Many of you may receive
emails from family, friends, work, business contacts, and so forth. In most
cases, those emails come from an established, legitimate person or company.
However, some may be coming from fraudulent companies. These fraudulent
companies use email for one reason; to trick you into giving your personal
information. This scam is commonly called “phishing” and is a
deceptive way for
these people to steal your identity.
They’ll design and send
emails to look exactly like it’s from your financial institution. They’ll have
you to visit a “fake” website and update or validate your personal information
such as: name, account and credit card numbers, passwords, social security
numbers, etc. If you suspect that an email asking for your personal
information is fraudulent, call the company directly to update your information
and check the validity of the request.
As we are seeing more
cases of phishing and identity theft, the Federal
Trade Commission (FTC) has put together some tips on how you can avoid
becoming a victim of a phishing scam.
Do not respond to an
email that asks you for your personal or financial information.
Since email is not a
secure way of communicating, do not email personal or financial information.
Review your statements
(i.e. credit card and bank statements) as soon as you receive them to make
sure there are no unauthorized charges.
Use anti-virus
software and keep it up-to-date.
Be cautious about
opening any attachments or downloading any files you receive from anyone.
For more information about
protecting your personal information, please
contact us. You may also visit the FTC website;
as
they have a lot of helpful information.
