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A data breach happens when an unauthorized person gains control over a company’s electronic files. Data breaches are costly for businesses because the business may lose customers after news of the data breach is spread. According to Network World, companies must also pay legal fees, costs associated with notifying customers, and prevention expenses. The Ponemon Institute, an agency that researches information security policies, estimates that a data breach costs businesses $204 for each customer record that was lost or stolen.

But consumers also stand to lose when a data breach happens. W

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Australian retail banking major National Australia Bank may team up with US private equity group Blackstone, and British buy-out firm Revolution in a potential bid for as many as 300 branches of troubled British banking giant Royal Bank of Scotland, according to the Financial Times.

Spokespersons for both private equity groups either declined to comment or could not be reached.

RBS is almost fully nationalized after the British government acquired an 84 per cent stake in a government sponsored bailout designed to rescue the troubled lender at the height of the global financial crisis.

The bailout has meant the European Union has mandated that the lender divest part of its branch banking network and non-core banking assets, and has been given four years to do so.

A banking source told Reuters last month that National Australia Bank and Spanish bank Santander could be interested in acquiring RBS branches.

This post is from GRS staff writer April Dykman.

We all know that cooking meals at home can save money. For some (like me), it’s a lot of fun, too, but it’s easy to get in a rut — which is where I found myself last year.

Brown rice was my go-to side dish, but there are only so many ways to cook the stuff before your taste buds get bored. That’s when I discovered a whole new world of grains that got me excited to cook again, many of which are now kitchen staples. If you’

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Regardless of whether you are looking to reduce spending for the purposes of debt reduction, or for saving, the first thing that must be done is to identify where you are spending money unwisely. If you are not ready to be honest about a budget breaker, a vice, or a ‘treat,’ then you are not ready to take full control of your financial (in)stability. This may be hard for some people to be able to see, let alone to admit. Sometimes what is quite obvious to some, is totally unseen by others.

I talked to a few of my friends who are both financial advisors. They both came back to this exact point. Esp

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Three consecutive interest rate increases in the run up to Christmas appear to have taken their toll on consumer spending, with retail sales unable to maintain November’s strong momentum, according to new data.

On Thursday, the Australian Bureau of Statistics data, released data on consumer spending in December, which suggests that retail spending during the month fell 0.7 per cent to $19.3 billion, after having posted an impressive gain of 1.5 per cent during November.

Despite tapering off in December, the quarter will still have made an important contribution to economic growth.

According to the data, department stores felt most of the decline, with sales falling by 3.5 per cent. C

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