What is
online trading?
Online
trading allows you to conduct investment transactions over
the internet. The accessibility of the internet makes it possible for
you to research and invest in opportunities from any location at any
time. It also reduces the amount of resources (time, effort, and
money) you have to devote to managing these accounts and
transactions.
What are the
risks?
Recognizing
the importance of safeguarding your money, legitimate
brokerages take steps to ensure that their transactions are
secure. However, online brokerages and the investors who use them are
appealing targets for attackers. The amount of financial information
in a brokerage's database makes it valuable; this information can be
traded or sold for personal profit.
Also, because money is regularly
transferred through these accounts, malicious activity may not
be noticed immediately. To gain access to these databases, attackers
may use Trojan horses or other types of malicious code (see Why is
Cyber
Security a Problem? for more information).
Attackers may
also attempt to collect financial information by
targeting the current or potential investors directly. These attempts
may take the form of social engineering or phishing attacks (see Avoiding Social
Engineering
and Phishing Attacks for more information).
With methods that
include setting up fraudulent investment opportunities or redirecting
users to malicious sites that appear to be legitimate, attackers try to
convince you to provide them with financial information that they can
then use or sell. If you have been victimized, both your money and
your identity may be at risk (see Preventing
and
Responding to Identity Theft for more information).