Sparkassen-Kunden aufgepasst: Diese E-Mail will Ihre Bankdaten stehlen – so erkennen Sie die Falle

Von: Lara Hempel

Sparkassen-Kunden erhalten eine offizielle wirkende E-Mail – doch hinter der Bitte um Datenabgleich steckt eine durchdachte Falle.

Wer ein Konto bei der Sparkasse hat, sollte derzeit genau hinsehen, wenn eine E-Mail im Postfach landet. Kriminelle haben eine neue Masche entwickelt, die täuschend echt aussieht. Sie ahmen das Erscheinungsbild der Sparkasse nach und wollen damit an etwas gelangen, das für Kontoinhaber besonders heikel ist: ihre Online-Banking-Zugangsdaten. Die Verbraucherzentrale hat die Warnmeldung kürzlich in ihrem Phishing-Radar veröffentlicht.   

Unter dem Deckmantel einer Sicherheitsprüfung greifen Kriminelle nach den Kontodaten von Sparkassen-Kunden. © Thomas Trutschel/photothek/Imago

Die betrügerischen E-Mails tragen den Betreff „Verifizierung erforderlich“ und behaupten, die bei der Sparkasse hinterlegten Daten müssten aktualisiert werden. Dazu wird ein Link mitgeschickt, über den Kunden die angebliche Sicherheitsprüfung durchführen sollen. Der eigentliche Zweck: Wer klickt, landet auf einer gefälschten Seite und gibt dort unwissentlich seine sensiblen Zugangsdaten preis. Laut der Verbraucherzentrale handelt es sich um einen klassischen Phishing-Versuch, bei dem Betrüger im Namen eines seriösen Unternehmens auftreten, um Vertrauen zu erschleichen.   

So erkennen Sparkassen-Kunden die Phishing-Mail

Die Verbraucherzentrale benennt in ihrem Phishing-Radar mehrere eindeutige Warnsignale: Die Absenderadresse sei unseriös und halte einer näheren Prüfung nicht stand. Zudem werden Empfänger nicht mit ihrem Namen angesprochen, sondern schlicht mit „Hallo“ begrüßt, ein deutliches Zeichen für einen Massenversand. Echte Bankschreiben enthalten stets eine persönliche Anrede. Hinzu kommt die Aufforderung, über einen in der Mail enthaltenen Link zu handeln. Das ist bei legitimen Bankkommunikationen grundsätzlich nicht üblich.

Besonders tückisch ist der künstliche Zeitdruck. Die E-Mail droht damit, dass eine Bestätigung nach dem 2. August 2026 auf digitalem Weg nicht mehr möglich sei. Danach werde angeblich ein persönlicher Besuch in der Filiale nötig. Diese Frist soll Empfänger in Panik versetzen und zu übereiltem Handeln verleiten. Wer unsicher ist, sollte mögliche Hinweise ausschließlich über die offizielle Sparkassen-App, das Online-Banking-Portal oder die bekannte Webseite der Bank prüfen. Eine weitere Betrugsmasche aktuell: Dieser Betrug mit Amazon-Paketen läuft gerade deutschlandweit.   

Bank-Warnung: 7 typische Merkmale betrügerischer E-Mails sofort erkennen

Fotostrecke ansehen

Wer bereits auf einen Link geklickt und Daten eingegeben hat, sollte sofort handeln: Das Bundesamt für Sicherheit in der Informationstechnik rät, das Bankkonto unverzüglich über den Sperr-Notruf 116 116 sperren zu lassen, die Bank zu kontaktieren und Anzeige bei der Polizei zu erstatten. Selbst bei bloßem Verdacht lohnt es sich, die Zugangsdaten zu ändern und Kontobewegungen aufmerksam zu beobachten. Übrigens sind nicht nur Phishing-Mails ein Problem, auch auf der Straße lauern Betrüger: Die Polizei warnt aktuell vor der perfiden „Autobahn-Goldmasche“.

Ratten im Garten vertreiben: Experten empfehlen Pflanzen statt Fallen

Stand:03.08.2026, 15:49 Uhr

Ratten im Garten sind ein ernstes Problem – doch Fallen müssen nicht sein. Experten setzen auf natürliche Methoden, die wirklich funktionieren.

Sobald die Temperaturen steigen, verbringen viele Menschen mehr Zeit im Garten oder auf der Terrasse. Doch mit den warmen Monaten kommen auch ungebetene Gäste: Ratten und Mäuse tauchen in Grünanlagen auf und können nicht nur Pflanzen erheblich beschädigen, sondern auch Krankheiten übertragen. Wer Ratten im Garten vertreiben möchte, muss dabei nicht zwingend zur Falle greifen.  Ratten werden vor allem durch drei Dinge angelockt: Nahrung, Wasser und Unterschlupf. Offene Müllbehälter, Komposthaufen, heruntergefallene Früchte oder stehengelassenes Haustierfutter wirken auf Nager wie ein gedeckter Tisch. Dicht bewachsene Ecken, gestapeltes Holz oder ungenutzte Schuppen bieten willkommene Verstecke. Hat eine Ratte erst eine solche Komfortzone entdeckt, siedelt sie sich schnell an. Die gute Nachricht: Mit einigen gezielten Maßnahmen lässt sich das verhindern. Wer verdächtige Löcher im Gartenboden entdeckt, sollte rasch handeln, denn Ratten richten an Gemüsebeeten großen Schaden an

Eine aufgeräumte Gartenanlage ist die wichtigste Basis gegen Ratten

Der erste und wirksamste Schritt ist das Beseitigen aller Nahrungsquellen und Verstecke. Müllbeutel sollten niemals offen im Garten liegen, stattdessen sollten verschließbare Mülleimer eingesetzt werden. Wer draußen isst, sollte Speisereste konsequent aufräumen und Futternäpfe von Haustieren nach dem Füttern wieder ins Haus holen.   

Pflanzen und andere Methoden helfen gegen Ratten oft besser als Fallen. © Jens Kalaene/dpa/dpa-tmn

Auch regelmäßige Gartenpflege zahlt sich aus: Heruntergefallene Früchte gehören unverzüglich entfernt, Sträucher und Pflanzen sollten regelmäßig zurückgeschnitten werden, damit keine dunklen Rückzugsorte entstehen. Wer seinen Garten sauber hält, macht ihn für Ratten schlicht unattraktiv.

Regelmäßige Kontrolle: So erkennen Sie Rattenbefall früh

Denver Urban Gardens (DUG), eine gemeinnützige Organisation zur Unterstützung von Gemeinschaftsgärten, hat einen Ratgeber veröffentlicht, der konkrete Empfehlungen zur Vorbeugung von Nagetieren enthält. Demnach ist das Frühjahr, noch vor der neuen Bepflanzungssaison, der ideale Zeitpunkt für eine gründliche Inspektion des Gartens.

HOW DOES MUSIC BRING US TOGETHER?

By

 Klaus Döring

 -

Monday, August 3, 2026

MUSIC brings us together by releasing feel-good chemicals in the brain, such as dopamine, oxytocin and endorphins. It synchronizes our heart rates and brainwaves through rhythm and creates shared emotional experiences during cultural and social events.

Within the home, music creates a deeper emotional connection. Whether through the first instances of musical bonding between a mother and her infant or through listening to music together as a family, it fosters family identity and social closeness—bonds that can last throughout a child’s life.

Is music important in your life? If you ask me, the answer is yes! Music can improve your health and well-being.
A Harvard study has shown that relaxing music may lower blood pressure and heart rate after physical exertion. It can also improve one’s mood and reduce anxiety. By bringing people together, music can also serve as an antidote to loneliness and social isolation.

Music is also a creative outlet. It gives people from all social and cultural backgrounds an opportunity to express themselves.
Whether they seek to convey a political message or a particular emotion—or simply create for the sheer joy of it—musicians have used sound and music since the dawn of humankind to express themselves and make their voices heard.

Then there is another side of music in family life: the heckling. “Is that music, or can it be deleted?”
I remember the irritation on my parents’ faces—as if they were looking into a broken mirror! Once upon a time, we, too, went crazy listening to the sounds of our idols. In my case, that was sometime during the 1960s and 1970s.
I felt “satisfaction” while listening to the Rolling Stones or dancing to the Beatles. I had feverish dreams with Pink Floyd and could not contain myself when listening to “Da Da Da,” part of the German New Wave that later swept across the world—yes, even reaching the Philippines.
Today, we have become the parents of another younger generation. Is there room for a diplomatic discussion? What music is popular nowadays?
Rap or house? Or something like that? Is it noise, din, racket and fuss—or simply damage to my own musical sensibilities?
I remember harmonious chords played on flutes and my accordion. Later, I found myself at the piano….

How important is music to our existence? Our underfunded music curricula cannot answer that question adequately. Even some recent efforts to validate music have backfired. Consider the famous “Mozart effect” study. Using faulty science, the study sought to demonstrate music’s usefulness by proving that it improved students’ performance in “more important” subjects! “Think how absurd this would sound if we turned it inside out,” Daniel Levitin pointed out in his book This Is Your Brain on Music. “If I claimed that studying mathematics helped musical ability, would policy makers start pumping money into math for that reason? Music has often been the poor stepchild of public schools, the first program to get cut when there are funding problems, and people frequently try to justify it in terms of its collateral benefits, rather than letting music exist for its own rewards.”

What type of music connects people? The fusion of genres such as hip-hop and reggae has created new subcultures and communities of fans. Throughout history, music has also been used to advance social change and political movements. It has the power to inspire and mobilize people to take action and make a difference.
Two generations—perhaps even three by now—can come together through music. Let us strike the right chord, no matter which generation we belong to.

***

Email: doringklaus@gmail.com, follow me on Facebook, LinkedIn or X (formerly Twitter), or visit www.germanexpatinthephilippines.blogspot.com or www.klausdoringsclassicalmusic.blogspot.com./PN

Our Breaking Point(s)

 

Our Bureaus

ANTIQUE

Albert Mamora

+63 906 384 5940

BACOLOD

Dolly Yasa

+63 920 592 7958

BORACAY

Sherryl M. Abbey

+63 998 392 2913

ROXAS

Ariel Inocencio

+63 910 961 6271

KALIBO

Nathan Candelario

268-5200

By Klaus Döring

A breaking point is a moment when there’s so much stress or pressure that mental or physical strength just can’t hold up.

A breaking point is a moment of greatest strain. Interestingly enough, the breaking points are the moments in which we need to stay calmer. Research shows that trying to control every event increases our stress.

A breaking point is a moment of stress in which we break down — it feels like you are never going to get back up again. We are more than under pressure — the situation becomes critical for our survival. Everyone faces a breaking point — we all get there in distinct ways.

A breakeven point is when total costs and total revenue are equal. It’s the sales level you need to reach to cover all of your costs. Your business cannot be profitable until it has reached this point.

“Breaking point” refers to the stage where an individual’s ability to cope with stress, pressure, or a difficult situation is overwhelmed, leading to a loss of control or a critical situation. It can manifest as a mental or emotional breakdown, or as a point where a situation becomes untenable and requires immediate change.

Situational stress: A relationship, a job, or a challenging project could reach a breaking point where it becomes unsustainable.

Cumulative stress: A breaking point can also be the result of prolonged, low-grade stress that gradually builds up over time, eventually reaching a threshold.

In essence, a breaking point is a point of no return where the individual or situation can no longer withstand the existing pressure or stress. It can be a catalyst for positive change, forcing a reevaluation of priorities and leading to necessary adjustments.

When I hear the word breaking point I usually think that it’s like a bomb that anytime might explode. For me, to be in my breaking point is the state of being exhausted in everything. Thinking that it’s time to end something… Most people think that when we say we are in our breaking point it’s easy to come up with a negative idea yet sometimes breaking point is not only to end something because you are exhausted, we can revise it in a positive thinking like breaking point can be a new beginning for us to be able to begin a new life with a weapon and that is our learning from our breaking point.

In human psychology, the breaking point is a moment of stress at which a person breaks down and is unable to cope with it. This obviously varies from individual to individual.

I got my first breaking point as a German expatriate in the Philippines as a result of culture shocks. This was a long time ago and very much different from today’s situation.  Meanwhile I have been living here smooth and sound for several years.

Nowadays, many people are  experiencing mood changes. Indeed, the emotional effects of stress can have a serious impact on your day-to-day mood and mental health. Firstly, you may find that you’re feeling more irritated or pessimistic than usual. This mood change can then begin to affect your motivation to work, socialise with your loved ones or complete the things on your to-do list. If left unchecked, these feelings can threaten to completely overwhelm you, leaving you feeling apathetic, depressed, frustrated, panicky or trapped.

If you’ve been asking yourself, “How do I fix my relationship?,” you may already be at a breaking point. A breaking point is when an argument or disagreement starts to become invasive in your life. Is it impacting your other relationships? Is it impacting your work? Is it impacting your health?

A lot of people around me can’t seem to focus or concentrate properly. If you’re battling to concentrate, keep focused or remember certain things, this is a good indication that you’re feeling the effects of anxiety. These changes in thinking and memory (also known as “brain fog”) can occur when you’re trying to manage several stressful situations at once, which can make you confused and forgetful. These situations may include demanding jobs or emotionally-taxing tasks. Unregulated emotional exhaustion can really impact your attention, executive functioning (organizing and planning), and memory.

A lot of people are expressing  difficulty with personal relationships. You’ll often notice emotional exhaustion from prolonged stress manifesting in your relationship and your capacity to connect with your family on a meaningful emotional level. You may find yourself picking fights over small things, feeling angry at or unsatisfied with your partner or being overly judgmental. Tension in your close relationships can cause you to feel anxious, detached, and withdrawn which can make it difficult to ask for emotional support when you need it or be there for those you love.

Low self-esteem is being reported a lot these days. If lately you’ve found your mind overwhelmed with negative thoughts, you’ve probably also noticed their impact on how you view yourself. Perhaps you’re feeling more cynical and hopeless than usual? Or maybe you’ve lacked confidence in situations where you would normally speak up. At times, you may even have found yourself wondering if what you’re doing even matters anymore. It is important to recognize these changes. If left unchecked, these feelings may progress into symptoms of depression.

To stay in balance you need to turn these behaviors around. The smallest changes make a difference, but pay attention to changes that aren’t so small, like getting enough sleep (without drugs), dealing with your anger and anxiety before they erupt, moving around during the day, making time to play, eating sensibly and simply being with yourself.

I learned that prevention is the best medicine. Reaching your breaking point means that you’ve crossed into the red zone, from which it’s hard to return. You won’t get to your red zone if you apply the habits of self-care I’ve just listed. The choice is really yours. Medical research has abundantly validated that being in balance is the healthiest way to live. Spend the next two weeks getting back into balance. You’ll be amazed and pleased with the results. I adopted a certain “Bahala-na”-emotion especially when it comes to “bad news”. I enjoy playing my piano and listening to wonderful relaxing music. I enjoy staying together with my family. I talked to God.

***

Email:doringklaus@gmail.com or follow me on Facebook or Linkedin or visit my www.germanexpatinthephilippines.blogspot.com or www.klausdoringsclassicalmusic.blogspot.com