A retail investor is an individual who buys financial products for personal investing, not as part of professional portfolio management. In practice, this means a person using a bank, broker, app, or trading platform to save, trade, or invest for their own household goals. Retail investors usually have less market access, less technical support, and less ability to absorb loss than institutional clients.
In cyber security, retail investors matter because they are frequent targets for phishing, account takeover, fake investment platforms, and social engineering. Attackers often copy broker logins, send fraudulent “support” messages, or push users toward malicious apps and payment requests. Defenders reduce risk with multi-factor authentication, device and session monitoring, transaction alerts, secure onboarding, and strong checks on links, identity prompts, and payment destinations. Clear disclosures and simple interfaces also help users spot fraud before they act.