Safe Mobile Banking

Today, technology is continuously evolving, and it is important that you keep up at a steady pace. Constant innovation, though convenient, may leave opportunities for personal information to end up in the wrong hands. At Edmonton State Bank we care about our customers’ safety and want to give you the tools and tips necessary to limit the risk as much as possible. By utilizing safe Mobile Banking practices with Edmonton State Bank, you are creating a barrier to protect yourself from the opportunities left open due to technological advancements.

 

By utilizing the below safety tips on all your devices, you are preventing the wrong hands from getting to your personal information, your identity, and your funds. Enjoy new technology while being protected. 

 

By creating a password for your mobile device and/or banking application, you’re setting up your first line of defense to prevent information from being stolen. If anyone steals your device physically or tries to hack into it digitally, that simple number combination or finger pattern can be the difference to them seeing nothing or everything.

 

Monitoring your account regularly will prevent any unknown transactions from slipping through the cracks. It is important also to constantly monitor your privacy settings. If you update your software, your privacy settings may have changed to the manufacturer setting. If you review them regularly and check them often you will ensure that your privacy settings are how you want them.

 

If your phone is locked it adds an extra line of security for someone trying to access your information, digitally or physically. If you send a text and have your lock time set for an hour, all of your data is vulnerable if lifted during that time.

 

Today, many people like to “Root” or “jailbreak” their phones. What you may not realize is that this tampers with the phone’s security system allowing others to hack into your device.

 

Though you think you’re just checking your bank account to see if you can afford your morning java, you never know what talented hacker is using the same public WiFi waiting for you to do so.

 

Contact your carrier immediately. Then on your home PC, log in to your Online Banking Account, under the Mobile Banking page, you can remove access, which will turn off the Mobile App service for your account. It would also be a good idea to download an app that allows you to delete all your data on your phone from a remote location as a fail-safe.

 

You never know what someone might download on your phone. It could be something as harmless as a simple image, or it could be a virus meant to delete all of your phone’s data, or worse, steal it.

 

Make sure everything you are downloading to any of your devices is from a trusted source. If you are downloading an app from an unknown source, that app may contain a virus. Make sure to use mainstream App stores like iTunes App Store and Google Play as much as possible.

 

From time to time, you may receive a text message such as an Alert or if you use Edmonton State Bank's text Banking feature, you will receive responses to your inquiries. As an extra security measure, make sure to frequently delete these messages. Not only does this make your mobile device operate faster, it removes any possible personal data used in the past. Remember, Edmonton State Bank will never ask for sensitive information through a text message, so if they are asking, IT’S NOT US!

 

You may not have known that mobile devices have AntiVirus software. Like a computer, this software can help detect any viruses or other mobile applications that may have a virus. You can find these applications on your device's mobile app store. As always, we recommend you research the app and app creator before downloading any application.

 

Your mobile device has a lot of information. Make sure to keep your device close and when not in use, secure it in a safe place.