want to provide help or assistance, do so through official and trusted sources.
- Do not trust pages that represent large companies or public figures that you have not verified.
- Do not trust any social pages that claim that they will make you a quick profit through the Internet or work from home.
- Do not click on links that you receive via WhatsApp or social networks or those that are published in comments. 

Rafidain Bank called on its customers to "take precautions and be careful to avoid falling victim to criminal methods that aim to defraud citizens and steal their money by people impersonating employees working in financial institutions, international institutions or private companies, and then doing the following:

- Communicating with customers via social media (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp) under the pretext of providing financial assistance and prizes or monthly salaries for a specific period, in exchange for obtaining the personal information of the customer and the data and image of the bank card granted to him and the secret number and OTP verification code.

- Using the data and information necessary to create accounts in the name of customers or modify their account data or update their data or request the number that will be sent to you by SMS, and then carrying out electronic transfer operations for the purposes of paying bills and purchases and charging mobile phone balances or making electronic money transfers to other people.

Communicating with the beneficiaries of financial transfers under the pretext of executing them in their favor by mistake, and then asking them to reverse the amount by transferring to a specific account or charging a specific phone balance.  link

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Mot: . Guys!! -- Beeeee sure and Take Notes!!!!