COVER STORY
FIGHT FRAUD LIKE A PRO
Top Cybersecurity tips you need to know
As digital scams become more sophisticated, your security game needs to keep up to safeguard your personal information and money.
We asked four cybersecurity professionals what they do to avoid rip-offs. Here are their top tips.
HUGH THOMPSON, executive chairman, RSA Conference, which hosts more than 40,000 information security executives yearly
▶︎ Regularly restarts his phone. At least once every couple of days, Thompson restarts his phone. If you hit a scammer’s link by mistake, in some rare cases they many get access to your phone, says Thompson, “but restarting your phone can essentially kick them out.” He automates the task so it happens while he sleeps, through Apple’s Shortcuts app. Android also has the ability to automate tasks through apps.
▶︎ Uses two-factor authentication. A password helps, but if you use two-factor authentication, even if a scammer was able to get your password through a data breach, they won’t have the verification code that is either sent to your cellphone or shows up in an authenticator app on your phone, “It’s the single biggest thing to do to make a difference.”
▶︎ Changes his passwords. Thompson adds extra protection by changing his passwords every six months, marking it on his calendar so he doesn’t forget. He considers it a deep-clean of his identity.
CRAIG COSTIGAN, CEO of Nice Actimize, a software company that develops technology to detect and prevent financial fraud
▶︎ Makes sure he’s shopping on valid sites. Costigan almost bought bogus Yankees tickets recently, thinking a fake online site was legitimate, before he checked the URL. “If I was moving fast, I would have clicked the link, punched in my credit card and said, ‘Yes, I’ll take two tickets.’ ” One way to confirm that you have the correct site is to type the business name and the word “official” in your search engine.
JENNIFER PITT, senior analyst, Javelin Strategy & Research
▶︎ Turns off Wi-Fi on her home devices. When Pitt isn’t using her fitness equipment or watching her smart TV, she shuts off their Wi-Fi. “They’re easily hacked,” says Pitt. “Some of the security for those devices isn’t that good.”
▶︎ Stores information on an external hard drive. No one, not even a pro like herself, is immune to ransom attacks, says Pitt. To keep her sensitive information, such as her financial accounts, medical records, former job applications and taxes, out of the hands of hackers, she uses an external hard drive. “I don’t have any important documents with my personal information on the desktop,” says Pitt.
▶︎ Checks chip readers before paying. Before inserting her card into a machine at a gas station or grocery store, Pitt tests for a skimmer—a device that crooks can place in an ATM to steal personal information from cards—by grasping and wiggling it. If there’s give, it could be a skimmer.
ALEX QUILICI, CEO of YouMail, a technology company that guards against robocalls
▶︎ Uses a secondary phone number. Google Voice, YouMail, Truecaller, and other apps and cybersecurity companies let you create a second number that will go to your phone. Quilici gives his real number only to family and friends, and his secondary number to retailers. He then blocks any calls—likely to be scammers who found the number through a data breach—to that secondary number.
▶︎ Turns on SIM protection. SIM (subscriber identity module) cards connect your phone number to your iPhone or Android device. If someone hijacks your SIM—usually by impersonating you and persuading your carrier to switch the SIM to a new device—they can get access to your accounts. To protect yourself, contact your service provider to set up protections, like using a PIN if you want to transfer your number.
Deirdre Van Dyk is an associate editor at aarp.org who specializes in fraud and caregiving.
FIGHTING BACK
JEFFERY MERRY JR., Sun City Center, Florida
▶︎ One of the biggest keys to stopping consumer fraud is fast, effective response by local law enforcement. AARP’s Florida state office recently recognized a local law enforcement officer who is doing things the right way. Sun City Center Community Resource Deputy Jeffery Merry Jr. was given the Community Fraud Fighter award last year for his efforts to keep his community informed and protected from consumer scams. Merry has testified before the state legislature in favor of a new law that would provide banks and other financial institutions with the tools and training that would help them to pause potentially fraudulent transactions from bank accounts of older residents when it is likely that a fraud is underway and money is being stolen.
TERESA SAUCEDO DIAZ, Vadnais Heights, Minnesota
▶︎ When a disabled customer at the Walmart where Teresa Saucedo Diaz works asked for $3,000 in gift cards, Saucedo Diaz was immediately suspicious. A scam artist had claimed there was a warrant for the customer’s arrest, requiring gift cards to resolve it. Another Walmart had apparently also suspected a scam and had already turned the customer away. But Saucedo Diaz went further by asking questions and sharing fraud prevention information. “It’s all sorts of red flags,” she says. “It’s horrible, and it makes me sick to think people get taken advantage of like that. It could have been her life savings.” Though hesitant at first, the woman realized it was a scam and contacted the local police chief. Thanks to Saucedo Diaz, the woman avoided a devastating financial loss.
MATTHIEU FORTIN, Springfield, Illinois
▶︎ Matthieu Fortin’s small shop in Springfield used to have a cryptocurrency kiosk in it. That’s until he and his employees became alarmed at how many potential fraud victims were showing up to his store with thousands of dollars in cash to put in the ATM. He recalls one woman who came into his store with several thousand dollars in cash and headed for the ATM. When he intervened by asking her to take a minute and consider what she was about to do, she gave him her phone—she was still on a call with the crook. After several similar episodes, he had the kiosk removed. Fortin has this advice for anyone encountering one of these ATMs: “If you see somebody standing by the machine talking on the phone, it’s probably a scam.”