6 Ways to Protect Against Credit Card Hacks | E-Neighborhood Advisor

With holiday shopping in full swing, data breaches are certainly part of life, and you need to know how to protect yourself. Since hackers are going after the companies that hold your information, it’s hard to stop them from getting it. All the same, you can take a number of steps to minimize the damage. Even if you haven't been hacked yet, many of the six moves described below from Investopedia can make your information less easy to find and less usable if you are caught up in a breach. 1. Get a Replacement Card If you've been told you're part of a data breach, tell the company that you need a new card immediately. You’re not likely to get any pushback from the already embarrassed company. If you do, don’t back down. 2. Check Your Account Online Don’t wait to check it when the statement arrives—check your account regularly online. Keep checking daily for at least 30 days even after you get a new card. If you find a suspicious charge, dispute it immediately. 3. Freeze Your Credit If you are caught up in a data breach, call each of the three main credit bureaus and request that your credit report be frozen. Freezing means no one will be able to access your credit report without your approval. Creditors likely won’t approve an application without having access to your credit report. If you're deeply worried about potential breaches, you can also freeze your accounts proactively—you don't have to be a fraud victim. However, this step makes getting any kind of credit exceedingly cumbersome for you and the potential lender, so you may want to think twice about taking it. 4. Order Your Credit Reports You get one free credit report per year from each credit reporting company by law, but you’ll probably be eligible for more frequent free reports if you were already a victim of fraud. Even if you haven't been targeted yet, be proactive and take a look at your free reports. Ideally, you can order one every four months by staggering the requests across the three main credit reporting agencies, so you can be better covered across the entire year. 5. Watch for Phishing Scams Just because thieves have your credit card number doesn’t mean they also have its expiration date and the three- or four-digit CVV number. Beware of phishing, a scam where the thief might send an email or call in an attempt to gain the rest of the information. Don’t give your information to anybody unless you call them. If somebody leaves a message, go to the company’s website and find a contact number to make sure it matches what the person in the message provided. For even more security, call the company directly and make sure the person who called you is legitimate. 6. Be Smart About Passwords You aren’t going to prevent a breach by employing all of the password rules, but you don’t know what kind of information thieves were about to steal. Use strong passwords (random letters and numbers) and change them frequently. Remember, if it’s easy for you to remember, it's probably easy for a savvy cyberthief to crack. You may also want to take advantage of additional digital security measures such as two-factor authentication that deliver a special one-time code to a trusted device, such as a mobile phone. This provides a secondary layer of protection that requires physical possession of your device before allowing an unknown sign-in to your accounts. Newer types of authentication such as Face ID and Touch ID on iPhones are slowly replacing passwords as a legitimate means to grant a person access to sensitive financial information. The Bottom Line If you haven't been a victim yet, act proactively to make yourself less vulnerable. If you have, don’t panic. It’s going to take time to clear everything up, but you won’t pay for any charges that weren’t yours. Call your credit card company, tell them about any incorrect charges and be patient as it works to clear them from your account. In the meantime, continue monitoring your credit report and credit card bills for any further signs of unauthorized activity. Your Flooring Consultant, Matt Capell Email: sales@capellinteriors.com Phone (208) 288-0151 Fax (208) 917-6160 P.S. Here's a joke for you! What do you call an obnoxious reindeer?  RUDEolph.