For the past five days now, I've used this space to give you tips on how to keep The Sovereign Society's top 10 New Year's resolutions. Over the past week, you've heard about how to...

1. Open an offshore bank account
2. Expect and secure better returns offshore
3. Diversify your assets into different currencies
4. Minimize your tax bills by living or investing abroad
5. Purchase hard metals as a hedge against the falling dollar

You've reached the halfway mark- Congratulations! Let's keep up the momentum.

Our 6th New Years resolution is about determining if a trust would be the right asset protection solution for you.

So what's the point of an offshore asset protection trust?

For starters, it protects your assets better than any domestic trust ever can simply because it is located outside your home country. Distance makes the trust grow stronger. And that includes protection from creditors. In many cases, foreign courts in "asset havens" won't recognize U.S. court orders. A foreign judgment creditor seeking your assets must argue their claim in the local asset haven's courts after hiring local lawyers.

Other benefits include...

1. Minimal Requirements: Offshore trusts don't have to be complicated.
2. Confidentiality: These secure stronger financial privacy.
3. Estate Planning: Minimize estate taxes for your spouse.
4. Investment Potential: An offshore asset protection trust can be your platform for more diversified investments.

To learn more, scan The Sovereign Society website at Home for some information in past A-Letters and Sovereign Individual articles.

If you are interested in a trust, you should check with a tax attorney in your home country to find out if a trust makes sense for you. Make sure to ask about any potential tax liabilities and all reporting requirements to your home country.

And if you're ready to pursue your own asset protection trust, our trust report can help you find the right trust professionals, jurisdictions, and other information to make it happen. Click here to learn more.

ERIKA NOLAN, Executive Director

Computer hackers, increasingly tied to organized crime rings, have begun targeting online investment accounts. And if they target your account, your broker may not be required to reimburse you for your losses.

Just ask Joe Lopez. He regularly uses online services from Bank of America to send and receive money internationally to and from his business account. But in April 2004, he discovered an unauthorized wire transfer for US$90,348 sent to a bank in Latvia. Lopez notified police, who with the aid of the U.S. Secret Service performed a forensic examination of his PC. There, they discovered a "Trojan Horse" program called Coreflood that permits an outsider to take over a PC.

Bank of America disavowed responsibility, prompting Lopez to sue the bank to get his money back. The case is still pending. "We fully investigated his claims and determined that all of our internal protocols and security measures were in place," says Shirley Norton, a Bank of America spokeswoman.

Even though the theft from Lopez' account took place more than three years ago, many online banks and brokerages still have a "blame the customer" mentality. While consumers are protected by federal laws that limit their fraud losses in most cases to US$50, business customers like Lopez have no such protection. In addition, online brokerage customers, both consumer and business, have no legal protections whatsoever beyond that provided by the broker itself. In some cases, that protection doesn't amount to much at all.

That was the situation faced by Dave DeSmidt, a customer of J.P. Morgan & Co., who lost 25 years of retirement savings on October 23, 2006. One moment, DeSmidt had $179,000 in his 401(k) retirement account. The next, he had nothing.

Morgan concluded that the break-in wasn't their fault and dismissed any responsibility to reimburse DeSmidt for his loss. The conclusion of an investigative report sent to DeSmidt was: "Investigation Status: Closed." However, DeSmidt continued to pressure J.P. Morgan for answers and the investigation was reopened. And just last month, J.P. Morgan told him the stolen funds had been recovered and would be credited to his account.

How can you protect yourself from this kind of fraud? Short of abandoning the convenience of online banking or brokerage accounts, you should first review the service contract with your online bank or brokerage service to see what their policy is concerning fraudulent access to your account. Second, make certain that you're using up-to-date firewall and anti-virus software. (Zone Labs has some excellent offerings in this area. http://www.zonelabs.com ) Third, change passwords frequently. You should do this at least once a month. Finally, log on to your account regularly, even if you're not making a transaction, to make certain that no funds are missing.

I suspect that Congress will eventually get around to enacting legislation that will provide more robust legal protections for consumers-and perhaps businesses as well-against online fraud. But until it does, it's up to you to protect yourself.

MARK NESTMANN, Privacy Expert &
President of The Nestmann Group
www.nestmann.com