Be Secure With Online Banking

Practically everybody engages in online banking everyday.  It’s just a faster and simpler way to  pay bills, or manage your accounts, and just generally keep track of your money.  But the thing most people don’t even consider is how easily that information could be used to harm you if you aren’t careful.  In favor of convenience for ourselves, we’ve also made things easier for identity thieves, when it comes to stealing your personal information.  Your online accounting information is invaluable, and there’s almost no limit to the ways that a good thief could use that against you.

Before you even start online banking with a certain bank, you should do a little research.  Go to the FDIC website, and find out if your bank is insured for it’s deposits with the US Government.  If you find that the bank is not protected this way, you probably want to take your serious business elsewhere.  If something with identity theft happens to you, there’s almost no guarantee you can get that money back if your bank is not FDIC insured.  Whereas an FDIC insured bank has your deposits protected with the government itself, so it may take a little work after your identity is stolen, but you’ll get everything back in the end.

Take advantage of the convenience factor of banking online, and try and check your statements every few days.  Verify that all activity on your account is accurate, and approved by you.  If you find something that doesn’t belong, you have the first 60 days to file a claim and the bank is legally required to investigate the claim.  But if you try to file a claim after the first 60 days since the purchase was made, the bank has no obligation to investigate.  So keep on top of things!

The last part of safe online banking is how you protect your personal information.  Your bank handles security on their end, so you should trust their safeguards.  As for yourself, pick a password that nobody else would know or be able to guess.  Never write it down or tell anyone your password.  Keep your computer safe by performing regular virus scans, as some viruses have key loggers.  From the use of a key logger a hacker can find out every keystroke you’ve made on your computer since the virus installed.  Which means if you’ve visited your banking site after getting a virus, they could discover your password.

So keep your protection current, protect that password, and choose an FDIC insured bank.