How Secure Is Your Bank's Web Site?

The padlock icon: Another way to confirm that you are on a secure and encrypted page is to look for a padlock icon somewhere in the browser you are using. All major browsers come with the padlock feature when displaying a secure page. When looking for the padlock, be sure that it is located in the browser interface and not within the content on the page itself. Those who are trying to trick you into giving up financial information sometimes place a padlock into the content on the page in hopes that this will make you believe that you are on a secure page, when you really aren't.

The correct Web address: Pay special attention to the Web site address you're on. Many fraudulent sites will do their best to make the address look similar to the real Web site's address in order to trick unsuspecting victims into thinking they're on the real site. Be suspicious of any site that includes an unknown domain in addition to the bank's name, either before or after it. "www.yourbankname.someurl.com" or "www.someurl.com/yourbankname" are both examples of Web addresses that should make you suspicious.

Trust marks: Bank Web sites will often contain popular "trust marks" which can indicate important information about that online business. Leading trust marks include the VeriSign Secured Seal (online security and verified site identity), eTRUST (customer data privacy), and the Better Business Bureau (business practices). If you look for these marks and understand what they represent, you will have a better indication of the trustworthiness of the Web site.

In addition to looking for the above visual clues, another simple but effective habit to get into is to never follow a link within an email to a financial institution. Even if it is truly from your bank, getting into the habit of always placing the bank's URL into your address bar rather than following an email link will ensure that you are not being tricked into going to a fraudulent Web site.

Understanding the differences between a secure and nonsecure page will ensure that you don't input sensitive personal finance information into Web pages where others may have access to the information.

Identity theft protection is ultimately your responsibility, so it's important to know when you are and are not on a page you can trust.