The term ‘phishing’ has been getting a lot of media attention lately. If you believe everything you hear about it, it paints the image the internet is a scary, dangerous place with unscrupulous people waiting to steal your personal information.

Fortunately reputable third party payment providers, like Ezidebit, have sophisticated design systems to protect your sensitive information—including being compliant to the highest security standards according to the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS).

There are also a few other simple steps you can take to keep your information safe:

• Always use an antivirus application and ensure that it is always up-to-date.
• Use personal firewall software.
• Always make sure you have the latest version of all of your software.
• Always use a unique password that is just for your banking software.
• Always use strong passwords.
• Change your password regularly.
• Never save your password on your computer.
• Be careful using your passwords on a computer that isn’t yours.
• Never tell anyone your security questions.
• Always check you are using a secure website.

By taking a little extra effort and following the above points, you can ensure your next chat about phishing is a tale of the biggest fish you ever caught, not one of stolen personal information. Read more about how Ezidebit protects your online information.

If you’re a small business with an EFTPOS machine, you may have noticed skimming attacks have become a major issue.

Luckily, there are a few simple precautions you can take to help keep your EFTPOS terminal secure from criminals trying to steal card account information and pin numbers.

According to the Australian Payments Clearing Association (APCA), skimming prevention measures include:

• Keeping an up-to-date list of all EFTPOS terminals you have in your business including the make, model and serial number.
• Checking on a daily basis, the serial number on the machine against the number that is recorded on your list.
• Checking for evidence of tampering. Look at the cabling, the position of the stickers and the items attached to the terminal.
• Checking the merchant name that is being printed on the receipts.
• Locking the terminal into a position with a secure lock such as a cable lock.

Further information including guidelines on EFTPOS machine protection are available on the APCA website