Why you should choose a strong password?
Hackers are constantly upping their game with even more sophisticated ways of getting your information. But choosing a strong password – and updating it regularly – will go a long way toward protecting your information, which in turn will protect your finances.
Tips to strengthen your password
The strongest password you can choose won't be a normal word or phrase. It will be a (seemingly) random combination of letters (both upper and lower case), numbers and symbols. It will look like gibberish, but it can still have a special meaning for you so you can easily remember it.
Choose something you love, but don't make it obvious. Remember that hackers might look around your social media accounts to try and guess your password.
- Choose a unique password for online banking and don't use it for anything else.
- Change your passwords regularly.
- Choose a strong, memorable password and avoid using personal information.
- Use uppercase and lower-case letters, numbers and special characters.
Follow these tips:
- Don't use the same user ID and password or its variations of your internet banking across platforms.
- Don't place your passwords where someone may access it.
- Don't use the word 'password', numerical sequences (for example 12345), easily recognised keypad patterns ("14780", "qwerty", etc) or a single commonplace dictionary word that could be cracked by common hacking programs.
- Don't use anything that would be easy to work out with a little background knowledge: your username, actual name, name of family members, pets, favourite football teams, birthday etc.
- Don't share your password to anyone (even to your family and friends).
Remember: no HSBC employee will ever ask you for your password or OTP (One-Time-Password). If you receive a call or email from someone claiming to be an HSBC employee, government official or even a member of law enforcement and they ask you for your password, ignore the call and contact us immediately.