Protect Yourself From Cyberattacks

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The Colonial Pipeline and JBS Meat Packing Co. cyberattacks were a wakeup call for all of us. They impacted all of us and it came out of nowhere. You may be asking yourself, “if those corporations are not safe from hackers, how could I possibly be safe?” Well, you can take a couple of steps to make sure your information doesn’t get in the wrong hands.
 

1. Layer Your Protection

We all get into the habit of creating easy passwords with our names and birthdates because they’re easy to remember, but that’s our number one mistake! Come up with a strong P@$sw0Rd that incorporates letters, numbers, and symbols to make it harder to crack. If a website or app has multifactor authentication, use it! It seems like a lot of work, but would you rather go through multiple verification steps to make sure your information is safe, or would you rather a hacker steal all of your information?

2. Be Alert!

Check your accounts daily! Make sure all your money adds up and you don't see any weird or suspicious transactions. 

3. Look out for Phishing Attempts*

Hackers will always try to mimic a company email in order to get you to click on links. This can be a small change like .com instead of .org at the end of an email. Before you click on any links check these items off first:

    • Am I expecting this email? If so, did they mention any links I have to click?
    • Do I know the person with this email?
    • Read the email address carefully. Google the company and check the email address if you’re unsure.
    • If you’re still unsure, DON’T CLICK ON THE LINKS!
Though they may seem miniscule, layering your protection, checking your important information, and looking out for phishing attempts is a small task to making sure your information is secure. We put all of our trust on websites and apps we regularly use to protect our information, but the truth of the matter is that our information is only safe to an extent. WE have to take action to protect our information, not leave it up to the large companies to protect it for us, because they’re not immune from hackers either.
 
 *New Horizons Credit Union has a system that monitors members' accounts for possible fraud. You may be contacted if fraud is suspected on your account. However, NHCU will never ask for a personal information such as online credentials, your entire card number, account number, or social security number via email or text message.

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