How to Build a Digital Vault to Safeguard Your Financial Data

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While you want to keep your money and personal data as safe as possible, you can’t exactly gather all your physical and digital financial information into one place and lock it in a secure vault. 

Still, why not approach your financial security like you’re building a huge safe for all your information? Let’s talk about how to safeguard your financial and personal information like you’re storing it in a locked vault.

Securing Your Logins

Step one of constructing your financial information vault? Make sure you’re being smart about your password and login strategies. 

Weak passwords and unprotected accounts can leave you vulnerable to identity theft and hacking. Remember, all online accounts are essential — even logins you only used once may have required sensitive information, such as your credit card number, address, or social security number.

Here are three ways to protect all your online accounts with secure logins: 

• Use two-factor authentication. Many accounts now allow you to enable two-factor authentication, an extra level of protection to your login. When you set up this safeguard, a site will not only make you log in with your username and password, but will request confirmation of your login through your phone number or email address. 
• Create strong passwords unique to each site and account. Unfortunately, it’s not enough to have one strong password you use for every site, since hackers can use one leaked username/password combination to try logging into all your accounts. A strong password will contain at least 12 characters (meaning upper and lowercase letters, numbers, and special symbols). Don’t use your name, address, or any other identifying information in your passwords, and avoid common phrases or words that a hacker could easily guess.
• Rely on a secure password manager. Look: Memorizing all your passwords would be ludicrous, and keeping them all written down somewhere would be incredibly inconvenient. Once you have a roster of strong passwords, you need to keep them in a password manager, software that safeguards your existing passwords and even helps suggest new ones. Consider using any of today’s top password manager platforms to lock up your login info.

Backing Up and Storing Your Information

If your personal information and files exist digitally, you should store them securely and routinely create backups. Here are some tips for constructing this layer of your personal and financial information vault: 

• Back up your information regularly. There are so many ways technology can fail and cause you to lose important documents or files. It’s essential to prepare for that inevitability by backing up anything you rely on or access frequently, from important work files to sensitive personal information to beloved browser bookmarks. This article will guide you through selecting the best backup tools for your computer, while this one can help you back up your phone.
• Use a secure cloud storage solution. Storing your information directly on your laptop doesn’t offer the privacy and security that an encrypted cloud platform can. We’re not talking about special tools for advanced tech users — in fact, you can store files securely using everyday software like Microsoft OneDrive. Consider these options for your personal cloud setup.

Photo: fabrikacrimea via 123RF

When it comes to physical documents that contain your personal information — from tax documents to Social Security cards — you should be equally careful. Here are some tips for securing your personal documents:

• Shred certain documents with your personal or financial information on them. You can shred utility and credit card bills immediately after paying them, while pay stubs, paid medical bills, and bank statements can be shredded after a year. Unless you need them for taxes or other records, shred receipts as well. 
• Keep a safe, lockbox, or safety deposit box for sensitive physical documents. These documents include birth certificates and Social Security cards, passports or citizenship papers, marriage licenses, and titles and deeds, all of which should be securely stored in your home or a bank. Wondering whether you should store or shred tax documents? Scan this guide to see what you should hold on to. 

Protecting Your Personal Technology

The last layer of your secure vault should be personal device protection. You can safeguard your personal and financial information by locking down hackers’ access to your device and internet use. 

Here are some of the smartest steps you can take: 

• Stay safe on public wifi. Public wifi is incredibly convenient, and you probably use it more than you realize (especially in places like cafes, airports, libraries, and hotels). Unfortunately, public networks are usually unencrypted and, therefore, vulnerable to hacks. Keep yourself safe by only visiting secure websites on public wifi (the URL should start with “https”), staying off important sites like your mobile banking account, and even using a VPN (a tool that encrypts your internet connection and helps hide your online activity). 
• Install anti-virus software on your devices. This software helps keep your devices safe from malware and viruses that may compromise or corrupt your information (and no, it’s not just your laptop that needs protection — your phone is vulnerable, too). 
• Keep your software updated. Like many people, you probably avoid accepting software updates for your phone or computer until the device forces your hand. But software updates often contain important fixes to your device’s security measures, meaning it’s critical that you keep your operating systems as up-to-date as possible. 

If you’ve taken the above steps, congratulations on your new, secure vault. If you haven’t, remember: Every step matters. Start by taking small steps toward personal and financial security, and before you know it, you’ll have your information safely locked away.

Sponsored by JPMorgan Chase

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