Five Easy Ways to Boost Your Security in Online Banking

June 26, 2024

By K-Staff

Insighter, Security

1. Use multi-factor authentication.

If you have your account set up to only use your user ID and password for online banking access, you could be putting yourself at risk of having your account accessed by fraudsters without your knowledge. Multi-factor authentication makes it much more difficult for criminals to log in, as you need an additional piece of information to complete the log-in process.

Kirtland CU Online Banking allows you to set up authentication by phone call or text message, by email, or by an authenticator app like Google Authenticator or Microsoft Authenticator.

It is important to remember that you should never share any passcode you receive for your online banking account with anyone who asks for this information. Kirtland CU will never ask for passcodes for online banking – if you receive a communication claiming to be from Kirtland asking for this, it is likely a fraudster attempting to trick you into giving up access to your account.

2. Use long and complex passwords.

The longer a password, the harder it is for criminals to bypass with brute force, because each additional character increases the possibilities of what a password is exponentially. A 12-character password takes 62 trillion times longer to crack than a 6-character password. Additionally, making passwords more complex by using special characters and numbers helps make the task of cracking a password even more difficult.

Don’t re-use passwords across multiple account logins – this will help mitigate possible damage if one of your accounts is somehow compromised through a data breach. If you need assistance keeping your passwords organized, a password manager like 1Password is quite helpful – all you need to do is remember a master password, and the password manager can suggest strong passwords and store those passwords for whenever you need them.

3. Set up account alerts.

Kirtland CU Online and Mobile Banking allow you to create account alerts by email or text message so you can know when specific events – such as a large withdrawal or if your account goes below a specific balance – occur, giving you time to protect your accounts and stop further fraudulent activity.

4. Keep your anti-virus and malware software current.

If you’re connected to the Internet, you should have a reliable anti-virus suite installed to prevent viruses and malware from impacting your computer performance and leaving you vulnerable to takeovers or other methods of collecting your personal information.

However, an anti-virus suite is only as reliable as its virus definition updates. Make sure your software is fully updated, and that it has the latest set of virus definitions installed.

5. Don't use public Wi-Fi networks for private business.

If you’re connected to an open public network, you should assume that someone could be seeing what you send online. Instead, use your cellular data plan or a VPN if you need to check in on private business (like banking) away from home. Ideally, you should use your home network (secured with passwords only you know) to be most safe while conducting private business.

Sources:

https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/banking/online-banking-security

https://jumpcloud.com/blog/password-length-better-than-complexity

https://jumpcloud.com/blog/nist-800-63-password-guidelines

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-mathematics-of-hacking-passwords/

Welcome To The Insighter!

Five Easy Ways to Boost Your Security in Online Banking

1. Use multi-factor authentication.

2. Use long and complex passwords.

3. Set up account alerts.

4. Keep your anti-virus and malware software current.

5. Don't use public Wi-Fi networks for private business.

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