Silent Night, Secure Night: 6 Ways to Keep Your Money Safe During the Holidays

The holidays are here, bringing cheer, gatherings with friends and family, and the thrill of finding the perfect gifts for your loved ones. But while you're making your list and checking it twice, scammers are busy checking theirs, too — looking for ways to exploit unsuspecting shoppers.

At Plumas Bank, we want to ensure the only surprises you encounter this season are of the wrapped-in-a-sparkly-bow variety. From password recommendations to online shopping safety tips, we’re here to help you keep your holiday merry, bright, and most importantly, secure.

So grab a cup of cocoa and read on for our top tips to stay scam-free this holiday season.

Deck the Halls with Unique Passwords

We’ve said it before (remember these tips to make your password long, strong, and memorable), and we’ll say it again: It all starts with the strong password. Your Plumas Bank password must be a minimum of eight characters, but it can be as long as 15 characters. And the long-and-short of it is: a longer password is stronger!

Because as we also mentioned in another of our long list of blog posts about cybersecurity, it would take a bad actor 438 trillion years to hack an 18-character password that features a combination of upper- and lowercase letters, symbols and numbers.

But we also understand that it’s exceedingly difficult to remember a password with all those parameters, so another practical tip: Use a digital password manager, which functions like a vault. You open it once with ONE extremely safe and strong password that you remember, and then you have access to all of your passwords.

Fa-La-La-La-La, Lock Down Your Accounts

The best way to protect your accounts may sound complicated, but it’s the most effective: multi-factor authentication, commonly abbreviated as MFA.

Sarena Barker, Plumas Bank’s Senior Vice President, Electronic Banking, helps clients protect themselves against fraud, describing MFA like this: “When you enable MFA, you’re required to input two out of the three types of credentials — something you know, something you have and something you are.”

Here’s a bit more insight into these three MFA categories: 

1. “Something you know” is called the knowledge factor — this might include a password, PIN number, or answer to a security question.
2. “Something you have” is called the possession factor — these include tokens, fobs, an ID card — and an increasingly popular random code option, which is often autogenerated and sent to your phone or email.
3. “Something you are” is called the inherence factor — this could be a fingerprint, retinal scan, or facial recognition.

Using at least two of these three factors — the “multi” in MFA — is always your safest option. “Because one of these required credentials requires physical presence, this step makes it more difficult to hack,” Barker said.

I’m Dreaming of a Safe Transaction

While it’s tempting to use cash to purchase holiday gifts (making it more difficult for your loved ones to snoop through digital receipts, after all!), this may not be your safest transaction option. The Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency reminds shoppers that credit cards often offer the best fraud protection.

Another tip, this time once again from our own Sarena Barker: Sign up for Account Alerts within online banking so you are immediately notified of activity. For example, you can be notified when an invalid password has been submitted, which is just one of several account alerts you can choose and easily set up within your Plumas Bank online banking account.

It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like a Scam

Another topic we frequently cover on our blog is phishing, which is also a ubiquitous tactic during the holidays. You might be more stressed and distracted during this time, which makes it prime phishing season.

Our own Aaron Boigon, Plumas Bank EVP and Chief Information Officer, offers the following insight about how to avoid a phishing scam:

“People need to be especially wary of messages or emails that do one of the following: Create a false sense of urgency — they’re often asking you to do something right away; request sensitive information, like your logon credentials, a password, PIN, or account number; or include unexpected links or attachments.”

So when it comes to proactively avoiding these common phishing lures, Boigon recommends a shift in how we receive our calls and emails — during the holidays and always.

“Sadly, you must start from a mindset of ZERO TRUST,” he emphasizes. “Assume messages or emails that request you to click a link, open an attachment, or provide sensitive information are a phishing attempt. Then do not open an attachment or click a link unless you are 100% sure it’s legit.”

Walking in a Public Wi-Fi Wonderland? Beware!

We’ve all been there, done that: You’re sipping your favorite white chocolate mocha in your favorite local coffee spot, and you remember Aunt Sally. You just forgot that she’s coming to your family celebration, and you need to buy her a gift.

So you grab your phone, head to your favorite local retailer’s website (you’re REALLY good at shopping local!), and you start to make a purchase.

Here’s what we recommend: Take a deep breath, then take a sip of your mocha, then take a beat before you purchase anything. Public Wi-Fi may be convenient, but it’s also a virtual playground for hackers looking to gather your data for their own nefarious uses.

The National Cybersecurity Alliance agrees, suggesting, “…you shouldn’t ever online shop or access important accounts (like banking) while connected to public wi-fi. If you must buy a few gifts online while away from your home or work network, use a VPN (virtual private network) or mobile hotspot.”

O Holy Scam: Verify Before You Give

It’s the most wonderful time of the year … to make a donation to your favorite cause! And while this is a season characterized by giving, spoofing is a real concern. Spoofing technology allows scammers to make calls or send emails that seem to be from a charity or nonprofit organization, but they’re definitely not. So you kindly make a contribution, but instead of donating to a cause you believe in, the money goes straight into the scammer’s pocket.  

How can you protect yourself without channeling Scrooge and shouting “bah humbug” to anyone who calls? Simply tell the caller that you’ll be calling them back (at a number you find through your own research) when you’re ready — or if the message is in email form, choose to connect to the cause’s website without using a link in an email.

Joy to the World, No Scams Allowed

Feeling like you’re wrapped in a cozy cybersafe blanket as you tackle your holiday shopping and donations? That’s the goal! Stay secure — during this season and always — by adopting these tips. And if you’re still looking for additional insights, click the button below for even more advice from Plumas Bank EVP and Chief Information Officer Aaron Boigon. It’s truly the gift that keeps on giving.

How to Adopt a Zero-Trust Mindset