Holiday Cybersecurity: Protect Your Money

If you’re like us, maybe you can’t quite believe we’re entering another holiday season. But as festivities begin to ramp up and holiday shopping becomes a priority, it’s a good time to take stock of your cybersecurity precautions and defenses.

The primary goal of a cybercriminal is to gain unauthorized access to information, systems, or resources for personal, financial, or strategic benefit – with financial gain being the most common motivation.

Approximately 36% of Americans¹ fall victim to some sort of online shopping scam or phishing attempt during the holidays. Cybercriminals take advantage of the busy season counting on consumers being distracted and rushed as they attempt to check off their to-do and Christmas gift lists. However, with proper diligence and precaution, people can minimize the opportunity for cybercriminals to get a toehold in their financial lives.

To help protect your assets, CWM encourages you to consider enabling a security feature called Limited Access on your CWM-managed accounts at Schwab.

What is Limited Access?

Limited Access restricts the ability to initiate withdrawals online, helping protect your assets from unauthorized transactions.

With this feature enabled, you can still log in to your Schwab portal to view account activity, monitor performance, and deposit funds. When you need to withdraw money, simply contact the CWM office, and our team will coordinate the request on your behalf. As an added precaution, our policy is to require verbal verification and a second method of confirming your identity before processing money requests.

By enabling Limited Access, you add an important safeguard against cybercriminals, particularly in the event of a cyberattack. Even if cybercriminal were to gain unauthorized access to your Schwab login credentials, this feature helps prevent them from initiating online withdrawals, reducing the risk of financial loss.

How do I enable Limited Access?

It’s easy! To enable Limited Access on your CWM-managed accounts at Schwab contact us at (425) 778-6160 or CLICK HERE!

¹https://cyberint.com/blog/thought-leadership/how-to-stop-holiday-phishing-risks/

Comprehensive Wealth Management, LLC (CWM) is an SEC registered Investment Advisor and Pacific Northwest wealth management firm that partners with clients to articulate and help achieve their financial goals as prudently as possible. Our high-touch, client-focused investment planning and implementation are designed to make us a trusted resource for executives, business owners, and other thoughtful investors seeking to strengthen their financial health holistically and intentionally, while managing risk and pursuing long-term growth.

All investments involve the risk of potential investment losses as well as the potential for investment gains. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. This communication is informational only and is not a solicitation for investment advice.