How Can You Protect Your Financial Information?

Investments December 19, 2017

One of the perks of the Internet is that we can store all of our data and information online. The personal information and financial information enables us to transact online without the hassle of going to financial institutions, supermarkets, banks, or insurance companies. If we want to shop for products, we only need to browse through an online retail site and order the items we want to buy. Just put in our personal information such as address and our payment details and we’re done.

Our banks will do the transaction online and our items will be delivered to our doorstep. Or if we’re working online, we don’t need to go personally to an ATM machine to withdraw our salary. We can just do the online transfer and then we can pay our bills or shop items online. There’s no doubt that the online world offers great convenience in our lives. But before you become fully dependent and confident in sharing your details online, you might want to think twice. Why? It’s because your financial details might be at risk because of a recent controversial breach!

Top Credit Line Companies Reported Data Breach, Risking Their Customer’s Finances Online

It can be remembered that earlier this year, the world of finance and banking institutions was plunged into controversy after the three major credit line companies were compromised. This major data breach exposed around 143 million customers and subscribers worldwide. This staggering number of compromised accounts is also at risks not only in fraud but also in identity theft. It could mean that not only their financial information like credit lines, savings, and investments can be compromised but their Social Security too. Whether or not you’re one of those customers with compromised accounts, Equifax advised their valued customers to start protecting their financial information before it’s too late.

First Line of Defense: Use Strong Passwords

Strong Passwords are your First Line of Defense Against Fraud and Identity Theft

This advice may seem like overrated, especially since you’ve heard this every single time, but we cannot reiterate how most customers fail to follow this advice. One of the easiest ways to reach your financial data is through hacking. And hacking is possible if you choose a weak password. Don’t use a password like your name, email address, or phone number. Choose something that is hard for the hackers to guess. An example of a strong password is to use a combination of alphanumeric characters both in uppercase and lowercase and symbols. It may be difficult to remember these strong passwords, but it will help you in the future. You’d feel at ease knowing that your financial information is secure and protected.

Don’t Get Rid of Your Financial Documents Carelessly

Destory Documents with Sensitive Information Before Throwing It On Trash Bin

Destroy Documents with Sensitive Information Before Throwing It On Trash Bin

You might receive financial statements and receipts through your mail from financial institutions. These piles of papers then continue to accumulate and cover a portion of your house. What will you do, then? Normally, we’d get rid of those papers. We’ll throw them in our trash bin. What you didn’t know is that it only takes for one person to put your financial documents at stake. Who knows that the person who took care of your trash bin has an ill intention? Then your financial data will be at stake in no time.

Our solution? Make sure to shred your documents first before throwing them away. One simple way of shredding your document is to tear them into pieces. If you don’t want to deal with the hassle of tearing dozens of papers, you can buy a shredder for only $40. In this way, any document that is carrying your sensitive information is essentially destroyed before you throw them away.

Access Your Financial Portals Through Your Personal Devices Only

Access Websites on Secure Networks Only

The thought of accessing your financial sites, apps, or portals through public Wi-Fi seems appealing, after all, you have the convenience to access wherever you are, right? However, this might be the ticket to financial fraud. Why? It’s because most public WIFI and networks are often unencrypted. Once you access a site, you’ll be giving out your information to the public. That’s why as much as possible, we recommend you to only access your financial portal on your personal computer or handheld devices only. In this way, you’re sure that your network is secure and private.