Online Mobile Banking Security Tips

Online & Mobile Banking Security Tips

We are committed to helping ensure the safety of your financial identity, your financial assets, and your personal information, but we need your help. We ask that you observe the following best practices to help make online and mobile banking as secure as possible.

  1. Never click on a URL in an email, even if it looks like it’s from a trusted source – Although the email and link might look legitimate, a potential malicious link may take you somewhere you don’t want to go. Always retype the URL into your computer before using it or bookmark your bank’s actual authenticated site, especially if you are using it for an online transaction or to provide sensitive information.

  2. Be alert for suspicious emails – Don’t respond to suspicious emails that claim to be from your bank, the IRS or any other company requesting your account details. No bank or government agency is ever likely to approach you this way to ask for personal information. A quick glance at the email address might help determine validity—if a company name is misspelled or the email is from a public domain, it’s probably not a legitimate email.

  3. Verify email attachments – It’s never a good idea to click on email attachments, links or free software from unknown sources. This includes those embedded in messages from social networking sites, even if they appear to be from a friend. You could end up exposing your computer (and the information on it) to online fraud and theft.

  4. Watch what you share on social media – The more you post about yourself on social networking sites, the easier it might be for someone to use that information to access your accounts, steal your identity and more. Maximizing your privacy settings on social networking sites can also help protect your personal information.

  5. Protect your information – keep personal info personal. Do not share your personal information. Even if it sounds legitimate, if someone calls and asks for sensitive information from you, hang up and call your bank using the bank’s phone number on file. Your bank will never call and ask you to share your Credit Card Verification (CVV) code, your credit or debit card number, or your pin number.

  6. Avoid using public computers or WiFi when banking online – Use a virtual private network, your cellular network or your own home’s WiFi to access the internet when online banking.

  7. Diversify your passwords – Avoid using identical or similar passwords between your social media accounts, your personal email accounts, and your online banking accounts. Otherwise, if and when less secure systems are compromised, it’ll be that much easier to compromise your other data.

  8. Enable Multi Factor Authentication – Multi-factor authentication (MFA) provides an extra layer of security for accessing your online accounts. Therefore, be sure to enable MFA on all social media, email and banking systems.

  9. Never provide your one-time passcode (PIN) – Fraudsters will attempt to trick you into divulging your PIN by pretending to be an authorized Bank employee calling you about a potential fraud. Remember, Luther Burbank Savings will never ask you for your multi-factor authentication (PIN).

  10. Actively monitor your account – Check your online banking account often. Banks are good at recognizing fraud, but they might not always spot every questionable transaction among every customer. Review your account frequently to quickly spot any suspicious account activity.

  11. Pay and receive money only with people you know – Many online and mobile banking tools allow you to send and receive payments to and from others. If you don’t know the recipient, you shouldn’t use online or mobile banking to make a payment. These transactions are risky, similar to how sending cash to a person you don’t know is risky. You should exclusively send money to friends, family or people you trust with online and mobile banking.

  12. Set up email or text alerts – Alerts can give you immediate notice of suspicious activity on your account.

  13. Do not overlook your mobile device – Your mobile should be treated like your personal computer. Security on a mobile device, such as a smartphone or tablet, has become increasingly important in protecting your personal and account information. The collection of an increasing amount of sensitive information through apps, communications, and operating systems puts anyone at greater risk.

  14. Think before you download apps – Remember, Luther Burbank Savings mobile banking are only available at App Store and Google Play.  Downloading apps from an unauthorized website may lead to your information being compromised.

  15. Keep your contact info current – Don’t forget to notify your bank if you move, change your primary email address, or get a new phone number. Contact information can be updated through online banking.

  16. Replace your mailed paper statement with online statements to lower your risk of identity theft – Declutter your mailbox and eliminate the danger of having personal information readily available to thieves, who can reach into a mailbox mid-day and retrieve a target’s mail.