Building Your Digital Safety Plan

Why is this important?

• Offer you a clear path to digital organization
• Simplify transition of digital belongings to heirs
• Decrease risk of identity theft
• Increase convenience of password and document management

Webinar Notes:

Password Management

 Benefits of a Password Management System –

1. Offers dark web monitoring
2. Sharing passwords with members of your household (with customizable privacy levels)
3. All passwords are in one place
4. Auto-fill data for online purchases, forms, and log-ins
5. Allows heirs access to all password information when dealing with your estate after you pass away.
6. Password Management Software – try a few and find which works best for you. Different providers have unique features.
7. Document Management (PDFs, Word Documents, Pictures, Excel Spreadsheets, etc)

The following documents should be scanned and saved digitally. Original copies should also be stored in a locked fire safe in an easily accessible location in the event of a fire or other home emergency.

• Social Security Card
• Birth Certificate
• Marriage Certificate (if applicable)
• Divorce paperwork (if applicable)
• Naturalization paperwork (if applicable)
• Death Certificates for parents or other close family members
• Driver's license
• Passport (if applicable)
• Vehicle license plate numbers and vin numbers
• Insurance policy numbers
• Bank account numbers
• Credit card numbers
• Other financial account numbers
• Software activation keys
• Hide a key code; padlock combination key, etc.

Best practices for digitizing document storage:

• Secure documents with a password
• Share certain documents with people (either for a limited amount of time or with limited rights, depending on the purpose).
• Back up your documents from your desktop to the cloud so that if your computer files get destroyed you can dust re-download them when you get a new computer
• Scan from paper (thorough a printer or a phone app) into your cloud back up provider directly.
• Organize documents by folders

Online Financial Safety and Communication

Protecting your computer

1. Anti-virus program
2. Firewall
3. Whole disc encryption for hard drive (such as Bitlocker in Windows)

Digital communication

1. Email sensitive data by encrypted channels (such as Link Direct from the cloud).
2. Do not click on any links or files in your email or in text messages from unknown sources, and do not provide any sensitive data to a website link provided in an email.
3. Do not provide any sensitive date by phone even if the source seems legitimate.
4. Use two factor authentications for logging into sensitive accounts (sends your cell phone a text code that is needed to access your email account).

Disclosure 

The opinions voiced in this material are for general information only and are not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual. This information is not intended to be a substitute for specific individualized tax or legal advice. We suggest that you discuss your specific situation with a qualified tax or legal advisor.