With so much of our financial activity happening online, it's important to protect yourself.
There are many benefits that come along with using digital products and services.
The key is to use them as safely as possible and take advantage of the protective features available to you.
Every financial institution and app is different, so you'll need to check with your institution.
James Hilton, VP Product Management at Mountain America Credit Union, joined us with how they make it easy for members to set up account alerts to get notified of certain activity quickly.
That might mean setting up an alert to be notified any time there is a transaction on your account over $50, or any time your debit or credit card is used to purchase something. That way you can look out for unexpected activity on your account in real time.
If you do get an alert, Hilton says there are things you can do to act quickly.
This will differ by institution, but with Mountain America and many others, you can immediately go into your app and lock your credit or debit card. That will prevent further charges – by you or anyone else – from going through. You may be able to dispute those transactions online or in the mobile app. You can also order a new card, if necessary.
Hilton says then immediately call the institution about the charges you would like to dispute.
You're seeing mobile wallet apps being used more and more. These are apps on your phone that store your credit and debit cards, merchant loyalty cards, event tickets, things like that. You can use your phone like you would tap to pay with a credit card in a store to securely use your payment method or other information.
From a security standpoint, mobile wallets are great because they don't send your card information during a purchase. That means even if there's a data breach with the merchant, your card details are not stored from that transaction. You get that same protection if you pay with the mobile wallet for an online transaction. Or you can quickly auto-fill payment information into an online form, as well.
Mountain America's mobile app makes it simple to push your card details, even before you receive your physical card, to Apple Pay or Google Pay mobile wallets.
You can do just about anything through a mobile app that you might do in a branch these days. Depositing checks is as simple as taking a picture. Opening additional savings accounts or certificate accounts can be done with just a few clicks online. You can even apply for loans.
And for Mountain America members who have a MyStyle Checking account, you can access great rewards and other perks right through your Mountain America mobile app.
You can visit macu.com/tech to learn more.
Insured by NCUA
Loans on approved credit. Membership required—based on eligibility.
