Protecting & Sharing Your Information FAQs

Regularly monitoring your account activity is the best way to help detect if you have been a victim of fraud. Bank of America's Online Banking service allows you to access and review your account activity at your convenience, and signing up for electronic statements may also help reduce your risk of mail fraud.

Download the Bank of America Mobile Banking app and allow push alerts for more secure communication about your accounts. Keep your contact information, especially cell and email, current. Review and respond to alerts promptly. Keep your contact information, especially cell and email, current. Turn on location services when making a purchase or signing in and allow location-based anti-fraud and security permissions.

Learn more about Online Banking Alerts

Here are some tips for protecting your personal information offline:

• Always know where your credit or debit card is. If you misplace it, call us immediately so we can block the card from use.
• Don't write your personal identification number (PIN), Social Security number, driver's license number or credit card account number on checks or on your ATM, credit card or debit card
• Use ATMs with surveillance cameras and be aware of people and your surroundings. When you enter or exit an ATM in an enclosed area, be sure you close the entry door completely. Cover the keypad when entering your PIN so skimming thieves can’t capture it with your card number. Secure your card and cash after completing your transaction and before exiting the ATM area.
• Keep mail secure. Receive and store as many of your account statements electronically as you can. Consider going paperless and accessing your statements through Online Banking. Learn more about going paperless
• Tear up or shred pre-approved credit offers, receipts (including ATM receipts) and other information that could link your name to your account numbers. Check your local financial center and municipal waste disposal or recycling center for shred days.
• Monitor bills and bank statements frequently. Immediately report any suspected fraudulent transactions to the holder of your account, such as your bank or credit card company.
• Store canceled checks, new checks and account statements in a safe place

Various security pages on our site, for example Online Banking Security and Credit & Debit Card Security, contain specific information under the What you can do tab on the page. You should also familiarize yourself with our privacy notices and watch the short Keeping your financial information safe video from Better Money Habits.

Some common signs of a hacked computer include extreme sluggishness, unusual warning messages or strange popup windows with advertisements. If you’re experiencing any of these issues, or you’ve been alerted that someone may be using your security credentials on your financial or online accounts, this may be a sign that your computer is infected with malware or has been hacked.

• The first thing you need to do is to check your computer for malware and, if it's been infected, remove the malware. There are a number of commercial anti-virus and malware-removal products on the market, including Trusteer Rapport browser-based security software from IBM. It will fix most malware if your computer is infected, and it warns you if you attempt to navigate to a risky site. We provide it at no charge to our clients (Mac users: Please note that Mozilla Firefox is currently the only browser supported by Trusteer Rapport). If you're uncomfortable using these products, you should seek the assistance of a computer professional.
• Consider using Trusteer Rapport browser-based security software from IBM. It will fix most malware if your computer is infected, and it warns you if you attempt to navigate to a risky site. We provide it at no charge to our clients. (Mac users: Please note that Mozilla Firefox is currently the only browser supported by Trusteer Rapport.)
• Once you've removed any malware, make sure you regularly back up your data and install any security patches for your computer's operating system. You'll want to scan your computer regularly for malware (many software products provide real-time protection in addition to full hard-drive scanning).
• You should always be aware of the best practices for avoiding phishing scams that can result in your computer being hacked and you should enroll in a credit monitoring service so that you're alerted to any unusual activity that may indicate identity theft.
• Enable multi-factor authentication (for example: a password plus a one-time authorization code) or biometrics like fingerprint login or retina/facial recognition when available on your mobile device, including through Bank of America Online Banking or our Mobile Banking app

Finally – and this is something you ought to be doing regardless of any malware issues – create complex passwords and PINs not easily associated with you, memorize them and use multi-factor authentication where available. Use a strong, unique password for each of your accounts. Visit the What you can do tab on our Online & Mobile security page for tips on how to create strong passwords.

Yes. A digital wallet stores information about your physical debit and credit cards so you can easily make purchases at participating merchants. Certain digital wallets use virtual cards.^adatext A virtual card is the digital form of your physical debit or credit card; it has a unique card number stored within a digital wallet that's different from the physical card number, so it can’t be accessed from your digital wallet if your mobile device is lost or stolen. You can use your virtual card with your digital wallet to conveniently make purchases, just like your physical debit and credit cards. You still get all the rewards, benefits and protections your physical card provides.

Learn more about Apple Pay^® »
Learn more about Google Pay™ »
Learn more about Samsung Pay »

Bank of America regards the confidentiality, security and protection of your personal and financial information as our highest priority. We value your trust and we understand that handling your financial information with care is one of our most important responsibilities. Our policies, procedures and protections are always evolving to stay ahead of new strategies used by fraudsters.

We have multiple layers of security in place to protect clients, customers, employees and our company. We have a sustainable cybersecurity program built on accountability, consistency and measurement.

In addition, we have a strict code of ethics for all employees that requires confidential treatment of client information. Only those who need to know a client's financial information — because they provide services the client might need — are authorized to have access to it. All employees with access to client information must complete information protection training annually. Bank of America also maintains physical, electronic and procedural safeguards to protect against unauthorized access to client information.

If we believe an account is at risk for fraud, we will attempt to contact you using the contact information you’ve shared with us, so make sure that information is current. If we do contact you, please review and respond promptly.

Bank of America is committed to providing clients with the best financial products and services available. In order to do that, we sometimes use other companies to assist in providing high-quality, efficient and cost-effective service. We also use affinity partners to offer a greater range of financial products that may be tied to organizations of interest to you. We take great care in choosing our suppliers and affinity partners.

Bank of America regards the confidentiality, security and protection of your personal and financial information as our highest priority. We value your trust and we understand that handling your financial information with care is one of our most important responsibilities.

Our policies, procedures and protections are always evolving to stay ahead of new strategies used by fraudsters.

We have multiple layers of security in place to protect clients, customers, employees and our company. We have a sustainable cybersecurity program built on accountability, consistency and measurement.

In addition, we have a strict code of ethics for all employees that requires confidential treatment of client information. Only those who need to know a client's financial information — because they provide services the client might need — are authorized to have access to it. All employees with access to client information must complete information protection training annually. Bank of America also maintains physical, electronic and procedural safeguards to protect against unauthorized access to client information.

If we believe an account is at risk for fraud, we will attempt to contact you using the contact information you’ve shared with us, so make sure that information is current. If we do contact you, please review and respond promptly.

Bank of America shares information among the Bank of America family of companies (also known as affiliates), which can save you time and money. For example, if you have certain accounts, you may qualify for a credit card with a lower interest rate and no annual fee.

We may share credit card and sponsored account information with affinity partners and selected third parties in order to offer a greater range of financial products that may be tied to organizations of interest to you, such as an alumni organization, sports team or charity.

Affinity partners and selected third parties, as well as all companies that act on our behalf, are contractually obligated to keep the unique information we provide to them confidential and to use this information only as permitted by us.

We also share information to detect and prevent fraud, such as unauthorized transactions, and to manage our business and risk.

Bank of America operates under detailed, rigorous information security policies and programs that go well beyond the requirements of regulatory guidance. A vital element of our information security program requires oversight of third-party suppliers, which applies to international as well as domestic companies. Contracts with our suppliers who have access to our clients’ information require them to substantiate that they meet the strict requirements of our information security program and only use the information for restricted purposes.

We share information with companies that may work for us to support the products and services we offer. These companies may include check-printing vendors or companies that help us mail account statements.

In addition, when you open an account or apply for a credit card, loan or line of credit, we may use various credit bureaus as part of the process for approving your application. We may also use outside companies to help us with fraud investigations.

Because these companies act on our behalf, they are obligated to keep information we provide them secured and confidential and use the information only to provide the services we've asked them to perform.

Bank of America may share some information about credit card accounts and sponsored non-credit card accounts with selected third parties. Bank of America offers tailored credit card and sponsored account products through affinity partners such as colleges, sport teams and professional groups. Sharing of certain credit card and sponsored account information enables us to offer these products and services.

Sponsored accounts are any non-credit card accounts or services provided by us (such as CDs or checking accounts) that are co-branded with other organizations, for example colleges or sporting teams. You’ll know if an account is sponsored by the co-branding on account materials, such as statements. If you’re unable to determine if your account is a sponsored account, or if you have any questions about sponsored accounts, please call us at 888.341.5000.

You may request we not share information about your accounts with third parties who may want to offer you their products and services. Set your information-sharing choices

This gives you the flexibility to select certain accounts for sharing even if you request we not share information for other accounts. For example, a client with multiple accounts that are eligible for sharing may want to share more information with an alumni association or professional membership organization than with a sports team.

Through our extended relationships with affinity groups, credit card holders and sponsored account clients may receive discounts on products or unique access to events sponsored by our affinity partners, for example sports teams, colleges and professional groups.

Sharing your User ID and Password with third parties can mean they have the same access to all your financial information as you do (you won’t be able to choose how much to share). Some of these services store your login information, which could be compromised if they have a security breach.

To help protect your information, we suggest you:

• Log in to Online Banking and set up a security alert reminding you to change your password regularly.
• Use two-factor authentication wherever offered. To enable this feature, log in to enable extra security.
• Keep your contact information up to date to ensure we can contact you quickly if we detect unusual account activity. Log in to review your contact info

We’re working with many services to implement a more secure way they can access Bank of America accounts without requiring you to share your User ID and Password. You can log in to view a list of third-party services that are using our more secure method, and you can revoke access to your account information at any time. If your list isn’t displaying a specific third party to whom you’ve given access, it means we’re still working with them to implement our more secure solution.