In Focus Consumer Credit


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more on credit, then they would have to pay back a lot more in interest,


because they used their cards or phones for buying too much too soon. Uncle Joe also said that all this worked


alright except when something went wrong with the electricity, and that if the computers that made all this credit stuff stop working, then nobody would be able buy what they wanted, even at the supermarket, unless they had money they could see and touch.


Cheques It used to be that something called cheques were used, which were pieces of coloured paper you could write down on what something cost if you did not have enough money with you, or if you did not want to carry around loads of coins which made big holes in your pockets. Still, lots of shops said they would not


take cheques anymore, and the banks did their best to get rid of them, so to pay for something, even a meal at a restaurant, you had to pay by card and some people had lots of cards, which belonged to different banks, and every time you used a card, some computer put down what it cost, and if you did not pay back all you owed at the end of the month, you would have to pay interest, and lots of it if you had lots of cards, or if you paid back what you owed later than you should have. At school, Teacher said that there were very bad people all over the world who


could steal money from you or your bank, not by taking it from your pocket or your purse, or holding you up with a gun, but by what is called hacking. They do this by using their own computer


to get inside of yours or your smartphone, or even your bank’s computer, and then type in numbers and letters in a certain way to make your computer or telephone think that it is you who is telling it to spend some or all of it what you have saved up or been given on credit, with all that money then going to the hacker who the police might never ever be able to find and arrest. I also heard that sometimes countries hack


into other countries’ computers if they do not like each other, not just to steal money, but to cause trouble on the internet and break into secrets which they want to know about. They do this with very clever programmes made up by very clever people. Even if there were no hackers, the


computers we use at home for school work or for playing games, they keep crashing, The other day the news on television said


they had to shut down our country’s biggest airport for hours because something went wrong with their giant computer, so lots of planes that were coming in then had to land elsewhere. They said it was not hacking that did it,


but my Dad says you can never be sure. Glad I was not on any them, like little Sue here, whose family were late getting back home from their holiday. When they did get back, they found that someone had


I also heard that some- times countries hack into other countries’ computers if they do not like each other, not just to steal money, but to cause trouble on the internet and break into secrets which they want to know about. They do this with very clever programmes made up by very clever people


hacked into one of their mum’s cards and the bank said it was not their fault, and they ended up shouting at each other for months before it got sorted out.


In trouble I do not know about the rest of you, but playing at bankers and all this stuff about credit and interest and getting into trouble for not paying what we owe back on time, and all the problems that people and the banks are having with their fancy computers and we with our smartphones while having to learn how to use money we cannot see or touch, and then have to worry about all these hackers who nobody knows where they are, I think we should play something else like ‘hide and seek’, and then not be bothered about anything else going wrong. With me being the oldest, I will be the


first to hide. If none of you can find me, I suppose I could pretend I am a hacker who has taken all of your sweet money when you weren't looking, but I will be hidden so well, you will not know where I am hiding before it is time to go home. And, if you cannot find me, then you


will all have to buy me a nice big box of chocolates even if you have to ask your parents for extra money or credit to buy it. I hope they do not charge you interest,


but if they do, you can then each have one, but only one, of my chocolates because I will be the sort of hacker who tries not to be too selfish. Now, I cannot be fairer than that, can I?


CCR 24 www.CCRMagazine.com February 2020


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