These days, it seems that everything is dependent upon computers.

Last week, a representative of Northwest Bank’s security department reached out to give Era readers some information on keeping oneself safe in an online world where the dangers are often invisible.

Lance Spencer, chief information security officer at Northwest Bank, explained people should guard their identities as they do their homes.

“There’s a number of things people can do,” Spencer said. “What I always find interesting is people in general go out of their way to protect their personal belongings. They lock their car, they lock their home. They are careful about who they let in.”

Yet when they go online, they tend to post all sorts of personal information, like when they are away from their residence on vacation and whether they have pets, and sometimes even their phone numbers.

“There are a number of things that could be done,” Spencer said. “There are privacy and security settings on social media that are available to set.”

Without using the settings, there is potential to expose a lot of information.

He advised, “Take a look at those security settings and adjust them and be careful of what is being posted.”

What damage could be done with one’s phone number and email address?

Spencer explained, “Cyber criminals take advantage of that email address and phone number for spoofing,” which is disguising their calls or emails with your number or address. He added that criminals have spoofed numbers so calls appear to be from the bank. “That really throws customers for a loop,” he said. “They may get a call or a text from a number that is Northwest, they think they are talking to the bank, for example.”

It usually takes some time before victims realize they’ve been scammed.

“We talk about how sophisticated tactics are becoming,” Spencer said. “It goes back to duping someone into giving their personal information. It’s just that the bad actors are finding other ways to trick people.”

Oftentimes, the criminal will pretend to be someone else to get a victim to supply passwords so they don’t have to go through the additional steps to steal from them.

So is it really worth it to do one’s banking online? Absolutely, Spencer said.

“It really is about knowing those red flags. A lot of the older generation may not be as tech savvy, or as familiar with it to know what to look for,” he said. “There tends to be a trusting nature.”

Use caution and be aware, Spencer said.

Northwest has a new online banking design, he said, and staff is there to help.

There are security features with online banking no matter where one banks, including security alerts and multi-factor authentication when signing in.

Spencer offered tops to make one’s online banking safer.

“Don’t share the same user name and password for more than one account. Don’t use those same ones on social media,” he said.

If when signing into an account, one should get a transaction code to authenticate the user, never give that out to anyone. The bank will not ask for it.

“And with email, be very cautious clicking on links or opening websites.”

If one were to fall victim to identity theft, contact the financial institution immediately. “That’s the best way we can help you,” Spencer said.

“There are always ways to file identity theft complaints with the Federal Trade Commission,” he added, “call 1-877-ID-THEFT. Contact the major credit bureaus out there and report fraud in case any transactions fall against you.

“If it comes down to it where there is actual fraud that occurred, where there is monetary loss, contact the police,” he said.

With passwords, Spencer said, it’s OK to write them down, but keep them in a safe place. And don’t note what system it is for, just write “bank” with the password for the bank. That way, should the information fall into the wrong hands, it would be difficult for the person to figure out which bank the information accessed.

He advised caution on apps that serve as password keepers, as some may be designed by bad actors, trying to defraud customers.

“The main point is to start treating your identity as an asset like any tangible thing you try to protect,” he said. “

There’s another thing. We used to say trust but verify. The paradigm has changed by the time you verify, it’s typically too late. The malicious event already occurred, things happen in a split second.”

Spencer added, “Now we say ‘Never trust and always verify.’ If readers keep that in the back of their mind they will be better off in the long run.