With recent reports of fraud targeting real estate transaction on the rise, it is now more important than ever to help protect and educate our clients. Through education and awareness, together we can help to ensure that you have the knowledge to protect yourself from the anguish and consequences of cybercrime and fraud. While there is never a fool-proof formula, there are a few simple tactics to help avoid the potential devastation of getting hacked:

Passwords

Change your username or, at least, your password(s) on a regular basis. Ensure that you select a strong password using more sophisticated tactics perhaps even deploying the use of a “password manager” to generate them for you. As our passwords have evolved, so have the systems engineered to crack the code. Today, systems built to hack passwords can attempt as many as 350 BILLION guesses per second. Choosing a password you can remember tat is still considered secure has become an art form. At the very least, be sure to utilize a combination of letters, cases, numbers and symbols and be prepared to update it regularly.

WIFI

Be aware of unsecured public WiFi While there is no denying the convenience of public WiFi, special precautions are required to ensure that you are not susceptible to crafty hackers. Protect yourself by keeping your WiFi off when you don’t need it. Further protect yourself by turning off sharing in your system preferences or Control Panel. Enable the “https” option on websites that you visit to add an extra layer of encryption to your online activity.

PROTECT YOURSELF

Be sure that you have updated your system’s antivirus software or malware detection. Because cyber-threats change so quickly, it is especially important to ensure you have the latest version installed to be prepared for new attacks.