October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month and the League of Southeastern Credit Unions & Affiliates (LSCU & Affiliates) is dedicated to helping you protect yourself online as threats continue to affect technology and confidential data.
Here are four ways you can protect yourself against cyberattacks:
- Enable Multi-Factor Authentication
If there’s ever an option to opt into a Multi-Factor Authentication for a website, utilize it to offer an extra level of protection. Sure, it may be annoying to receive a verification code every time you log into a website, but it will be more of a hassle in the long run if your information becomes stolen or compromised.
- Use Strong Passwords
It is always important to create passwords that are strong and have a variety of characters, numbers, and symbols. Using simple passwords like a pet’s name or 123 can be easily detected and your security could be in jeopardy.
- Monitor Your Activity
You might already closely follow your financial accounts, but it is important to keep an eye on any suspicious transactions that may occur on your financial statements during the holidays. If you think there might be a fraudulent charge on your account, notify your credit union immediately so they can prevent future loss on your end. Be mindful of small transactions that seem like nothing at first. Hackers like to test how much they can steal before making large transactions.
- Update Your Software
Staying on top of your system updates can be a huge help against cyber-attacks. These updates often release fixes for security issues. There is also a feature available for automatic updates, so you don’t have to worry about manually updating every time there’s a new solution.