October 1, 2026— Credit unions operate in service to their communities, “people helping people”— except when it comes to cybercriminals! This Cybersecurity Awareness Month, experts at the National Cybersecurity Alliance stress, “Don’t make it easy for them”!
Data breaches often begin with a simple, and preventable, mistake. But, as the experts remind us, small actions—simple cyber-hygiene and digital security habits—can make a big difference in preventing cyberattacks.
Cybersecurity Tips for Individuals
- Use Strong, Unique Passwords: Cyberattacks grow more sophisticated day by day, but strong passwords are still the first line of defense. Long, complex, and unique passwords are the hardest for an attacker to crack. Passwords longer than 16 characters take a lot of time for even automated tools to solve, and most criminals will simply give up. Passwords should be random, including both upper case and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols in an unpredictable pattern, or unrelated words combined to make a passcode that is easy for the user to remember but hard for a criminal to guess. Finally, each account or platform should have its own password; passwords should not be reused. A password manager stores your login credentials in an encrypted vault, can generate unique passwords, and can alert you to compromised or weak credentials.
- Use Multi-Factor Authentication: Multi-factor authentication (MFA) is a security method that requires users to present a combination of two or more credentials to verify their identity for login. This may be a one-time code, biometrics such as a fingerprint, a hardware security key, or an authenticator app. MFA prevents cybercriminals from using stolen credentials and dramatically reduced the risk of unauthorized access.
- Update Software: Cybercriminals will exploit any system vulnerability, and their attacks can come quickly. Timely software and operating system updates are critical for patching known bugs, improving stability and performance, and reducing security risks. Security experts recommend people check for updates regularly and to enable automatic updates when possible. Still, users are encouraged to back up their data before updates are made, to only install updates from trusted sources, and to test that your systems are working after the update is complete.
- Recognize and Report Scams: Fraud is prevalent and growing every day. We have to remain vigilant and be cautious of unexpected messages with suspicious links, requests for money or information, urgent messages or threats, and too-good-to-be-true offers. Monitor your accounts for unauthorized transactions and verify a contact through official channels before sending money or personal information. More than anything, trust your gut if something feels off. Cybercrimes, scams, and fraud attempts can be reported to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, your local police, or your financial institution.
Cybersecurity Month resources are available at www.staysafeonline.org. Recommendations for organizations protecting their businesses and critical infrastructure may be found at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) website at www.cisa.gov.
Editor’s note: This information is provided for educational purposes only. Please consult risk, compliance, legal, and technology experts for best practices and guidance.