Capital One recently announced a Seattle-based hacker accessed the company’s servers and obtained personal information on millions of credit card holders and applicants. The hack is yet another example that no one is immune to the threat of a security breach. It also serves as a reminder that Financial Advisors and Clients alike need to remain vigilant.

What Advisors & Their Clients Should Know
Follow the fundamental protocols in cybersecurity protection, especially when communicating back and forth through email.

At the minimum, Advisors should:

• Send sensitive account documents, or other confidential client information contained in the body of the communication, via a secure email
• Password protect all documents

Have clients that may have been compromised by the hack? This unfortunate incident is an opportunity to counsel these clients. Privacy experts suggest you should advise them to “log on to their account and change the password, then check for additional security measures that can be taken.” Helping clients shore up defenses can be a great way to show additional value from your firm.

Ultimately, there is no fail-safe. Clients are encouraged to press their Advisors about the security measures they have in place. For Advisors, it provides an opportunity to educate clients on information security and their firms best practices.