Cyber Security and the Security of Your Assets
/With all eyes on the crisis in Europe, our thoughts and prayers go out to the people of Ukraine. This situation remains highly uncertain and the capital markets have become exceedingly volatile. In keeping with our pledge to increase the pace of our updates and communications with you, I am writing today to address the growing concerns over cyber security and the potential for attacks targeting the United States.
Clearwater Capital and your custodian partners are dedicated to the safety and security of your assets and information. Each has invested heavily into robust hardware, software, consulting, training, policies and procedures to do all that can be done to protect your assets and prevent disruptions. Charles Schwab, LPL Financial and Clearwater Capital have robust Business Continuity Plans that lay out reactions to business disruptions in order to get systems back online as soon as possible, while also maintaining communication with you. Your custodian partners and Clearwater are also backing up the holdings of each of our client accounts daily out of an abundance of caution. Further, those clients with accounts held with Charles Schwab have a 100% fraud protection guarantee (more information can be found here: https://www.schwab.com/schwabsafe/security-guarantee).
While a major cyber-attack on the US Financial system, or other critical infrastructure, cannot be ruled out, we have to remember that large institutions employ robust security systems that would need to be defeated. It is far easier for bad actors to target individuals given the far lower level of security that most individuals have in place. Therefore, it is critical that you be extra vigilant for identity theft at this time. Here are a few tips to help keep you and your information safe:
Be wary of scammers. Do not click on links or open attachments in emails that you aren’t expecting to receive. Never provide your username, password, account number or Social Security Number to someone that calls you. Hang up the call, look up the service provider’s published phone number and call them back to ensure you are actually talking to that entity.
Turn on Multi-Factor authentication on any website or app that will allow for it. If you are re-using passwords, change them all to be unique and strong. Do not follow a pre-set password pattern and don’t re-use passwords over time. If you haven’t changed your passwords on banking/financial systems recently, please update them.
Turn on a credit freeze for all members of your family. A credit freeze locks your credit file so lenders cannot extend credit without your specific permission. It does not impact your credit score and is free. The only catch is that you have to remember to contact each credit bureau to lift the freeze when you are trying to open a new account or take out any sort of loan. After your activity is complete you can re-establish the freeze. To freeze your credit you will need to contact each of the three credit bureaus.
Equifax: Call 800-349-9960, or go online to https://www.equifax.com/personal/credit-report-services/
Experian: Call 888-397-3742, or go online to https://www.experian.com/freeze/center.html
TransUnion: Call 888-909-8872, or go online to https://www.transunion.com/credit-freeze
In the event that you do experience a data breach, here is a road map for how to respond in order to limit the damage. These steps should be implemented as soon as possible once the breach has been identified. Your team at Clearwater is here to guide you through the process.
In closing, there is no doubt that the events of the past week have been unsettling and difficult to watch. While the conflict is happening an ocean away from us, the interconnectivity upon which our society relies creates legitimate concerns that cyber-attacks could come to our shores in ways we’ve never before experienced. Rest assured that we are taking this threat very seriously. We are proactively taking steps to ensure our preparedness should these fears turn into reality.
