How to Protect My Family’s Finances from Hackers

With the rise of technology, online security is more important than ever. Hackers are always developing new ways of compromising banking accounts. You do not want to be a victim of these cybercriminals, and most especially, you do not want your loved ones to fall in the trap. Thus,are there ways to make sure yours and your family’s finances are safe online?

There are many things you can do to protect your family from hackers. You can install the best antivirus, use a VPN to hide your IP, create strong passwords, and avoid clicking on bad links, etc. Read the entire guide to learn more.

Install the Best Antivirus

One of the effective ways of protecting your finances online is by installing good antimalware. A good antivirus will protect you from all malware created by hackers such as Trojans, Viruses, ransomware, adware, spyware, to name just a few.

The best antivirus comes with extra features to keep your online accounts safe from scams and other cybercriminals. Here are the features to look out for when buying one;

• Malware protection; a good antivirus program should offer protection against new and advanced forms of malware. Cybercriminals use this malware to steal your banking details such as passwords and usernames.

This protection will improve your device’s native security system. When your devices and online accounts are protected, it will be less likely that your credit card numbers will be exposed to hackers.

• Ransomware protection; ransomware is a type of malware that encrypts a victim’s files. The best antivirus will prevent your data from being held ransom.

• Phishing protection; it is so easy to click on a link that disguises as your bank. A good anti malware will warn you when you are about to enter into a fake site.

On a fake website, hackers entice you into entering sensitive information such as credit card details, email addresses and passwords. Hackers use this information to steal your money. With a good antivirus, hackers will not be able to steal this data.

You will also be warned if you receive fraudulent emails that look as if they are from a friend, a company or financial institutions.

Parental control features; since many kids are spending more time online, they need an antivirus that can keep them safe from predators, addictive apps, and hackers.  A good antimalware program has parental control features that can filter out offensive content, block tracking apps and give the exact location of your kids for proper monitoring.

Use a VPN to hide your IP address

Get a good VPN. It will increase your security on private and public internet connections making it hard for cybercriminals to steal your financial information.

With a VPN, your details, like your location revealed by your IP address, are hidden, so you can securely access websites, apps, entertainment and more. It offers online privacy. Your internet provider, tracking website and internet browsers cannot be able to tell what you are doing online or able to disclose your sensitive information.

With this program, you can share any file without worrying a hacker might know its content.

Use 2-Factor Authentication to Protect your Financial Accounts

One of the best ways of protecting your family from hackers is by using 2-factor authentication to secure their online accounts.  Usernames and passwords are no longer sufficient since hackers can guess them.

With multi-factor authentication or 2-factor authentication, you will be required to verify your identity either by use of a call, text, or a code being sent to your phone number.  This provides an extra layer of security to your online accounts.

This technology can use your fingerprint, voice, and facial recognition so as to verify your identity.  Many banking institutions are using this technology since it best secures your information online.

Create strong passwords

If you want your family to stay safe online, encourage them to create strong passwords for their online accounts. Strong passwords are hard to crack.  A strong password that can beat hackers has the following characteristics;

• Has 15 characters or even more
• Has a mix of numbers, letters, and characters. Don’t forget to include too uppercase and lowercase letters
• Avoid easy passwords such as 123, admin
• Avoid using your names, phone numbers and your birth date as your password. Do not use passwords that you have used before or use for your other online accounts.

Remember, the best passwords will thwart brute force and make your accounts hard to break.

Educating Kids

The more your kids know about online safety the better they will be equipped to deal doing their part.  They will more easily understand the dangers of financial hacking when they first respect the value of money.  You can also start simply by teaching kids how to use online finances responsibly.