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Our expert insights
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Staying secure
When it comes to guarding your financial safety online, in person or on the phone, knowledge is your best defence. Here, you can learn about the common threats to your financial security, discover what we’re doing to keep you safe and find out where to get help, if you need it.
What you can do to keep safe
Choose secure passwords/passphrases
A secure password helps keep you safe online. It also helps us identify you when you log in as part of our multi-factor authentication process. The key to your password being secure is its strength and memorability.
- Never use your PIN, name in any form (first, middle, last, maiden or nickname) and / or date of birth as your password.
- Putting together a few words or phrases makes a longer password that can be easier to remember.
- Use a combination of letters, numbers and special characters. Using less common special characters will help strengthen your password.
- Change your password regularly. There’s no set rule on this, but the more frequent the better.
- Always use different passwords on key accounts that hold financial or personal information. This way, even if one password is compromised, your other accounts will remain protected.
Protect your computer
Many of us see these vital tasks as being a bit of a pain. Yet they're essential to keeping us safe online. Here's how.
- Keep your devices updated with the latest security patches and system software to guard against evolving threats. You can find out more from Microsoft† and Apple†.
- Keep your antivirus software updated to reduce the risk of malicious software and viruses being installed on your computer.
- Your home router is your online front door allowing your devices to connect to the internet, so it's really important that you ensure it remains secure. One of the key ways to protect your router is to change the default admin password as the one set by the manufacturer can easily be discovered by attackers.
What we’re doing to protect you
We use proven, industry-recognised security tools and processes to keep your account and personal information secure.
We consider good security to be the foundation of customer trust, and for us this makes it sound business practice.
We use proven, industry-recognised security tools, techniques and processes to ensure your personal information is protected. Plus, we regularly update this protection in response to advances in security threats and the techniques to combat them.
Fidelity automatically logs you off if you're inactive for a while. We'll also temporarily lock your login if too many unsuccessful attempts are made. If this happens - or you forget your login details - you can reset it online or call us for help.
A padlock appears at the start of our address when you log in to retirement.fidelity.co.uk to show it’s a secure connection to our website. However, a padlock shouldn’t be the only check you make to confirm a website’s legitimacy (fraudsters have found ways of faking the padlock’s appearance).
If you haven’t visited a site before, spend some time investigating the ‘About us’ section. If it contains poorly written English this could be a red flag. You can also check a site’s authenticity by researching it using a respected search engine or an established customer or business review site.
Fidelity uses a security key as part of the log in process as an additional layer of protection. If you give us permission, it stores your username and password in an encrypted format, so the site recognises you when you next log in (making for a quicker easier log in process).
If you think you've been a victim of fraud, we can alert Cifas - the UK's fraud prevention agency - to place a warning flag against your name. This will help Fidelity and other organisations see if your details are being used to pay for something online.
Contact us if:
- Your personal documents have recently been lost or stolen
- You’re the customer of an organisation that has recently lost or leaked data
- You’ve been advised by the police that you’re at risk of identity theft