Protect yourself from Online Fraud

The internet and email are wonderful tools that provide clients with amazing convenience. As with any tool, however, caution and common sense must be used in order to protect oneself from online fraud. Online fraud is the act of obtaining your user ID and Password and account information in order to steal from you. Here are a few pointers to remember when using the Internet...

Armstrong & Quaile Head Office staff, your Advisor and your Advisor's assitants will never call or email to ask for your user ID or Password. Do not share your password with anyone, not even family members. Your Advisor may assign a password for you but remember that if you have online access you can change it yourself.

Use strong passwords. Avoid easily guessed personal information such as birthdays and names. Never use your bank PIN number or your SIN number. Combinations of upper and lower case letters and numbers are best. Sometimes a phrase is easier to remember so you can build your password around something like "My Dog Fred Likes Chocolate Ice-Cream In A Waffle Cone" - and so your password could be MdFlc1wc. Once you have chosen a password you can test it for strength with Microsoft Online Safety.

Avoid checking your account on public computers. Don't use password saver programs. Make sure your virus protection software is up to date.

Sign in to your account from time to time and check to see that there are no unauthorized transactions. If you see something you do not understand, call your Advisor.