Going digital has invigorated the already dynamic world of investment and finance. It’s also leveled the playing field, allowing solo investors and smaller firms to establish themselves alongside old behemoths.
Such progress brings a set of new challenges to overcome, with cybercrime being at the top of the list of concerns. What steps should the security-conscious online investor take to safeguard their assets? This article covers all the practical advice you’ll need.
Choose a Reputable Brokerage Firm
Individual investors can make adjustments to their behaviors and start using several tools to reduce cybercrime risk. However, none of these can be effective if the brokerage firm they do business with has substandard cybersecurity.
Before entrusting your savings or a fund’s assets to an online broker, you should thoroughly vet their cybersecurity posture.
- How seriously do they take digital asset protection?
- Is cyber threat awareness at the management level, i.e., does the firm employ a chief information security officer?
- Are related policies easily available to the public and transparent?
- Does the brokerage have a demonstrable record of effectively dealing with cyber threats?
Only proceed if you find satisfactory answers to these questions. After all, you’ll want the most competent partner when it comes to addressing security issues that are beyond your control.
Secure Your Accounts with a Password Manager
Data breaches are a growing concern large companies and small investors ignore at their peril. More worryingly, the credentials such an attack exposes don’t need a direct connection to your investment or financial accounts for the culprits to gain unauthorized access to them.
How is this possible? By using the same logins for multiple accounts. One would think that people would take extra care when coming up with usernames and passwords for their most prized accounts, but convenience often trumps prudence.
Entrusting password generation and storage to a password manager is straightforward and much more secure. They create elaborate, one-of-a-kind passwords and can autofill them as needed without exposing the data. A single subscription covers multiple devices, so you can monitor markets or conduct trades from the office or on the go.
Use Multi-Factor Authentication
Complex passwords prevent brute force account takeovers. However, they can still be a liability if you don’t store them correctly or give them out carelessly. Implementing multi-factor authentication is the logical follow-up, which is why the best password managers integrate it into their feature set.
MFA uses biometrics, physical tokens, or time-sensitive codes as an extra barrier before allowing account access from unknown devices or locations. Stealing a password doesn’t impact the authentication’s second step, making it possible to recover an account and keep it safe.
Monitor Your Accounts
The act of hacking an account isn’t the same as exploiting it. The crooks could lay low and only siphon funds from it or make trades of their own when they think it’s safe. Regularly monitoring account activity is the only way to detect and stop this.
Go over your reports and financial statements, looking for unauthorized trades and other inconsistencies. If you spot any, you should immediately contact your brokerage firm and banks to freeze accounts and accessible assets until you resolve the issue.
Boost Your Cybersecurity Knowledge
Bad actors might actively try to tamper with your investments. However, they’re far less likely to succeed if you educate yourself on cybersecurity best practices and use common sense. Many people fall victim to email scams, especially now that we freely share so much sensitive data, and AI enables scammers to draft convincing emails. Learn how to recognize spear phishing attempts and limit your digital footprint to thwart such attacks.
Start Using a Reputable VPN
You’re likely already taking steps to secure your laptop, phone, etc. If not, installing antimalware and ensuring your operating systems & programs are always updated is straightforward and impactful.
Fewer people pay attention to network security. There’s a world of difference between accessing sensitive financial information from your company network and via free Wi-Fi courtesy of your favorite restaurant. The latter’s suspect security and open nature means anyone with basic know-how can access and monitor traffic. That includes any potential credentials or confidential info someone foolish enough to go in unprotected could reveal.
Using a VPN for all your online dealings is an indispensable security precaution. VPNs protect and encrypt all internet activity, making unauthorized access to any data you enter, look up, or share impossible. Moreover, VPNs prevent ISP tracking, targeted advertising, and other inconveniences that could jeopardize your anonymity.
While the market is brimming with options, make sure to subscribe to a provider knowing all the features and properties they offer. For that, you can use the VPN comparison table on Reddit and evaluate your options better.
Conclusion
Crooks who’ve taken their shady practices online have it in for investors. After all, what could be more enticing than a mark with large financial responsibilities and no idea of how to tackle challenges their area of expertise doesn’t cover? Knowledge and decisive action are your best defense. We hope this article has convinced you to arm yourself with both.
Discussion about this post