Whether you use it to pay for a coffee on your way to work or invest extra cash while you wait at the doctor’s office, the mobile wallet makes managing your money easier than ever before.

It also makes stealing your private financial information easier, too.

As the mobile wallet takes on a greater role in your finances, your phone will contain confidential information you need to protect. If you want to keep your finances safe from security risks, check in with this guide to make sure your mobile wallet is safe from prying eyes.

Download apps from respected sources

Whether you’re looking for a new game, organizer, or online lender, you’ll notice the highest rated apps can be found from the same sources: Google Play and the App Store.

If you try to download a financial app from something other than these two sources, you could be putting your financial data at risk.

These reputable app stores vet each service before they allow it in their catalogue. While there may be a few apps that manage to squeeze through these barriers, both Google and Apple are pretty quick to remove anything that contains malware — or apps that steal private data like your SSN or banking information.

If you download an app hosted on another source, you won’t be afforded the same security. You could download a fraudulent app that does nothing but unleashes spyware onto your phone.

Don’t overstuff your mobile wallet

In an episode of Seinfeld, George Costanza’s tested the limits of his physical wallet with cash, receipts, and other junk. It grew large enough that he couldn’t sit with it in his back pocket, and by the end of the episode, it exploded all over a Manhattan sidewalk.

Don’t be like George Costanza. While your mobile wallet won’t be at risk of exploding, it does have a limited number of GB in storage. You should avoid pushing it to its limits because:

• It can slow down your processor
• You won’t have a financial focus

Quality over quantity is a good rule of thumb when it comes to your mobile wallet, as these apps will have access to your most confidential information. Only trust mobile banks, lenders, and investing platforms that follow all security and privacy laws to keep your data safe.

This will come in handy when you’re shopping for installment loans in particular. While there are lots of different options to be aware of, make sure you only choose one app to fill your wallet with. You shouldn’t need to take out more than one installment loan at a time.

Sign out and lock down

It’s 2019 — if you don’t have a password on your phone yet, it’s time that you get one. Whether you use an Android or iPhone, you have the option to set a PIN, password, or pattern lock.

Choose one that you think you’ll be able to remember easily, taking care to follow these basic password rules:

• Don’t use a common word, name, or date. Although the names and birthdays of your partner, child, and pet are easy to remember, they’re also easy to guess.
• Use a combination of characters. Security experts suggest you make a password using at least one letter, one number, and one special character.
• Don’t use a basic shape as your pattern. Like a family name or birthday, a common triangle or square is easy to guess — especially if you leave behind clues in the smudges on your screen.

Set a password in place for both your lock screen and each individual app you have, making sure you don’t repeat passwords from app to app.

Log out whenever you’re done moving money or checking in on your installment loan online. These steps will help keep your financial data out of other people’s hands in case it gets stolen.

There are some security concerns when using your phone as a major financial tool, but don’t let this put you off expanding your wallet. You can insulate yourself from these risks if you take the appropriate steps to protect your data!