Get cyber secure

How protected are you? Educate yourself on cybersecurity threats and how to prevent them.

Phishing and smishing

Beware of emails (phishing) or text messages (smishing) that are pretending to be from a reputable source, such as your bank or another service that has your information. It will attempt to steal your private info, so being a little skeptical can go a long way to staying safe!

Suspicious activity on social media

Social media scam are especially insidious because they’ll use familiar faces to trick you, either by stealing account passwords or creating a fake account in your friend’s name.

Passwords and financial information

Just because no one would guess your password doesn’t mean it can’t be stolen. Hackers have advanced technology on their side to figure it out quickly, so maintaining strong passwords is crucial.

Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)

Some accounts ask you to go through a few extra steps to log in, like confirming your identity on a separate device. This makes it much harder for cybercriminals to hack their way into your accounts. It can be inconvenient, but it’s worth it.

Be diligent about phishing

If an email says it’s from your bank but has an email address that doesn’t match, then that’s phishing. You can also look for unusual URLs (hover over a link to see where it’s going). Misspelled words, incorrect grammar, and asking directly for personal information are also telltale signs of a scam.

Create strong passwords

Hackers have robust programs that can find weak passwords in just a few minutes. You can use a password generator to make one that’s much difficult to crack. A secure password manager app can help you juggle difficult-to-remember passwords in one safe place.

Update your software

Software updates will boost your security. This is stuff running in the background on your devices — you may not notice it working, but keeping it all up to date will make you less vulnerable to the latest threats. Turn on automatic software updates so you don’t miss out on the newest safeguard.

How Citizens keeps you secure

We’re doing our part to protect you from financial fraud.

Learn more

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Disclaimer: The information contained herein is for informational purposes only as a service to the public and is not legal advice or a substitute for legal counsel. You should do your own research and/or contact your own legal or tax advisor for assistance with questions you may have on the information contained herein.