It seems like almost every day there is another company in the news because its database got hacked and a bunch of its customers’ data was compromised in some way. Last year it was Equifax, a large consumer credit bureau that has virtually every American’s most sensitive financial information in its database. At least once per year for the past several years, Truxton Trust has been notified that some retailer’s system has been hacked and, because several of our bank clients’ debit cards were stored in the system, we had to cancel their cards and issue new ones pronto. It is a hassle that creates a significant amount of work here and rarely does the compromised retailer reimburse us for that work.
Protection of our clients’ personal information is something we take extreme measures to safeguard here at Truxton Trust. All of our online applications are accessible only via username and password. All of our systems encrypt the data and each is perpetually monitored to detect and prevent intrusion from unauthorized outside parties. Most “cyber criminals” get our clients’ personal financial information by hacking into our clients’ computers. Attempted email fraud has become the most frequent annoyance that we contend with on a daily basis. Please take care to notify us if you ever become aware that your computer (especially your email) has been hacked and we will help you as best we can.
Cybersecurity threats are best thwarted by any of us by careful selection/creation of passwords and periodically changing those passwords. Usernames and passwords are required for most online applications where any sort of financial dealings are handled. Create strong passwords. We recommend a number and a symbol at the beginning and end of a word that is easy for you to remember but which is not the word “password,” nor your first or last name. Additionally, do not elect to save your user id and password in a browser as this means anyone who has access to that computer can gain access to the online application using your credentials.
Our clients’ information is as secure as it can possibly be at Truxton Trust, but we cannot encourage our clients and our staff too much, nor too often, to be as careful as possible with their own computer habits. Along these lines, we want to encourage all of our clients who currently get paper statements via USPS mail to switch to online statements (or e-statements). Online statements are more secure. Simply give us a call at 615-515-1700 and we will make that change for you. Just as importantly, we want to encourage our clients to please look at their statements each month to make sure that there is no unusual account activity reflected there. Early detection of fraudulent activity can be critical in limiting the damage.
