I talked with a client this week about ways to keep their Schwab account safe and secure. Here are a few best practices we discussed. Also please note, even if you do not custody your investments at Schwab, these suggestions may well apply to your online investment account as well
Avoid Public Wi-Fi
An oldie but a goodie – never use public wi-fi when accessing your investment accounts (website or app). This opens you up to someone obtaining your log-in details. Not good! Be sure to visit these sites when you are at home or on a cellular data connection
Two factor authentication
Schwab provides a variety of two-factor authentication options, including phone call with code, text with code, and use of an authenticator app (which generates a random 6 digit number). Two factor authentication is a great added layer of protection, with the authenticator app being the best
Limit your Account
If you have an advisor (like Windermere) assigned a limited power of attorney on your account, you can request that the advisor restrict your abilities on Schwab’s website. Once restricted, when logging in with your credentials, you (or someone who gets your log in nefariously) won’t be able to implement various actions that can be the most harmful if done by a bad actor, such as trading or withdrawing funds. Some clients opt for us to restrict their accounts (since we handle those tasks for them anyways) and it prevents any ,material issues if their credentials were somehow compromised
Enable Alerts
Ensure that your cell phone and email are up to date in Schwab. They will send you a notification if there are changes or activity in your accounts (address change, trade, etc)
Biometric Access
Schwab just added another feature to help keep your account secure. When accessing your Schwab account on the web, you can request that a log-in request be sent to your Schwab mobile app (that you can set-up for biometric access set-up (ie: face ID)). Once the app recognizes you, you will be let into your Schwab website as usual
Online security is always important, but ever more so when you are accessing financial accounts. Stay safe out there!
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