Bank scams: Six expert tips to protect yourself from fraud – ‘all of us are targets’ | Personal Finance | Finance

Safeguarding personal information is crucial because if someone were to get access to financial details, it can open up more opportunities for them.

Mr Jones continued: “So, keep the lid tightly closed on your personal information, and follow the golden rule – if you think the message might be genuine, contact the organisation using details you already have for them or by heading directly to their genuine website, rather than clicking on links.”

Use strong, unique passwords

Create passwords that are hard for criminals to crack and avoid using the same one for all accounts.

Mr Jones said: “Fraudsters often collect information from social media, so be careful about sharing personal information such as your pet’s name or mother’s maiden name on these platforms.”

It is now widely accepted that using complex passwords (a mixture of standard characters, numbers, and special characters) is not as useful as using four random words, according to Mr Dukes.

He said: “[Four random words] provides better password entropy whilst making it less likely that people will write down their passwords for others to find!

“Adding two-factor authentication to online accounts also adds an extra layer of protection by requesting information beyond just a username and password.”

Secure home Wi-Fi

People’s home Wi-Fi could be connected to a range of wireless devices, including their phones, computer, and tv – a goldmine for a scammer.

Mr Jones said: “So, taking some basic steps to secure your home network will help protect your devices from getting hacked — and your information from getting stolen.

“Change the generic password provided by the company and make sure it’s something that’s not easy to guess. When it comes to public Wi-Fi, never use it to sign into personal accounts, either use your smartphone’s data connection or wait until you’re home to use your personal Wi-Fi”.