Category: NEW JERSEY

5 Resume Tips to Wow Recruiters in 2020

Gloucestercitynews.net (February 1, 2020)–Let’s say you found a job posting where you believe your skills will fit like a glove. You applied to it by sending a resume and not only did you not get the job, but you also didn’t even get called in for an interview.

What do you think might have gone wrong?

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It is safe to assume at this point that the fault lies within your resume.

Without a perfect resume, a recruiter will never even know what they missed. Being the first point of contact, your resume needs to be flawless. It is through this piece of document that you are going to dazzle the recruiter and score a place in the shortlist.

These are the 5 resume tips that will wow any recruiter in 2020:

1.

Structure your resume in neat sections

Structuring your resume not only makes it look appealing, but it also breaks down the information in brief relevant sections. This helps the recruiter take in one piece of information at a time and thus makes it easy to read and comprehend.

The presentation of information on a resume is more important than the information itself. Wrongly presented, it will have no impact on the recruiter and thus has no relevance. So, be incredibly careful about what you put in your resume and how you display it.

The first thing you need to do is decide what sections will go on your resume.

Compose the following sections in the order given below to cover every information a recruiter needs to know about you:

Header

Personal Information

Profile Title

Summary

Key Skills

Professional Experience

Education

You can also add additional sections like ‘Certifications’ or ‘Additional information’ if you have data that can be filed under these. Add these sections only if they are relevant to the role you are applying for and you are positive that adding this information will favor your chances at a shortlist.

2. Make your resume easy to read

Most resumes that get tossed are due to their length or bulkiness.

These

statistics

by CareerBuilder show that 66% of employers said a resume should be one page long for new college graduates and 77% agreed that it should be at least two pages long for seasoned workers.

So, do yourself a favor and optimize the length of your resume. Discard all the fluff and only keep the essential information that a recruiter needs to know on your resume.

This eye-tracking

study

suggests that recruiters spend an average of 7 seconds on a single resume, that is not enough time for them to go through everything in detail. This means recruiters are only focusing on a few key points before making their decision about a candidate.

A cluttered resume might turn their interest off immediately as they won’t have any idea where to start looking for the required information.

To ensure that your resume gets read at least once, use one-liner bullet points instead of paragraphs to describe your past roles & responsibilities in the ‘Professional Experience’ section.

Further, categorize points under relevant subheadings and highlight the important information to draw the attention of recruiters towards it.

3.Write effective professional experience statements

However high your qualifications may be, they won’t score you a job if you haven’t presented them effectively on your resume.

Following are a few actions that you can take to make your resume more effective:

Bring the STAR method into action as it brings a cause-effect relationship in your statements. STAR stands for:

S stands for the ‘situation’ that demanded your contributions.

T stands for the ‘task’ you performed.

A stands for the ‘actions’ you took to perform the assigned task.

R stands for the ‘result’ in the form of an achievement figure.

An example of using this method can be seen in this one-liner point: “Delivered

10+ articles

weekly which increased the web site’s

traffic by 20%

”

Include as many achievement figures as you can while keeping them relevant: These numbers will help you back up your claims and make you look like a competent and useful asset. Performance figures prove that your contributions were helpful for the company.

For instance in the example, “Delivered

10+ articles

weekly which increased the web site’s

traffic by 20%

” the number of articles and the web site’s traffic is achievement figures.

Use

action verbs

to begin each one-liner point as it gives a tone of assertiveness to your resume. Words like ‘Managed’, ‘Spearheaded’ can give your resume a wow factor.

4.Keep your resume relevant to the job you are applying for

An irrelevant resume is not going to help you get any interviews. For instance, it makes no sense to mention your first job as a busboy or the many internships you did if you have been in the workforce for over 10 years.

Volunteering experience, internships, and similar information are required by inexperienced professionals or students, not someone who has already made their mark in the professional world.

These tips will help you keep your resume relevant:

If you have changed industries and your old job doesn’t fit anywhere near the new profile you are targeting, leave it off your resume.

People with more than 3 years of experience do not need to mention internships or volunteering experiences.

Use keywords as it helps you get past the Applicant Tracking System (ATS). Recruiters set the ATS to explicitly look for keywords in resumes before shortlisting them. You can find these keywords in the job description of your target job. Select the keywords that apply to you and customize your resume accordingly.4

Never forget to mention your contact details

4.Keep your resume relevant to the job you are applying for

Even if your resume got shortlisted, a recruiter will never be able to contact you to further your prospects if they do not have any means of contacting you.

So before you submit your resume, make sure that you have correctly input all the necessary contact details in your resume which include:

Contact Number

Email Address

Current Location

Conclusion

Looking back, these are the 5 resume tips to wow recruiters in 2020:

Structure your resume by filing information under relevant sections.

Enhance the readability of your resume by cutting out any clutter and highlighting important information.

Make your resume effective by using the STAR format, using action verbs, and including performance figures.

Increase the relevancy of your resume by only including relevant information and using keywords.

Provide the correct contact details to enable a prospective employer to easily touch base with you.

Author’s Bio:

Aditya Sharma

On a quest to help professionals across the world land their dream jobs, Aditya lives and breathes

Hiration where he’s a Co-Founder and the unofficial CPO (Chief Problem-solving Officer) of the AI-powered

online resume builder

and platform to help job-seekers find their way in the treacherous job market.

How to Encourage Your Kids to Brush Every Day

Gloucestercitynews.net (January 31, 2020)–Getting a good bedtime routine going can make it easier to get your kids to sleep. Therefore, it’s important to teach them to do things like put on their own pajamas and read a book. The problem is, when it comes to tooth brushing, many kids are reluctant to do it and may spend ages messing around and generally not doing what you ask. If your kids are refusing to brush, here are some ways to encourage them to get into good habits.

Find Out What They Dislike About Brushing

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While sometimes a refusal to brush is simply laziness — or wanting to do something more fun — there can be a number of reasons why kids hate brushing their teeth. Some kids dislike the feel of brushing their teeth, but this can be helped if you brush for them until they’re older. Other kids hate the taste of toothpaste, so you could remedy this by making your own paste and utilizing different techniques to see if that makes your child happier.

Let Them Choose a Toothbrush

You wouldn’t want someone to pick out a toothbrush for you, so let your child have some input. It’s important to get a toothbrush with a head that’s small enough for their mouth, otherwise, they’ll struggle to get in the corners. An electric toothbrush can also make things more fun for them. According to Method Dental,

electric toothbrushes have a number of advantages

and can be good for kids.

Use a Reward Chart

If you’ve had success using the reward chart method with your child, then add toothbrushing to their daily goals so they can earn stars or smiley faces. Once they’ve collected enough, you can reward them with a non-sugary treat. And as they get older, the chart should be used to record their brushing every night before bed.

Use an App

The modern form of a reward chart, apps can be a good way to encourage children to pick up good habits, as well as ensuring they learn the right technique. There are many

toothbrushing apps for kids

that can be downloaded for free on the app store or Google Play. These apps will generally show a cute cartoon that ensures your child brushes correctly and for the recommended amount of time.

Take Them to the Dentist

If nagging doesn’t work, try taking the kids to a child-friendly dentist who can talk to them about brushing their teeth. Kids often don’t care if their teeth look a little yellow or if their breath smells, but the fear of having cavities or missing teeth might be enough to get them to brush more often.

From the first moment your child’s baby teeth come through, it’s important to teach them oral hygiene skills that’ll turn into good habits for life. While brushing your teeth isn’t the most exciting thing your kids can do, if you make a game out of it and reward them for remembering to brush, they are more likely to do it.

Quick and Easy Ways to Make Your Home More Eco-Friendly

Gloucestercitynews.net (January 31, 2020)–People are thinking a lot more about their carbon footprint these days, the idea of making your home eco-friendlier is not new, but it is becoming essential. From those who want to reduce their

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environmental impact to those that are preparing their home to sell, being more environmentally conscious is more popular than ever. Make the right eco-friendly changes to your home, and you can even add value to your property, meaning that you can advance up the property ladder even faster. If you\’re looking for ways to make cost-effective changes to your carbon footprint, here are some of the greenest ways to make your home eco-friendlier.

Water Waste

As one of the more expensive utility bills, it always pays to be smarter about your water use. When it comes to being environmentally aware, most people look at electricity consumption, but your use of water is just as vital. Think about the many ways that you can save water, starting with making repairs on any leaking pipes or

a dripping faucet

. Consider installing a showerhead that comes with a low-flow option, and you can save thousands of liters of water every year.

Get Hot and Stay Cool

Temperature is where a lot of people fail when it comes to their carbon footprint. Relaxing at home if it’s too cold or too hot can be very frustrating, so it’s always tempting to play with the air-con or heating system to get the right temperature

to relax in. Check your air-conditioning system and your furnace, making sure to

make a note of your SEER and AFUE

. These two measurements will give you a much clearer idea of your energy efficiency and can have a large bearing on your utility bills.

Always Insulate

One of the most effective ways to use less energy is to need less. Insulated walls and attics prevent cooled or heated air from escaping outside, meaning that you aren’t going to be wasting your energy by constantly adjusting the temperature. You can even go beyond traditional materials by investing in more

eco-friendly materials for your insulation

. Sheep\’s wool and cotton are common options for greener insulation, but there are many materials to consider if you want to improve your insulation and remain environmentally conscious.

Eco-Aware Lighting

Most people have already looked at energy-efficient light bulbs, but if you haven’t researched them lately, then you might be amazed by the drop in prices. While the cost of energy-saving light bulbs used to be quite prohibitive, modern options are much more wallet-friendly. Remember, you don’t have to swap every lightbulb immediately. Buy one or two energy-efficient bulbs every payday and replace your older lightbulbs with the newer bulbs as needed. Take your time, and you’ll soon have all of the

environmentally friendly lighting

that you’ll need.

Turning your home int0 somewhere more eco-friendly doesn’t have to mean huge disruption or costs. Often, it is the small changes to your home that will have the most impact. Whether you\’re putting your property on the market or you want to reduce your carbon footprint, these quick and easy eco-friendly tips could save you a fortune and boost the asking price of your home.

How to Properly Spruce Up Your Home’s Curb Appeal

Gloucestercitynews.net(January 31, 2020)–Though it’s on the inside that counts, a properly spruced up exterior can help you boost your home’s value, your own comfort, and of course help boost the quality of your neighborhood. With luck, you might even convince your other neighbors to put effort into their own homes, so all, in all you end up living on a picture-perfect street.

You will be proud to call your house home, and when the time comes your property will sell faster and for more because of your efforts. Don’t dally, however, because the best way to spruce up your home’s curb appeal is to do it for yourself, so start today and follow this guide:

Upgrade Your Gutters

We don’t often think about our gutters. They help keep rainwater away from the sides of our house, what else do we need to know about them, right? The reality is that

keeping your gutters clean from debris is so important

, as it helps protect your foundation, stops soil from eroding, and keeps mold and mildew away from your home.

Thankfully there are options that mean you don’t have to get up on a two-story ladder and risk your safety.  Instead you can opt for a covered gutter that prevents leaves and other items from falling in, but still safely manages your rainwater.

Deal with Your Exterior Wall

The exact steps you will take will depend entirely on what your wall is made of. Brick does well with being power washed to rid it of any accumulated grime. Paint needs to be washed, sanded down, and then repainted. Due to the size of the job, bringing in a professional team is definitely recommended, because when it comes to sprucing up your home,

clean exterior walls

is going to have the biggest impact.

Upgrade You Doors (and Windows)

If you aren’t happy with your home’s trimmings, then it is time to invest in them. Either paint and add decorative elements to the features you have now or replace them entirely. If you want your home to pop, for example, consider painting your window trimmings the same color as your front and garage doors.

Start Gardening, Today

Installing fully mature plants is expensive, but if you are willing to put in the work and be patient you can end up

having a stunning front and rear garden

. Add a rose wall, for example, or plant a young sapling. It won’t look its best the first year, but over time your landscaping will be stunning (and budget-friendly).

Don’t Forget Lighting

It’s not necessary to light up every inch of your property, but you will want to invest in quality lights at least for your driveway and front door. This is so that you can see clearly when dealing with keys and it helps keep you safer.

Your curb appeal adds a lot to your home but waiting to do something about it until you are ready to sell is a big waste. Start today and make the above improvements for yourself, because you deserve to be proud of where you live.

New Jersey Doctor Admit Roles in Health Care Fraud Scheme

TRENTON, N.J. – A doctor with offices in Washington, Hackettstown, and Succasunna, New Jersey, and his co-defendant today admitted their roles in a health care conspiracy to bill Medicare and private health insurance companies for medical services fraudulently claimed to have been provided by a licensed medical doctor, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.

Parminderjeet S. Sandhu, 66, of Long Valley, New Jersey, and Paramjit Singh, 62, of Ohio, each pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Peter G. Sheridan in Trenton federal court to informations charging them with conspiracy to commit health care fraud.

“Dr. Sandhu defrauded Medicare and private insurers – and, worse, put his patients at risk – by allowing those patients to be treated by Singh, a man who had lost his medical license,” U.S. Attorney Carpenito said.  “Our office continues to work tirelessly to protect the integrity of federal healthcare programs and to make sure that patients do not suffer unnecessary harm from unscrupulous healthcare providers like these two defendants.”

“It\’s frightening to think that your doctor could be putting your health in the hands of someone who is practicing without a license,” FBI Newark Special Agent in Charge Gregory W. Ehrie said. “Dr. Sandhu put his patients at risk while defrauding them as well as their insurers. The FBI remains committed to investing its resources to combat these types of schemes because patients have every right to expect that the care they are receiving is from a qualified medical professional who is acting in the patient\’s best interest. We urge anyone who is aware of healthcare fraud to contact us.”

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:

From August 2014 through October 2017, Sandhu and Singh caused $2,211,975 to be billed to Medicare and private health insurance companies for medical services claimed to have been provided by Sandhu at Sandhu’s medical practice, Medical Care Associates Urgent Care Inc. In reality, those services were actually performed by Singh, whom Sandhu had hired to treat patients, despite knowing that Singh had lost his license to practice medicine anywhere in the United States. Sandhu issued prescriptions – including prescriptions for opioids – in Sandhu’s name for patients seen by Singh, even though Sandhu never met with the patients himself. As a result of the conspiracy, Sandhu’s medical practice was paid $1,162,253 for treatment fraudulently provided by Singh.

Under terms of the plea agreement, if the court accepts the plea, each defendant will be sentenced to 18 months in prison. In addition, Sandhu and Singh have each agreed to pay $1,162,253 in restitution. Sandhu has agreed to forfeiture of $829,561 and Singh has agreed to forfeiture of $332,692. Sentencing is scheduled for April 28, 2020.

U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Ehrie; the Warren County Prosecutor\’s Office, under the direction of Prosecutor James L. Pfeiffer; the New Jersey State Police, under the direction of Col. Patrick J. Callahan; and the Hackettstown, Roxbury and Washington Township police departments with the investigation leading to today’s guilty pleas.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph N. Minish of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Asset Recovery and Money Laundering Unit.

Coast Guard medevacs man from fishing vessel 50 miles off Manasquan Inlet

MANASQUAN INLET, N.J. —(January 29, 2020)– The Coast Guard medevaced a man from a fishing vessel 50 miles off Manasquan Inlet, Thursday afternoon.

Coast Guard Sector Delaware Bay watch standers received a call from the captain of the fishing vessel Enterprise requesting a MEDEVAC for a crew member experiencing severe abdominal pain.

A Coast Guard Station Manasquan Inlet 47-foot Motor Lifeboat crew was launched to assist, arrived and transferred the crew member aboard.

After the crew member\’s condition worsened, an Air Station Atlantic City MH-65 Dolphin Helicopter aircrew was launched, arrived, and medevaced the crew member to awaiting emergency medical services personnel at Atlantic City Care Regional Medical Center.

\”The Coast Guard trains everyday for events like this,\” said Petty Officer 1st Class Daniel Box, watch stander at the Sector Delaware Bay command center. \”Because of that training we were able to coordinate multiple Coast Guard assets to get the crew member medical attention as quickly as possible.\”

Love Your Money: U.S. Spends $113.5 Million to Give Rural America High Speed Internet

In the last few weeks alone the U.S. government has spent a whopping $113.5 million to help bring

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high-speed broadband to several rural areas throughout the country. In some of the cases multi-million-dollar investments will provide high-speed internet service to just a few hundred households, raising serious questions about the taxpayer investment. The money flows through the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) via a Trump administration program known as

ReConnect

that will ultimately dole out hundreds of millions of dollars for the cause.

The program was launched as a result of President Donald Trump’s

Interagency Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity

established in April 2017 to identify legislative, regulatory, and policy changes that could promote agriculture and prosperity in rural communities. Headed by USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue, the task force includes 22 federal agencies and local leaders typical for bureaucratic government adventures. The government officials made dozens of recommendations

outlined in a

lengthy report

that essentially asks American taxpayers for a monstrous investment. The goal is to provide rural America with world-class resources, tools and support to build robust, sustainable communities for generations to come, according to the USDA.

Key among the issues preventing this is high-speed internet availability, the task force found. It also recommends modern utilities, affordable housing, efficient transportation and reliable employment to improve quality of life as well as economic development and a better workforce. So far, most of the taxpayer investment has gone to internet, though it may not seem like the most urgent of the issues pressing rural America. This may be especially true since rural America includes around 46 million of the nation’s roughly 325 million people, according to the task force figures, which also reveal that rural America includes 72% of the nation’s land. “Rural America is home to many different racial and ethnic demographics and a wide array of economic activities,” the task force report states. “These residents live in a variety of settings, from counties bordering suburbs to remote and isolated areas.”

Is high-speed internet really so essential that the Uncle Sam must spend such huge sums of money? Does lack of broadband connectivity create a crisis? Broadband is defined by law as 10 megabits per second (Mbps) downstream and 1 Mbps upstream. The government’s initial funds “will generate private sector investment to deploy broadband infrastructure to provide high-speed internet e-Connectivity to as many rural premises as possible, including homes, community facilities for healthcare and public safety, schools, libraries, farms, ranches, factories, and other production sites,” according to the USDA. ReConnect offers unique federal financing and funding options in the form of loans, grants, and loan/grant combinations to facilitate broadband deployment in the targeted areas.

Let’s take a look at some recent examples of how the money is being allocated. So far this month alone the government doled out $113.5 million to bring rural America high-speed broadband, though it’s not certain when the projects will be completed so that roughly 14% of the population can surf the internet. The first investment, for

$23 million

, will improve rural e-Connectivity for 2,643 households and 78 businesses in North Dakota. The USDA’s North Dakota Rural Development director says broadband technology is a utility as important as water, sewer and electricity. Two days later the USDA announced another

$48 million

investment to bring high-speed broadband infrastructure to 22,600 rural households in Virginia. About a week later another

$11 million

went to similar projects in Minnesota and northern Iowa that will serve 1,395 rural households and more than 100 business. “When Americans are connected to high-speed internet, productivity and prosperity skyrocket,” according to USDA Deputy Secretary Stephen Censky. “This task of providing rural Americans with broadband is of the highest importance for President Trump and his Administration. We cannot leave millions of Americans out of the successes of this booming economy simply because they do not have access to the internet.”

Capping off the month were allocations of

$5.7 million

for high-speed broadband projects that will serve 489 households, 24 farms and eight businesses in Nebraska and

$18.7 million

to bring 6,300 households and 383 farms in West Virginia internet. The last disbursement, announced just two days ago, is a

$7.1 million

grant to improve e-Connectivity for 1,250 households in north central Arkansas. It may seem like a hefty price tag, but the USDA assures it’s important because it will connect residents to opportunities in education, health care and economic development.

source

Judicialwatch.org

CNB Hunting/Fishing NJ: Scoping Hearings for Summer Flounder/Scup/Black Sea Bass and Bluefish

DOWN THE SHORE

–Don’t miss the opportunity to provide comment on management for summer flounder/scup/black sea bass and bluefish during several public scoping hearings in February held by the Mid-Atlantic

Fisheries Management Council.  Please note that these hearings will not address recreational bag, season, or size limits.  See below and attached for additional information.

Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Commercial/Recreational Allocation Amendment

The Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Commercial/Recreational Allocation Amendment will consider potential modifications to the allocations of catch or landings between the commercial and recreational sectors for summer flounder, scup, and black sea bass. Members of the public are encouraged to attend a scoping hearing or submit written comments on potential changes to the commercial/recreational allocations for these three species.

Scoping hearings

will be held on

February 24 (Belmar) and February 25 (Galloway)

. A schedule of dates and locations is available

here

.

Written comments

may be submitted using the

online comment form

through

March 17, 2020

.

Additional information

is available in the

Scoping and Public Information Document

.

Please note that this amendment

will not

address recreational bag, size, or season limits for any species.

Bluefish Allocation and Rebuilding Amendment

The Bluefish Allocation and Rebuilding Amendment is being developed in order to (1) update the goals and objectives of the Bluefish Fishery Management Plan; (2) perform a comprehensive review of the bluefish sector allocations, commercial allocations to the states, and transfer processes; and (3) initiate a bluefish rebuilding plan. Members of the public are encouraged to attend a scoping hearing or submit written comments on any of these issues.

Scoping hearings

will be held on

February 18 (Toms River)

. A schedule of dates and locations is available

here

.

Written comments

may be submitted using the

online comment form

through

March 17, 2020

.

Additional information

is available in the

Scoping and Public Information Document

.

Please note that this amendment

will not

address recreational bluefish management measures, including the 3-fish private/shore bag limit and 5 fish for-hire bag limit recommended for 2020.

Press Release-Bluefish-Supplemental-Scoping.pdf

News Release-Summer Flounder-Scup-BlackSeaBass-Allocation-Scoping-Hearings.pdf

HINDU\’S SAY: TCNJ refuses to withdraw its newspaper labelling Hinduism as “unforgiving”

Despite Hindu protest, The College of New Jersey (TCNJ) in Ewing is refusing to withdraw printed copies of its student newspaper “The Signal” from various locations, which states “Hinduism is an unforgiving religion”.

“…we decline your requests to retrieve printed copies of The Signal or to remove the article”, “The

Signal” Editor-in-Chief Emmy Liederman wrote yesterday in an email to Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, who spearheaded the protest. The printed January 29 issue of \”The Signal\” (Spring 2020 No. 1) in PDF, hosted by Issuu, carrying this objectionable statement, also continues to be posted on “The Signal” website.

courtesy of

Home

It was highly inappropriate and insensitive for the newspaper of a “Top Public College” funded by tax dollars and student fees (many of whom were Hindu) to belittle Hinduism, world’s oldest and third largest religion with about 1.1 billion adherents and a rich philosophical thought; Zed, who is President of Universal Society of Hinduism, said in Nevada today.

Despite repeated requests through emails by Rajan Zed to the College President Dr. Kathryn A. Foster and others, the student newspaper containing “Hinduism is an unforgiving religion”, continues to be available in many campus locations and its website. This type of continual and unwarranted denigration of their religion was heartbreaking for the Hindu community in general and the Hindu student population of TCNJ in particular, Zed noted.

Zed had also urged New Jersey Secretary of Higher Education Zakiya Smith Ellis to launch an enquiry into it; and TCNJ Trustees Chair Susanne Svizeny and President Foster to offer a formal apology to the Hindu community. Zed is also requesting an introductory article about Hinduism in the next edition of “The Signal” to clear the misconceptions thus created.

Such a derogatory statement against a religion coming out of a public educational institution was really shocking for the hard-working, harmonious and peaceful Hindu community; which had made lot of contributions to New Jersey, USA and society in general; and continued to do so; Rajan Zed added.

Is this how TCNJ accomplishes its Mission of developing “responsible citizens”, Vision of serving “as a national exemplar of public higher education”, Values of \”treat each other with civility and respect\” and “committed to building a diverse and inclusive community\”; Zed wonders.

Rajan Zed further said that Hindus were for free speech and artistic expression as much as anybody else if not more. But faith was something sacred and attempts at trivializing it hurt the devotees.

The feature-article, which began with “Hinduism is an unforgiving religion”, was written by \”Nation & World Editor\” of award-winning “The Signal” (among the oldest collegiate weeklies, since 1855).

“Highly selective” awards-winning TCNJ, on 289 tree-lined acres, enrolls about 7,400 graduate and undergraduate students and offers over 50 programs.

There are about three million Hindus in USA. New Jersey reportedly has the highest percentage of Hindus in the nation.

FBI News: Fraud Ring Leader Sentenced

A leader of an international criminal network that stole millions of dollars from two American businesses while pretending to be a legitimate vendor is now in prison.

Evaldas Rimasauskas was one of the orchestrators of the Lithuania-based business email compromise (BEC) scheme. Beginning in 2013, his employees regularly called the victim companies’ customer service numbers to glean as much information as they could about the companies. They asked for details like names of key employees and their contact information.

They also sent phishing emails that gave them access to the companies’ email systems—giving the fraudsters an even bigger trove of information about the victim companies.

“It was a big, sophisticated research effort,” said Special Agent Jonathan Polonitza, who investigated this case out of the FBI’s New York Field Office.

Armed with these details and two years of research, one of the fraudsters simply called the companies pretending to be a vendor. The caller told each company to change their bank account information for an upcoming payment.

The two companies wired several payments to the fraudulent accounts, adding up to more than $120 million.

And this is where Rimasauskas came in: He was in charge of setting up the fraudulent accounts and then immediately laundering the funds all over the world.

“Unfortunately, this is happening to a lot of companies because it’s a crime that can be committed from the other side of the world.”

Jonathan Polonitza, FBI New York

Luckily, the companies notified the FBI of the email intrusions. Investigators froze some of the funds before Rimasauskas and his associates could move the money. Rimasaukas had created a vast paper trail, including contracts, invoices, and other documents to try to make the transactions look legitimate.

But the FBI worked closely with partner agencies around the world to investigate Rimasaukas’ operation and bring him to the United States for prosecution. He pleaded guilty to wire fraud charges and was sentenced last December to five years in prison.

“Unfortunately, this is happening to a lot of companies because it’s a crime that can be committed from the other side of the world,” Polonitza said. “They also work very hard to remain anonymous.”

BEC is a growing crime—with a staggering price tag. Between 2013 and 2019, the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) received complaints of more than

$10 billion in losses

from the crime.

But there are things you can do to protect yourself and your business. And if you are victimized, it’s critical to notify law enforcement as soon as possible. In some cases, money can be recovered.

“It’s very important to be careful in opening any email attachments,” Polonitza said. “If something is suspicious, alert your company’s security. If you are a victim in a case like this, the sooner we know, the sooner we can help.”

If you or your company is affected by business email compromise, contact law enforcement immediately and file a complaint online with the IC3 at

bec.ic3.gov

.

Protect Yourself from BEC

The

Internet Crime Complaint Center

offers the following tips for both companies and individuals to stay safe from hackers looking to steal your money:

Use two-factor authentication to verify any changes to account information or wire instructions.

Check the full email address on any message and check the hyperlinks for spelling.

Never give login credentials or personal information in response to a text or email.

Monitor all financial accounts.

Keep all software and systems up to date.

Resources

Lithuanian Man Sentenced to Five Years in Prison for Theft of Over $120 Million in Fraudulent Business Email Compromise Scheme