Verify wire and ACH transfers carefully
Lake City Bank requires dual approval to originate ACH and wire transfers through Lake City Bank Digital. To avoid fraud, be sure that both individuals verify the authenticity of the request every single time. Clients can also elect to require dual control for any changes to ACH or wire recipients, adding an extra layer of security. Make it a policy to never reply to an email request for a wire. Instead, call a number you know (NOT a number from the email) or physically visit the individual requesting the payment.
Fraudsters know how to push your buttons to get an approval:
- They make the request time sensitive so you may skip verification steps to issue the wire
- Fraudsters monitor social media to see when employees are out of the office, then impersonate the absent employee and order a transfer, knowing it’s difficult to verify the request.
Difficult passwords are harder to guess
Fraudsters sometimes guess your credentials or pick them up from keylogging viruses on your computer. That’s why we require our Lake City Bank Digital users to reset passwords every 90 days. Follow these password tips:
- Make passwords difficult to guess by using a mixture of capital and lowercase letters, numbers and symbols. Don’t use real words longer than four letters. A small phrase (without spaces) is best—like !bAsik4Urx@mpl (read as “basic for your example”).
- Get more use out of your complex password by reusing it and adding a number for the month you change it—1 for January, 2 for February, etc.
- Never use the same password for multiple sites, especially if you log in from different places. If you log in from a personal computer at home that happens to have a keylogging virus, then the fraudster now knows your work password!
Resist the urge to click that link
When you receive emails that contain attachments or links to external sites that you were not expecting, don’t click the link or open the attachment—it’s the top method fraudsters use to compromise your system.
And in general
Make sure that all of your computers (desktops, laptops, tablets, etc.), servers, and networks are using the latest software with all security patches installed. Use a known Virus/Malware protection for each computer, server and network, and verify that definitions are installed and updated continuously. Using the latest software definitions and patches helps reduce the possibility of fraudsters gaining access to your systems.
