Safety Tips For Online Banking

Safety Tips For Online Banking

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Online banking is the future. The majority of people already use online banking whether it's through an online web platform or through mobile apps. These resources are extremely user friendly and convenient, but they do come with security risks if you're not careful.

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We have some safety tips you should follow if you want to ensure your online banking accounts stay secure.

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• Downloading The Right Apps

If you're accessing an online banking website, it's crucial to ensure that the website is a safe legitimate one. If it is a fake malicious site, a cybercriminal could potentially steal your log-in information and access your real bank account on your behalf. The same goes for mobile banking apps. You need to ensure that you're downloading authentic bank apps from official app stores. This will limit your risk of downloading a fake banking app which could be potentially damaging to your financial accounts.

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• Use Secure Networks

Whenever you're accessing an online banking website or mobile app, pay attention to the network you're using. Are you on a virtual private network (VPN) or are you using free public WiFi? If you're trying to access your financial information in a public space, ensure you're not using public WiFi as it has limited to no security leaving an open attack surface. Try to only access sensitive information once you're using a safe and private network to reduce your risk of a breach.

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• Logging Out

This is one tip that many of us forget to do or neglect doing, but it's a very important one to remember! Always remember to logout of your banking accounts before exiting an app or closing your browser. This will ensure that your online banking account isn't still open for potential malicious actors to enter. It only takes 2 seconds, but it makes a huge impact!

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• Implement MFA

Two-factor authentication (2FA) or multi-factor authentication (MFA) is a great way to layer up your security on any system. By implementing 2FA or MFA on your online banking accounts, you could significantly reduce your risk of a breach in your systems. Not sure how it works? Try out an authenticator app from an official app store and see how you can add more levels of authentication to your systems!

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• Use Strong and Unique Passwords

This one goes without saying, always use strong and unique passwords for all of your systems, especially for accounts and systems that deal with private financial or personal information. Try to make your passwords at least 15 characters long with upper and lowercase letters, numbers and symbols. If you have trouble managing or generating your strong and unique passwords, try out a password management tool such as 1password or Lastpass.

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• Always Be Monitoring

The last tip is to always be monitoring! Keep an eye out for suspicious activity, the sooner you spot something fishy the quicker you can get the issue resolved which could reduce the damage massively. Make sure to always check your bank statements to ensure there isn't any strange unfamiliar purchases

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