When armed with the right knowledge, you can better protect yourself from cybercrime. According to antivirus software provider Norton, “…online criminals are trying to make their money as quickly and easily as possible. The more difficult you make their job, the more likely they are to leave you alone and move on to an easier target.”1 Below are some tips for ways you can protect yourself from cybercrime.
Passwords & Protecting Your Accounts
- Best practice dictates you should change your password every 90 days. A strong password should be at least 8 characters long and use a combination of upper and lower case letters, numbers and symbols.1
- Keep your passwords in a safe place and use different passwords for each of your online accounts.1
- Enable two-step verification whenever possible to protect online accounts, including your email, e-commerce, social media and financial/banking accounts.2
Software Security & Protecting Your Devices
- Ensure you have the proper security software in place. This includes having a secure firewall and installing antivirus programs with automatic updates to eliminate malware, adware, viruses and other malicious programs.1
- Ignore pop-ups as they can contain malicious software.
- Do not open emails, click on links or download files from unknown senders.
Protecting Your Personal Information
- Use secure sites when sharing personal information. You should look for sites with “https”, or sites with a small lock icon in the bottom right corner of your browser window.1
- Be cognizant when using public Wi-Fi as most Wi-Fi hotspots do not encrypt data. Once the information leaves your device, any unencrypted data could potentially be intercepted by an intruder.2
Monitoring Your Financial Accounts
- You should check your accounts on a regular basis, and add alerts to your online accounts to stay on top of any irregular activity.
- Be cautious of emails containing wire payment instructions. Before making any payments, verify the credibility of the request by phone using a number from a trusted source.
If you’ve been the victim of cybercrime and are looking for a way to supplement lost funds, a reverse mortgage may be able to help. A Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM), commonly known as a reverse mortgage, is a Federal Housing Administration insured loan. A HECM enables seniors to access a portion of their home’s equity to obtain tax free3 funds without having to make monthly mortgage payments.4
If you’d like to learn more about reverse mortgages and see if you’re eligible, please use our Reverse Mortgage Calculator or call 800-218-1415.
1 Prevention Tips – norton.com, http://us.norton.com/cybercrime-prevention.
2 Staying Safe on Public Wi-Fi – cnet.com, by Lexy Savvides, 6/3/15, http://www.cnet.com/how-to/tips-to-stay-safe-on-public-wi-fi/.
3 Consult your financial advisor and appropriate government agencies for any effect on taxes or government benefits.
4 You must live in the home as your primary residence, continue to pay required property taxes, homeowners insurance and maintain the home according to Federal Housing Administration requirements.
Author: Meredith Manz