National Cybersecurity Awareness Month
October 2020
While online banking has made the world of banking easier and more accessible for everyone, there are a lot of risks that come with it. Here at Ascension Credit Union, we do everything we can to make sure that our members stay safe while using our online banking. Here are four helpful tips to help make your online banking experience safer.
Beware of Public Wifi
It’s always convenient to have Wi-Fi while at a coffee shop, a fast food restaurant, or a grocery store. While public Wi-Fi can make things easier, it doesn’t always make things safer. A public Wi-Fi is an open network. This means that someone with the right skills could compromise your security. When you’re looking for the right network to connect to, make sure you’re connecting to legitimate ones. An easy way to tell if a Wi-Fi network isn’t real is if it says, “free Wi-Fi” and doesn’t require a password. When you’re done using the internet, log out of the sites or apps that you signed in to. You should also forget the network, so the next time you’re in the area, your devices won’t automatically connect without your knowledge.
Two Factor Authentication
Doing your banking online, even though it may not seem like it, leaves enough information out there for criminals to misuse without you even knowing. To lessen the danger, many popular banking apps make use of two-factor authentication to protect their customers. Two-factor authentication is a process that requires you to go through an additional step to authenticate who you are when doing a transaction. Different types of personal authentication include fingerprints, facial recognition, and a pin number. You can also sometimes have a verbal password on your account, but most financial institutions do not give you prompts to remember the password, so you have to have it memorized.
Dedicated Device
The goal here is to eliminate the threat at the source. If you only log on to your own personal cellphone or your own personal computer for financial transactions, that is the best way to stay safe. This tip is especially important for small businesses. Under the current law, a business is not protected by a bank when a hacker breaks into a business account. Avoiding logging on to your banking account on any other phone or computer, especially a public device.
Up to Date Software
The best way to stay safe when doing online banking — or really any kind of online activity — is to keep it up to date. Whether it is downloading an anti-virus program on your home computer or updating your mobile phone, keeping your device safe is an important part of protecting your online banking.
Ascension Credit Union is here to help.
If you have any questions or concerns while using our online banking, call us at 225-621-2800 or visit our website ascensioncu.org!
