Greylock Helps Members Stay Safe Online During Cybersecurity Awareness Month

PITTSFIELD — This October, Greylock Federal Credit Union is participating in Cybersecurity Awareness Month, an annual global initiative by the National Cybersecurity Alliance committed to helping communities through education and empowerment.

This year’s campaign focuses on “Stay Safe Online with the 4 Core” to help online users stop, look, and think to recognize and avoid scams and frauds, and to build confidence and awareness around steps everyone can take to protect themselves.

Throughout October, Greylock will share simple, powerful actions to help members strengthen their cybersecurity. The 4 Core actions include fortifying accounts with strong, complex passwords and a password manager; enabling multi-factor authentication; avoiding threats by updating all software; and recognizing and reporting scams.

“Frauds and scams are alive and well, and they are impacting all financial institutions, not just Greylock,” Fraud and Loss Prevention Officer Mystie Ford said. “In addition to the 4 Core actions, my best advice is to ignore unknown numbers. Delete texts from people you don’t know. Don’t answer the call. If it’s legit, they will leave a voicemail, and if you’re concerned, call us or whichever business is being impersonated.”

In addition, Greylock members are strongly encouraged to sign up for Digital Banking and eDocument services, which securely encrypt information and require multi-factor authentication to access.

“Remember, there is never a reason to give out your online banking credentials, and we’ll never ask for them,” Ford said. “We will also never ask you to click on a link. Frauds and scams are notorious for causing false urgency — if you’re being told to act now, be suspicious. Take a moment to stop and think about it.”

Amit Behal, Greylock’s senior vice president, chief information officer of Information Technology Services, believes cybersecurity is a shared responsibility.

“Protecting Greylock members and employees is fundamental to our work, every day, all year long, and it extends to helping protect our entire community,” he said. “Our participation in Cybersecurity Awareness Month is just one way we hope to empower everyone with actionable steps and accessible tools to make being online safer.”

To learn more and take part in Cybersecurity Awareness Month, follow Greylock Federal Credit Union on social media and at greylock.org. For more information, visit greylock.org/fraud.