Читать книгу Investing All-in-One For Dummies - Eric Tyson - Страница 115

The attractions of banking online are pretty obvious. For starters, it can be enormously convenient, as you bank when you want on your computer or smartphone. You don’t have to find a local bank branch during their limited open hours. And thanks to their lower overhead, the best online banks are able to offer competitive interest rates and account terms to their customers.

You probably know from experience that conducting any type of transaction online is safe as long as you use some common sense and know who you’re doing business with before you go forward. That said, others who’ve gone before you have gotten ripped off, and you do need to protect yourself.

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FIGURE 4-1: A sample Truth in Savings Disclosure statement from an online bank.

Take the following steps to protect yourself and your identity when conducting business online:

 Never access your bank accounts from a shared computer or on a shared network, such as the free access networks offered in hotel rooms and in other public or business facilities.

 Use two-factor authentication to minimize the chances that anyone other than you can access your account(s).

 Be aware of missed statements, which could indicate that your account has been taken over.

 Report unauthorized transactions to your bank or credit card company as soon as possible; otherwise, your bank may not stand behind the loss of funds.

 Use a complicated and unique password (including letters and numbers) for your online bank account.

 Log out immediately after completing your transactions on financial websites.