Spend 30 Minutes to Protect Yourself From Fraud

You probably don't want to spend your 4th of July weekend doing hours of work to secure your key accounts.

You don't have to.

But you can spare 30 minutes. I promise: it will pay off

Here's my request:

Identify the most at-risk online accounts you have.

There won't be many. Probably a couple bank accounts and brokerage accounts. Maybe also a couple credit card accounts. Wherever money or sensitive information like Social Security numbers is involved.

Switch them to 2-factor authentication.

That's a feature in which, to gain access, you first enter your password. Then they text a code to your cell phone, which you must type in to complete the login. It prevents someone from logging in if they steal your password, because they don't have your cellphone too.

Change your passwords, especially any that are easy to hack.

It's always good to update passwords periodically. If you're not sure how to create a safe password, there are plenty of resources, like here.

You can complete those three steps on a public holiday, since no human intervention is required.

I would also ask you to use a password manager. That's really the easiest and safest way to manage your online life, and you will be really happy you did. But that will take time, and we all deserve a holiday. So put that on your to-do list for another weekend or evening. Here's a resource for password managers.

Independence from fraud, hacking and cyber crime is worth celebrating.
Have a great weekend!