Protect Your Finances & Identity

Helpful steps to take when a data breach occurs:

• Consider placing a credit freeze to help restrict access to your credit report. To be most effective, place a freeze with each of the three credit bureaus.
• Transunion
• Experian
• Equifax
• Monitor your credit report and consider fraud alerts.
• Research credit monitoring services to determine which is right for you and subscribe.
• Stay vigilant for phishing attempts and other scams.
• Watch for unexpected communications.
• Review your bank account and credit card transactions regularly and set up alerts. Report suspicious or unauthorized activity right away.
• Update passwords. For strong passwords, use 8 or more characters with uppercase and lowercase letters, symbols and numbers and don’t use a password more than once.
• Go to the Federal Trade Commission’s website or call 877-438-4337 https://www.identitytheft.gov/Info-Lost-or-Stolen
• Go to the Internal Revenue Service website https://www.irs.gov/identity-theft-central

Did someone tell you to move or transfer your money? It could be a scam.

• Many impersonation schemes start with a call about a routine problem, like suspicious activity in one of your accounts. The story quickly takes a more serious turn when you’re told someone is using your information to commit crimes and all your money is at risk. The person you’re talking to — who claims to be a helpful agent from the FTC, or another agency or organization — is really a scammer.
• Check out the information at https://consumer.ftc.gov/consumer-alerts/2024/01/did-someone-tell-you-move-or-transfer-your-money-it-could-be-scam

A scam is a trick a con artist plays on an unsuspecting victim to extort money. If the scam succeeds, the victim’s money is gone, and the scammer will move on to the next victim.

A scammer is the ultimate salesperson with a tempting offer or a skilled liar with a plausible story

• Easily pinpoints a victim’s vulnerabilities and appeals to emotions: sympathy, fear, loneliness
• Quickly gains trust 
• Insist on secrecy
• Shows no mercy, e.g., doesn’t take “no” for an answer

Know the Red Flags of a Scam

• Immediate action required
• Insistence on secrecy
• Money needed up front
• Hard-to-track payment methods

Build Your Scam Defenses

• Do not be rushed into any financial decision
• Assume that insistence on secrecy is a ploy to deceive you
• Be suspicious of any situation that requires you to send money up front
• Confirm all stories, offers or charities independently
• Be very cautious about clicking on email links

Block Those Scammers

• Register with National Do Not Call Registry at www.donotcall.gov to limit legitimate telemarketing phone calls, making phone scams easier to detect
• Register with www.DMAchoice.org to limit legitimate advertising mail, making mail scams easier to detect
• Limit personal information on social media and choose the strictest privacy settings on social media accounts
• Use antivirus software on your computer

What to Do If You Are Scammed

• Don’t be embarrassed or afraid
• Tell someone you trust
• Report the scam to your bank immediately to limit losses
• Contact your local police and federal agencies, like the Federal Trade Commission

Information provided by the American Bankers Association

According to the FBI, in 2014 consumers lost more than $8 million to solicitation scams. These scams, commonly referred to as “advance fee,” “lottery” or “sweepstakes” scam, often begin with fraudsters telling the victim they’ve won a lottery or sweepstakes raffle. The consumer is issued a check worth more than the amount owed and instructed to pay taxes and fees before receiving a lump sum payment. Unfortunately, the check––in addition to the raffle––is bogus.

1. Don’t be fooled by the appearance of the check. Scam artists are using sophisticated technology to create legitimate looking counterfeit checks. Some are counterfeit money orders, some are phony cashier’s checks and others look like they are from legitimate business accounts. The company name may be real, but someone has forged the checks without their knowledge.
2. Never “pay to play.” There is no legitimate reason for someone who is giving you money to ask you to wire money back or send you more than the exact amount—that’s a red flag that it’s a scam. If a stranger wants to pay you for something, insist on a cashier’s check for the exact amount, preferably from a local bank or one with a local branch.
3. Verify the requester before you wire or issue a check. It is important to know who you are sending money to before you send it. Just because someone contacted you doesn’t mean they are a trusted source.
4. Ensure a check has “cleared” to be most safe. Under federal law, banks must make deposited funds available quickly, but just because you can withdraw the money doesn’t mean the check is good, even if it’s a cashier’s check or money order. Be sure to ask if the check has cleared, not merely if the funds are available before you decide to spend the money.
5. Report any suspected fraud to your bank immediately. Bank staff are experts in spotting fraudulent checks. If you think someone is trying to pull a fake check scam, don’t deposit it— report it. Contact your local bank or the National Consumers League’s Fraud Center, fraud.org.

Information provided by the American Bankers Association.

“While the exciting and glamorous fraud topics today involve wire fraud, account takeovers, ID theft, and skimming, the results of the Association for Financial Professionals’ annual corporate fraud survey remind us that the most fraud vulnerable instrument available today is the paper check.”
- Richard Oliver, Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank

2013 saw $645,000,000 in check fraud losses in the United States according to the ABA Deposit Account Fraud Survey.

How to protect yourself:

• Throw away any offer that asks you to pay for a prize or a gift. If it’s free or a gift, you shouldn’t have to pay for it. Free is free.

• Resist the urge to enter foreign lotteries. It’s illegal to play a foreign lottery through the mail or the telephone, and most foreign lottery solicitations are phony.

• Know who you’re dealing with, and never wire money to strangers.

• If you’re selling something, don’t accept a check for more than the selling price, no matter how tempting the offer or how convincing the story. As a seller, you can suggest an alternative way for the buyer to pay.

• If the buyer insists that you wire back funds, end the transaction immediately. Legitimate buyers don’t pressure you to send money by wire transfer services. In addition, you have little recourse if there’s a problem with a wire transaction.

• Resist any pressure to “act now.” If the buyer’s offer is good now, it should be good after the check clears.

• A cashier’s check is less risky than other types of checks only if the item is genuine. If you can, ask for a cashier’s check drawn on a bank with a branch in your area.

• If you want to find out whether a check is genuine, call or visit the bank on which the check is written. That bank will be in a better position to tell you whether the check is one they issued and is genuine.

• Know the difference between funds being available for withdrawal from your account and a check having finally cleared. Your bank may be required by law to make funds available to you even if the check has not yet cleared. However, it could take several weeks to know if the check will clear or not.

Information provided by: consumer.ftc.gov and occ.gov

The key to spotting financial abuse is a change in a person’s established financial patterns. Watch out for these red flags:

1. Unusual activity in an older person’s bank accounts, including large, frequent or unexplained withdrawals
2. Changing from a basic account to one that offers more complicated services the customer does not fully understand or need
3. Withdrawals from bank accounts or transfers between accounts the customer cannot explain
4. A new “best friend” accompanying an older person to the bank
5. Sudden non-sufficient fund activity or unpaid bills
6. Closing CDs or accounts without regard to penalties
7. Uncharacteristic attempts to wire large sums of money
8. Suspicious signatures on checks, or outright forgery
9. Confusion, fear or lack of awareness on the part of an older customer
10. Checks written as “loans” or “gifts”
11. Bank statements that no longer go to the customer’s home
12. New powers of attorney the older person does not understand
13. A caretaker, relative or friend who suddenly begins conducting financial transactions on behalf of an older person without proper documentation
14. Altered wills and trusts

Information provided by the American Bankers Association.

According to the Federal Trade Commission, between 2012 and 2014, consumers reported more than $42 million in losses from scams involving the impersonation of family members and friends. This scam, commonly known as the “grandparent scam,” is a form of financial abuse that deliberately targets older Americans.

To commit this crime, fraudsters call claiming to be a family member in serious trouble and in need of money immediately. The scammer might say he’s stranded or has been mugged, and call in the middle of the night to add to the urgency and confusion. Once the money is wired, the victim later finds out that it wasn’t their grandchild they were helping, it was a criminal.

Confirm the caller. Fraudsters are using social networking sites to gain the personal information of friends and relatives to carry out their crimes. Verify the caller by calling them back on a known number or consult a trusted family member before acting on any request.

Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Fraudsters want to execute their crimes quickly. In this type of scam, they count on fear and your concern for your loved one to make you act before you think. The more questions you ask the more inclined they will be to ditch the scam if they suspect you’re on to them.

Never give personal information to anyone over the phone unless you initiated the call and the other party is trusted.

Never rush into a financial decision and trust your instincts. Don’t be fooled—if something doesn’t feel right, it may not be right. Feel free to say no and get more information before you send money to someone.

Information provided by the American Bankers Association.

Phishing: Don't Take The Bait

Phishing: Don’t Take The Bait

Phishing is when you get emails, texts, or calls that seem to be from companies or people you know, but they’re actually from scammers. They want you to click on a link or share personal information (like a password or social security number) so that they can use that information to steal your money and/or identity.

The Bait

Scammers use familiar company names or pretend to be someone you know. They send a text or ‘spoofed’ email or even call you in a way that makes it appear to be from a friend, family member, or an employee of a trusted organization like your bank, credit card company, government agency or phone company. The bait may look and sound like a legitimate request. The scammers might even have personal information about you, like your date of birth or password. They often say they need your information now, to protect your account, to help a loved one in trouble, or to confirm login or password information and warn that something bad will happen if you do not act immediately. They ask you to give sensitive information like passwords or bank account numbers or they ask you to click on a link. If you click on the link, they can install malicious programs that can lock you out of your computer or enable them to gain access to use your personal or financial information, even from outside of the country.

Avoid the Hook

Take a few minutes to check a request out. You wouldn’t give your house keys to someone you don’t know or trust. Don’t give someone the keys to your bank account before you know who that person is and are certain that person can be trusted. If someone calls asking for information or wants you to act, tell the caller you will call back, then call the number on your billing statement or credit card to report the call. If the caller tries to convince you to stay on the phone, it’s a scam. Hang-up and call the trusted number. If it’s an email, don’t click on it. Go to the company’s website using a bookmark or type it in and check for alerts on your account. If you’re unsure, ask a friend, coworker, family member, or caregiver to help.

Look for Scam Tip-Offs

You don’t have an account with the company. The email, text or caller is asking for account information, including passwords. Grammatical errors or something just seems fishy or not right.

Protect Yourself

Keep your computer and mobile device security software up to date and regularly back up your data. Change your security settings to enable multi-factor authentication—a second step to verify who you are, like a text with a code—for accounts that support it. Change any compromised passwords right away and do not reuse those passwords for other accounts. Use a cloud-based account such as Google Drive or Microsoft OneDrive that can allow you to restore your data if your computer is comprised. Don’t provide any information to anyone who calls or emails you out of the blue. Only do it if you’ve called or emailed them. Stay current on scams, check out the FTC’s scam site at https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/features/scam-alerts.

Report Phishing

Report it to the FTC at www.ftc.gov/complaint Forward phishing emails to spam@uce.gov– and to the company, bank, or organization impersonated in the email. You also may report phishing email to reportphishing@antiphishing.org. The Anti-Phishing Working Group, a group of ISPs, security vendors, financial institutions and law enforcement agencies, uses these reports to fight phishing. Visit Identitytheft.gov. Victims of phishing could become victims of identity theft; there are steps you can take to minimize your risk.

Technology / Imposter Scams

RED FLAGS:

Unsolicited request to remotely access your computer or mobile device. It’s probably a scam - and you could lose money.

Scammers often pose as employees of familiar companies and ask you to provide remote access or download an app.

Scammers might call, use pop-up screens or email to convince you that your device has a virus or that you’re owed money.

You are asked to lie to your bank about the reason for a withdrawal of funds.

PROTECT YOURSELF:

No matter what reason you’re given, NEVER grant access to your computer, cell phone or download any app at the request of an unknown company or individual.

ALWAYS confirm the identity of someone requesting access by calling a trusted and verified phone number (the one provided may be part of the scam).

Do not send funds by any means, wire, gift card or gift card code.