Here’s a recap of a situation we had with one of our clients about the online security of his account.
He called our office regarding a strange toll-free phone number (888-999-4512) that had popped up when he had attempted to access his account online with *Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (“Schwab”). With all the potential for fraud these days, Amy made a conference call with him to Schwab to confirm the phone number.
What we discovered was that Schwab had flagged his account after several attempted logins he had made from other than his home computer and had blocked the account access until hearing back from him.
(Our client and his wife had been traveling and had been out of the state for the past month. He had tried to access his Schwab account online several times from several different locations.)
The Tech Support Team recommends that whenever you may be traveling for an extended period of time, it’s a good idea to call Schwab to let them know. They will generate an additional PIN or other password that will open when you login from outside your normal area; that special PIN is good for two weeks. With this extra login, it keeps your account secure, and Schwab is able to verify that it is the client who has logged in – and not an intruder.
To particularly safeguard your account(s) while you are traveling, call Schwab’s ID Theft Line (877-862-6352).
Calls to the ID Theft Line are also indicated if you have been a victim of ID theft, such as when…
- Someone has tried to open an account in your name.
- Someone has filed a bogus tax return in your name.
- Your Social Security card has been stolen.
- You have inadvertently given your personal information to a fraudster or phisher.
These services are part of SchwabSafe® which is a collection of security measures designed to keep your personal and financial information safe online.
Furthermore, we implement the following policy regarding distribution requests: When we receive an email request for a distribution from a client account, we make a phone call to the client to verify his/her identity and confirm the arrangements for the distribution.
[Disclosure: *Dickinson Investment Advisors has selected Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. as primary custodian for our clients’ accounts.]
