October is Cybersecurity month and we want you to stay protected! Cybercriminals continue to evolve and find new tactics for their scams, but there are still ways to spot certain scams and cyber-attacks before it’s too late. Educate yourself about avoiding these attacks to stay one step ahead. Here are some tips and tricks to keep yourself safe in the digital world:
Phishing
Phishing attacks are created by cybercriminals to trick unsuspecting people to click a malicious link or open a malicious attachment received via email. The malicious links or attachments can lead to a fake website or contain viruses that can compromise your device. These attacks are dangerous because cybercriminals need only one point of entry to gain unauthorized access.
Ransomware
This form of malware is a malicious software that blocks access to files on the impacted network, computer, or device. Once ransomware is deployed, cybercriminals contact their victim to alert them to make an electronic payment to restore their access. The cybercriminals will threaten to corrupt or leak data if the ransom payment isn’t made.
Protecting Your Identity
As more of our interactions take place in the digital world, more of our personally identifiable information (PII) is at risk. PII can refer to information of a personal or financial nature that is protected by legal and regulatory requirements. Examples include, but are not limited to: social security numbers, birth dates, financial account numbers, and driver’s license numbers. While a birth date may not seem like PII, when combined with other identifying data elements, cybercriminals can gain access to your information.
LPL's Cybersecurity as a business differentiator
"At LPL, we take the security and privacy of our financial products seriously and embed security into the conception, design, and implementation of our platforms. LPL tools are only available to LPL clients. At LPL Financial, security is built into everything we do, and the protection of sensitive information is critical to our company’s continued success. Cybersecurity concerns are more prevalent than ever with cybercriminals constantly evolving and using different techniques to commit financial fraud. We understand the need to educate our financial professionals about these ever-changing threats. We build these tools with security at the forefront:"
- Sensitive data is secured, masked, and encrypted where applicable to provide a secure experience.
- Design, architecture, and code reviews are performed to ensure industry best practices and adherence to LPL polices.
- Regular scanning for vulnerabilities is performed on the products, environment, and supporting infrastructure.
- Penetration testing is completed by third-party experts.
- Recurring patching and modernization are implemented regularly.
- Fraud alerts placed on user profiles if suspicious activity is identified.