Cybersecurity – How plan participants can help thwart potential hackers

Total US retirement assets surpassed $26.1 trillion in 2017 according to the American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries (ASPPA). As a significant investment for many Americans, retirement assets are an attractive target for many hackers globally.

This growing threat is compounded by the fact that most people check their retirement accounts sporadically and not nearly as often as other accounts, such as checking accounts or credit cards. A cursory quarterly glance when a retirement statement is available may be the only review these accounts ever receive, which makes fraudulent activity potentially easier for the unscrupulous hacker lurking on the dark net.

Prevention Is Only As Good As Participation

While retirement plan providers and plan sponsors continue to implement multi-level security protocol and procedures to proactively prevent cybersecurity breaches, retirement plan participants also have an active role to play in safeguarding their retirement accounts. In reality, retirement plan security measures are only as good as their adoption by plan participants. With this in mind, there are a number of proactive, common-sense steps participants can take now to prevent future fraudulent activity. These protective measures include the following:

 

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