Keeping your financial accounts secure is essential, especially when they contain your money, personal information, and investment details. Fortunately, SoFi gives you several security tools that you can manage directly from the app.
In this guide, you’ll learn how to protect your SoFi account by reviewing your security settings, strengthening two-factor authentication, managing login preferences, updating your password, and monitoring your login history.
How to Protect Your SoFi Account From the Security Settings
To get started, open the SoFi app and tap your profile icon in the top-left corner of the home screen.
You’ll see your name along with several menu options, including My Information, Membership and Rewards, Investor Profile, Settings, Documents, Referrals, Stats, Explore Products, and Get Help.
Tap Settings, then select Security.
This is the main area where you can protect your SoFi account. You’ll find your login preferences, password settings, two-factor authentication, and login history all in one place.
Strengthen Two-Factor Authentication
One of the most important steps you can take to protect your SoFi account is to make sure two-factor authentication is enabled.
SoFi enables two-factor authentication by default when you open an account. If you remember entering a six-digit security code during signup, that was part of SoFi’s two-factor authentication process.
However, you can make this protection even stronger.
Under Two-Factor Authentication, you’ll find two security methods:
- Authenticator app
- Phone call or text message
Text messaging is better than having no two-factor authentication at all, but it isn’t the strongest option. SMS codes can potentially be compromised through a SIM swap attack. In this type of attack, a criminal convinces your mobile carrier to transfer your phone number to a SIM card they control.
An authenticator app avoids this problem because it generates security codes directly on your device rather than sending them through your cellular network.
Popular authenticator apps include Google Authenticator, Microsoft Authenticator, and Authy.
To upgrade your security, select Authenticator App and follow the instructions to connect it to your SoFi account.
Using an authenticator app is one of the simplest ways to protect your SoFi account against account takeover attempts.
How to Manage Login Preferences
Return to the main Security screen and select Login Preferences.
You’ll see two options: email and password or passcode.
Email and password are the credentials you created when you opened your account. A passcode is a shorter numeric PIN that can be used to log in instead.
Consider the security of whichever option you choose. If your device supports biometric authentication such as Face ID, you can use it for convenient day-to-day access while keeping your primary account credentials protected.
You should also look at the password section on the Security screen. SoFi displays the date when your password was last changed.
If your password is old, consider updating it. Your financial account password should be unique and should never be reused on other websites or services.
How to Change Your SoFi Password
A strong, unique password is another important way to protect your SoFi account.
If you haven’t changed your password in a long time, select the password option from the Security settings and follow SoFi’s instructions to create a new one.
Avoid using the same password for your email, social media, shopping accounts, or other financial services. If another service experiences a data breach and you reused that password, criminals could potentially try it against your SoFi account.
For better security, use a long, unique password that you don’t use anywhere else.
Check Your SoFi Login History Regularly
One of the most useful security features is Login History.
This section shows when your SoFi account was accessed, which device was used, and how the login occurred. You may see logins through the SoFi app, biometric authentication, or your password.
Your login history can act as an early warning system.
If you notice a login you don’t recognize, a device you don’t own, or activity at a time when you weren’t using your account, take action immediately. Change your password and contact SoFi support to report the suspicious activity.
Make checking your login history part of your regular security routine. It only takes a few seconds and can help you spot unauthorized access before it becomes a bigger problem.
Remove Remembered Devices
Another useful feature appears near the two-factor authentication settings: Forget Remembered Devices.
When you previously chose to remember a personal device, SoFi can recognize it during future logins. But you may want to remove those trusted devices if you lose a phone, sell an old computer, or otherwise stop using a device.
Select the option to forget remembered devices to clear your trusted devices.
Afterward, you’ll need to go through two-factor authentication again when logging in from those devices.
This is particularly useful if you believe someone else may have access to a device that was previously trusted.
Keep Your SoFi Account Protected
Taking a few minutes to review your security settings can significantly improve your account protection.
To protect your SoFi account, start by checking that two-factor authentication is enabled and consider switching from SMS codes to an authenticator app. Use a strong and unique password, choose secure login options, and regularly review your login history.
You should also remove remembered devices whenever you lose access to an old phone or computer.
By regularly reviewing these settings, you can protect your SoFi account and make it much harder for someone else to gain unauthorized access to your financial information.
