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Privacy & Security / Security Center
Fraud & Scam Prevention
Fraud and scams are widespread. With the continuous advancement of technology, it has become increasingly easier for criminals to target individuals from any location globally.
American Century Investments® is committed to protecting your privacy regardless of how you choose to do business with us. We provide these measures so that you can have confidence in the privacy of your information every time you interact with us.
Encryption & security certificates help ensure secure transmissions.
Every page on our website uses encryption technology and digital certificates to keep connections between your computer and our site secure.
Account access is protected with an additional layer of security.
When you log in for secure online account access, your accounts are protected with an additional layer of security using multifactor authentication.
We protect your information no matter how you do business with us.
We take that same level of care with your offline information as we do online.
We don't sell your information.
We use information you give us to primarily service your account and provide you required or requested information. In addition, any company we may hire, such as for mailings or to perform research, is not allowed to sell or use your information for any other purpose.
You have a choice about what you receive.
We may use your information to help us understand your investing needs and offer American Century Investments' products and services that may be of interest to you. If you prefer to receive information by email, you can choose topics that interest you, or none at all.
Registered Users Can Modify Email Preferences Securely Online:
Log In with your User Name and Password.
Select My Profile.
Select the Update interests link, located under Communication Preferences.
Make your selections.
Select the Submit button to activate your changes.
Internet cookies help us provide better customer service.
Internet cookies help us recognize your web browser and computer and tell us how to present information to you online. We do not use them to collect or store personal information about you.
Critical Precautions
We need your help to make your accounts even more secure online. Please take the following steps:
Sign up for enhanced authentication, available when you Register a User Name and Password for secure online account access.
Promptly review all statements and confirmations received from American Century Investments®, also available online.
Do not share your User Name or Password with anyone.
Regularly install the security and maintenance updates recommended by the maker of your operating system.
Use anti-virus and firewall software and enable the feature that automatically updates this software.
Recommended Precautions
We also recommend the following to further protect your personal information.
Online
Log out completely and close your browser when you are finished with a secure online session.
Do not utilize your browser's "remember" user name and/or password feature.
Secure your wireless home network and install a hardware firewall, available at your local computer store.
Do not respond to fraudulent emails.
Pay attention to browser cues.
Exercise caution when downloading files to prevent malware/spyware.
Offline
Sign up for electronic statement delivery from American Century Investments and your other financial service providers.
Sign up for automatic deposit of any incoming payments, including payroll and Social Security.
Protect personal information on paper documents by using a cross-cut shredder to destroy any document that contains sensitive information.
Place any outgoing mail containing checks or personal information in a locked mailbox or take directly to the United States Post Office.
Only carry credit cards and checkbooks that you plan to use. Store extra cards, checkbooks and sensitive documents in a locked location in your home or office.
Regularly monitor your credit report. You can request your free report from the Federal Trade Commission .
Identity Theft Protection and Recovery Services
Looking for greater control of your identity protection and online security? You may want to consider purchasing optional identity theft and/or fraud prevention and recovery services. One of several options available in the market is Identity Guard®. They offer preferred pricing discounts for clients of American Century Investments.
Identity Theft Protection: Identity Guard® provides monitoring with three credit bureaus, three credit scores refreshed quarterly, and online surveillance for you and your children.
Identity Guard® is not affiliated with American Century Investments and you must contact them directly to learn more about their services.
Awareness for Older Investors
As the number of older Americans grows, so does the concern for older adults targeted for financial exploitation. Elder financial exploitation involves the fraudulent or illegal actions by a caregiver, fiduciary or other individual for personal profit or gain. Or, it can result in depriving the victim of the benefits or assets they are entitled.
This abuse crosses all social, educational and economic boundaries. However, factors such as regular income, accumulated assets, trust, grief due to loss or even fear, put older adults at greater risk.
There are resources to help, including:
Additional Resources
OnGuardOnline (published by the Federal Trade Commission)
Identity Theft And Your Social Security Number (published by the Social Security Administration)
Online Brokerage Accounts: What You Can Do to Safeguard Your Money and Your Personal Information (published by the SEC)
Your browser will display visual cues to let you know whether you are on a secure connection. You should not enter any personal information on an unsecured connection.
The most common browser cue is the lock image in the address bar at the top of the browser window to indicate a secure connection. The chart below provides a link to download the most current version of a browser, as well as a sample image of a lock icon to indicate a secure connection.
Browser Security Indicators
Use the information below to help you determine the security features within your browser.
Non-Secure Connection
All Browsers: No Lock indicates a non-secure connection
Secure Connection
To view the encryption certificate, click on the image of the closed lock in the address bar of your browser window. A small frame displaying site security information will appear.
For additional information on your browser's cues, refer to the browser's help section.
American Century Investments® requires use of a browser supporting 128-bit browser encryption and Transport Layer Security 1.2 (TLS 1.2), and recommends using the most current browser version available.
The Internet browser version you are using does not support 128-bit encryption or TLS. Please upgrade your Internet browser so you may continue to access your account at americancentury.com.
You may access the following websites to download a free browser upgrade to the current version:
Protect More than Your Social Security Number
Your personal information is valuable. Like other assets, it's important to safeguard it against thieves. Although your Social Security number may be your most vulnerable personal marker, other identifiers may give fraudsters the keys they need to unlock other accounts.
Limit Your Exposure
Traditional examples of your personal data include your name, address, phone number and mother's maiden name. However, criminals are increasingly using social media sites to gather information such as email addresses, cell phone numbers and previous employers.
Unfortunately, your children can also become a victim of identify theft. The Federal Trade Commission has noted a rise in this type of fraud. Children are ideal targets because they have clean credit histories and thieves can get away with the crime for years as parents rarely check kids' credit reports.
Safeguarding the personal and financial information of each investor who conducts business on our Web site is a responsibility we take very seriously. We take that same level of care with your information internally. After all, when you entrust your money to our care, you also entrust us with your goals, plans and perhaps even your dreams for your financial future. "Each of us is responsible for protecting shareholders' personal customer information as if it were our own," stresses Liz Young, chief privacy officer.
Company-Wide Privacy Training
New employees receive information about American Century Investments® privacy policy and must complete training within their first 30 days of employment. Employees also are encouraged to review the privacy policy each year.
Protection and Storage of Your Personal Information
Employees' obligations to safeguard customer information are part of American Century Investments' Business Code of Conduct. Here are some of the ways we protect your personal information:
Access to your account information is limited only to those individuals that need to do so in order to provide you service on your accounts.
Service representatives validate authorized individuals identities before releasing any personal information on the phone. Personal information, such as Social Security number, is never left on personal answering machines.
Any paper documents or digital media containing an investor's personal information must be stored in locked drawers and are placed in locked shred bins when no longer needed.
Employees must log off or lock computers when away from their desks.
Our Privacy Office conducts regular audits to ensure compliance with these practices.
The entire American Century Investments® website is secured with 128-bit encryption and Transport Layer Security 1.2 (TLS 1.2). A secure connection means that all communications between your browser and our web servers are encrypted, or scrambled, so that the data you exchange with our website is protected.
Encryption and Your Browser
What is Encryption?
Encryption refers to the process of scrambling information so that it is viewable only by its intended recipient. There are different levels of encryption your browser can support; our website requires a minimum of 128-bit encryption and TLS 1.2.
Upgrade Your Browser
American Century Investments currently requires that your browser support 128-bit encryption and TLS 1.2 for secure online sessions.
If your browser does not support 128-bit encryption and TLS 1.2, please visit the Google Chrome , Mozilla Firefox , Apple Safari , or Microsoft Edge websites to upgrade your browser to the current version.
How a Secure Connection Works
Generally, there are three steps involved to establish a secure connection between your browser and American Century Investments' servers.
Browse to any page on American Century Investments' website and your browser requests a Secure Connection.
An secure "handshake" occurs between your browser and our website.
American Century Investments presents your browser with a digital certificate, which has been secured by a trusted authority such as Symantec
Your browser validates the digital certificate.
American Century Investments provides your browser with a key to encrypt and decrypt communications during your session.
Encrypted communications are exchanged over the Internet through the secure connection.
If for any reason your session is no longer secure, you will be disconnected from online account access.
Additional Security Protections
Some areas of the website are subject to greater levels of security than others. American Century Investments uses encryption algorithms and other security protections in addition to 128-bit encryption and TLS 1.2 whenever your personal and/or financial information is involved, such as when you:
Provide us with your personal and/or financial information (such as opening an account online)
View account information (such as account balances)
Make online transactions (such as automatic investments)
Perform account maintenance (such as changing your mailing address)
Digital Certificates
A digital certificate is issued by a trusted Certificate Authority (CA). Our website is secured by digital certificates issued by Symantec. While visiting americancentury.com, select the lock or globe icon in your browser's address bar to view information about our digital certificate.
Every digital certificate is created for and issued to a specific, verified business' website domain. It identifies the site much like a driver's license. When you access our website, your browser authenticates our digital certificate. If the information does not match or the certificate has expired, the browser displays an error message. Depending on your browser settings, a site with an invalid or expired certificate may not display at all.
How to Get a Login Code (and Why You Need It)
Logging in to your account will now require a separate login code, which is how we help verify it’s really you accessing your account.
You can request your login code via one of the following options:
Text message: We send you a code via text message on your phone.
Voice call: We call you and provide a code over the phone.
After you update your account, you’ll also have the option to choose Google Authenticator for your login code. See the FAQs for additional login code options.
How do you keep my accounts safe?
In addition to encryption technology and digital certificates, American Century Investments® protects your online account access with a multi-step process called multifactor authentication. If you have any questions about other ways we help secure your information, visit our Security Center.
What is multifactor authentication?
Multifactor authentication provides an additional layer of security to your account by requiring extra identity verification using a numeric login code sent to your phone.
What is a login code?
The code provides extra security when you log in to your account. It’s generated separately from americancentury.com and helps us verify your personal information. This process better protects your account by requiring something you know (your username, password and challenge questions) as well as something you have (a code on your phone) when you log in.
What are my login code/multifactor authentication options?
There are three ways that you can receive the code on your phone:
We text you:
Receive the code via text message.
We call you:
Answer our call to receive a code over the phone.
Get the code from a mobile app:
Set up the Google Authenticator mobile app to generate the code. Download it to your mobile device from the Apple App Store or from Google Play .
Note: Google Authenticator is only an option after you update your account security for the first time. To add it, edit your preferences under the My Profile tab of your account by selecting the Multifactor Authentication Setup link under the Security section.
You must set up at least one method, but you can set up all three if you'd like. To reset your password or unlock your account without contacting customer service, you must set up either the text or voice call method.
Be sure to keep the phone number used for your multifactor authentication method(s) up-to-date to ensure that you never lose access.
What is Google Authenticator?
It’s a mobile application (app) that you download onto a mobile device such as your phone. After setting up the app, you can generate secure verification codes. And you can use it to add multifactor authentication to other web accounts, including Gmail, Facebook, Amazon and more.
Download it to your mobile device from the Apple App Store or from Google Play .
How do I scan a Google Authenticator QR code?
To set up your account to use Google Authenticator, open the app and scan the QR code box on the American Century login screen.
How do I enable or edit multifactor authentication?
If you haven't set up at least one method, then you will be prompted to do so the next time that you log in.
When you have set up at least one multifactor authentication method, you can edit your preferences under the My Profile tab of your account by selecting the Multifactor Authentication Setup link under the Security section. You can also setup additional methods on that page as well.
Can I access my account from different devices?
Yes, but you will be required to use your multifactor authentication method if you haven't logged into your account recently from that device.
What if I'm not near the phone I use for multifactor authentication?
Call 1-800-345-2021 for assistance.
What do I do if the phone I use for multifactor authentication is lost or stolen?
Call 1-800-345-2021 for assistance.
What if I don’t have a mobile phone?
You can receive the code through a voice call. Our system will call your phone number—whether it’s a landline or a mobile phone—and read the login code to you.
What if I didn't receive the verification code via text message or phone call?
If you chose to receive a code via a text message, be sure that your service plan and mobile device supports text messages. Delivery speed and availability may vary by your location, cell signal and service provider.
If you chose to receive a code through a voice call, note that a voicemail message may be left on your phone if you’re unable to answer the call. However, some of the code may be cut off depending on the length of your voicemail message.
Note: If you received multiple verification codes, only the newest one will work. If you requested multiple verification codes, keep in mind that it might take some time for the latest code to arrive.
What if Google Authenticator codes aren't working on my Android?
This could be because the time setting in the Google Authenticator app is out of sync. To make sure you have the correct time, go to Settings inside the app and tap Time correction for codes and then tap Sync now.
Once syncing is complete, you should be able to use the verification code to sign in. The sync will only affect the internal time of the Google Authenticator app and will not change the time on your device.
Phishing ("fishing") is a growing form of online fraud that uses phony emails, websites and other software to trick you into providing your personal information (passwords, Social Security numbers, account numbers, etc). Phisher emails look like they come from a trusted source, but they are actually from criminals hoping to gain access to your accounts.
There are several warning signs to help you spot a phisher email. These messages may:
Request that you verify information by clicking on a link or filing out a form. Although it may seem that the link is taking you to a legitimate website, you are actually being redirected to a fake site and the information you enter is then captured electronically.
Urge you act immediately. The scammers are hoping to get you react quickly before the fraud is detected.
Contain suspicious looking links. Look for misspellings or Web addresses that look unusual.
Tell you that you need to download software or fill out a form to conduct business on your account.
Contain unprofessional grammar or wording inconsistent with what you would normally expect to hear from a particular company.
Keep the following tips in mind when checking your email.
Never send personal information, such as your passwords, account numbers, Social Security number, etc, via email. We will never ask you to send us your personal information in an email.
In general, it's safer to enter the business' Web address yourself and not rely on a link provided in the email.
Do not download software from a suspicious source. American Century Investments® will never ask you to download software for your account to work.
Open a new browser when logging into accounts and close the browser when you are finished.
Check on your accounts frequently. Don't wait a full month to review your account activity.
Change your password every 30-60 days.
We will never ask you to send personal information back to us via email.
We will never ask you to download software for your account to work.
If you suspect that an American Century Investments' email is not authentic, do not use the links and notify us at 1-800-345-2021.
You can find more information about phishing from the Anti-Phishing Work Group .
Malware is short for "malicious software." It is software that is intended to cause harm to the user's computer or compromise personal data. Spyware is a specific type of malware that is installed on a computer without the user's consent. These programs can wreak havoc in a number of ways, including monitor a user's behavior, stealing personal data, installing additional software, and redirecting browser activity.
Download software only from sites you know and trust.
Set your browser security high enough to detect unauthorized downloads.
Check your operating system documentation to see if it may also have controls to prevent malicious software installations.
Use anti-virus and anti-spyware software, as well as a firewall, and set them to update automatically.
Don't click on links inside pop-up windows.
Don't click on links in spam that claim to offer anti-spyware software; you may unintentionally be installing spyware.
A sudden increase in pop-up ads
Your web browser takes you to sites other than those you type into the address box
A sudden or repeated change in your computer's Internet home page
New and unexpected toolbars
New and unexpected icons on the system tray at the bottom of your computer screen
Keys that don't work (for example, the "Tab" key that might not work when you try to move to the next field in a web form)
Random error messages
Slowed computer performance
Use the latest version of anti-virus and anti-spyware to clean your computer. Here is a list of a few reputable security software vendors and their websites:
Norton: https://us.norton.com
Trend Micro: https://www.trendmicro.com
McAfee: https://www.mcafee.com
Online fraud is defined as a criminal intent to steal your personal and/or financial information for illicit use. People committing this kind of fraud employ a variety of methods to try and obtain this information, which may include the following:
Phishing
Phony emails or instant messages that appear to come from a trusted source and request that you either provide personal information by email, or link to a fraudulent website that asks you for this information. Generally speaking, the illicit website will try and collect all of your personal information on one page. Please keep in mind that when you log in with your User Name and Password, American Century Investments® will never ask you to provide your personal information to verify your account. Learn More About Phishing.
Malware (malicious software)
Software intended to infiltrate, monitor or damage individual computers, such as viruses, trojan horses, spyware, adware or keyloggers. This software is installed without the owner's knowledge or consent and can capture and send personal information to an external party.
How Can I Protect My Computer?
Although no method is foolproof, the following steps will help protect your system:
Install the latest patches for your operating system.
Use anti-virus and firewall software, which can be offered together in a suite. In addition, we also suggest you enable the feature that automatically updates this software. You can even take the added step of installing a hardware firewall, available at your local computer store.
Here is a list of security software vendors and their websites:
Norton: https://us.norton.com
Trend Micro: https://www.trendmicro.com
McAfee: https://www.mcafee.com
As Wi-Fi home networks become more popular, so do security breaches through these networks. Here are a few tips to prevent unauthorized access through your Wi-Fi network.
Immediately change the administrator password. Most wireless routers or access points come with web-based software that enable you to create or change the settings for your device. To prevent unauthorized access, you should immediately change the default password.
Enable encryption. All wireless-enabled devices support some form of encryption. Use the highest level of encryption supported by all your attached devices.
Change the Default SSID. An SSID your network's name. All wireless devices on a wireless network must use the same SSID in order to communicate with each other.
Disable SSID broadcast. You don't need to broadcast your SSID to the neighbor's. A safer choice is to manually enter your network's SSID when connecting new wireless devices.
Turn off the router or access point when you'll be away from home for an extended period of time.
Consult the documentation for your wireless router or access point for specifics on how to change your network settings and secure your network. American Century Investments® representatives cannot provide technical support for your router or home network.
Optimal Viewing
Our site is best viewed with 32-bit color and 1024x768 resolution.
Note: Your monitor must support at least 256 colors and 800x600 resolution.
Web Browsers
We require users to access their accounts online with the current version of one of the following:
American Century Investments® requires 128-bit browser encryption and Transport Layer Security 1.2 (TLS 1.2). If your browser does not support 128-bit encryption or TLS 1.2, please access the supported browser's website and upgrade to 128-bit encryption. If, for any reason, your session is no longer secure, it will be disconnected.
Operating System Platforms:
Microsoft Windows (latest version)
Macintosh OS X (latest version)
Mobile (Apple iOS, Google Android):
We recommend using the most current version of your device's operating system. Keep your device up to date by installing updates as they are released.
Software
The latest free version of the Adobe Reader software is needed to view PDF files.
Learn more about Adobe Reader and PDF Files.
Visit www.adobe.com to download this software.