Fraud Alerts
WARNING
WARNING: If you receive the following email DELETE immediately DO NOT click on the link attached. This is not from D.L. Evans Bank.
Dear bank account holder,
The ACH transaction, recently initiated from your bank account, was rejected by the Electronic Payments Association. Please review the transaction report by clicking the link below:
Unauthorized ACH Transaction Report
FDIC Phishing Scams
The FDIC warns consumers about a type of fraud called "phishing." The term "phishing" – as in fishing for confidential information - refers to a scam that encompasses fraudulently obtaining and using an individual's personal or financial information. This is how it works:
1. A consumer receives an e-mail which appears to originate from a financial institution, government agency, or other well-known/reputable entity.
2. The message describes an urgent reason you must "verify" or "re-submit" personal or confidential information by clicking on a link embedded in the message.
3. The provided link appears to be the Web site of the financial institution, government agency or other well-known/reputable entity, but in "phishing" scams, the Web site belongs to the fraudster/scammer.
Once inside the fraudulent Web site, the consumer may be asked to provide Social Security numbers, account numbers, passwords or other information used to identify the consumer, such as the maiden name of the consumer's mother or the consumer's place of birth. When the consumer provides the information, those perpetrating the fraud can begin to access consumer accounts or assume the person's identity.
Since January 23, 2004, criminals have been using the FDIC's name and reputation to perpetrate various "phishing" schemes. It is important to note that the FDIC will never ask for personal or confidential information in this manner. See the FDIC Privacy Policy for further information.
If you suspect an e-mail or Web site is fraudulent, please report this information to the real bank, company or government agency, using a phone number or e-mail address from a reliable source. Example: If your bank's Web page looks different or unusual, contact the institution directly to confirm that you haven't landed on a copycat Web site set up by criminals. Also, contact the Internet Crime Complaint Center (www.ic3.gov), a partnership between the FBI and the National White Collar Crime Center.
If you suspect that you have been a victim of identity theft, perhaps because you submitted personal information in response to a suspicious, unsolicited e-mail or you see unauthorized charges on your credit card, immediately contact your financial institution and, if necessary, close existing accounts and open new ones. Also contact the police and request a copy of any police report or case number for later reference. In addition, call the three major credit bureaus (Equifax at 800-525-6285, Experian at 888-397-3742 and TransUnion at 800-680-7289) to request that a fraud alert be placed on your credit report.
Other Fraud Alerts:
In 2009, businesses and consumers were hit from every angle with fraud schemes – some were old, and some were new variations. Here is a roundup of the 6 predominant types of fraud that businesses and consumers can expect to see in 2010, according to industry experts.
1. ATM Skimming
Skimming devices have been around for years. This is how thieves can steal your credit and debit card numbers by using a special electronic storage device. The thief will attach a skimming device over the slot where you place your ATM card to withdrawal funds from an ATM machine. When you go to make a withdrawal, the skimming device records the information off of the magnetic strip on the back of your card. Thieves have even gone so far as to place hidden cameras on or near the ATM machine to record the PIN number as you enter it in to complete your transaction. The best way to identify a skimming device is to become familiar with the ATM(s) you use on a regular basis. The face of most ATM machines are flat and do not have protruding parts. If it appears that something has been placed over the card slot report it immediately. Skimming devices have also been used at gas stations where you can pay at the pump.
2. Electronic Transfers Fraud
Businesses suffer when fraudsters penetrate and pilfer accounts via hacking into electronic transactions. The attacks against small and medium size businesses sky rocketed in late 2009, so much so that the FBI and American Bankers Association is urging business owners to use one computer to handle online banking activities and yet another entirely to surf the web and for email. This approach, while blunt, is the best way to prevent malicious software from infecting the computer and makes it much harder to manipulate electronic transfers.
Why target small and medium sized businesses? Most small and medium size businesses do not have the resources to employ a full time IT person. Many do not have sufficient fire walls in place to protect against malicious software from penetrating their system. Yet these businesses use on-line payment and payroll systems to conduct most of their business transactions.
3. Variations on Phishing Schemes
Scammers 'Phish' for your personal information in a variety of ways, but most commonly through fraudulent emails claiming to be from your bank or another institution that already has your personal details, asking you to confirm these details.
Vishing: Phishing but by phone (voice). Scammers call you and try to con you into releasing personal information, including account numbers, social security numbers, etc.
Smishing: The newest form of Phishing. (The name is derived from "SMS- shing"). SMS stands for short message service. Smishing uses cell phone text messages to deliver the "bait" to get you to divulge your personal information. It usually is in the form of a message from your "bank" stating that your ATM card has been suspended. When you call the "bank" you are asked to give your ATM card number, pin number and security codes from the back of your card.
4. Check Fraud
It seems that everyone is using debit and check cards these days, and although paper check volumes are continuing to fall, the dollar losses to check fraud continue to rise. The reason? Fraudsters continue to get away with the following common scams:
Lottery Scam: You are notified you have won a lottery or sweepstakes but you never bought a lottery ticket or entered a sweepstakes drawing.
Secret Shopper Scam: You are contacted via email or respond to an ad in the paper to become a secret shopper. You receive payment up front and are asked to secret shop a Western Union where you will send excess funds back to your secret shop employer.
Overpayment Scam: You are selling goods in the paper or on the internet and receive a check for more than the amount you are asking.
In all of these instances, the victim is notified that they have won something, are being hired or that they have a buyer. The victim receives a check and is asked to return a portion of the payment, usually via wire or Western Union for taxes, insurance or because the payment excess was made in error and money is owed back to the sender. Once you deposit their check and send the funds back, their check comes back to your bank as fraudulent and you are out the money. Often times these thieves are using the account numbers and checks of other unsuspecting victims who have had their account numbers or identities stolen.
5. Online Applications
The ease of customer applications over the web comes with another set of headaches: Application fraud, which experts see as a growing area for criminals. The ease of online account opening makes it easy for criminals to take over your accounts or steal your identity.
The easiest way to avoid this type of fraud is to research the companies you are choosing to do business with prior to completing any forms online. If the company is contacting you, do not respond or complete applications within their email format. Contacting your local better business bureau is an easy way to get information about a company you are planning to do business with.
6. Prepaid Cards
The gift card market has always been a target for criminals. The purchase of prepaid cards with stolen credit cards is an optimal way for criminals to get their hands on what they really want—cash.
Another more recent scam is where criminals will steal prepaid cards from the j-hooks at retail stores, chemically wash off the printed card number, emboss the card with information from a stolen card and erase the information on the magnetic strip. Any store cashier would then have to process the transaction manually and can be manipulated by the criminal to push the transaction through.
7. Computer Trojans
Recently criminals have launched a major e-mail campaign to deploy the infamous ZeuS Trojan e-mail, which will send spam messages -- some disguised as fraud alerts from the Internal Revenue Service, Twitter account hijack warnings and salacious Youtube.com videos.
The fraudulent IRS e-mail uses the verbiage "Notice of Underreported Income" as the Subject Line and encourages the recipient to click a link to review their tax statement. All of the latest e-mails use a variety of URL shortening services.
It is critical that when you receive an email that appears to be PHISHING that you do NOT click on the link. It can download viruses, trojans, spyware, etc.
It is critical that you have up to date anti-virus, anti-spam and anti-spyware programs installed on your computer.
If you have any questions about financial scams or Phishing please contact your local branch for more information.
8. Fake Pop Up Messages
The FBI has released a press release regarding fake pop-up messages telling users their computer is infected with a virus. Please see the link below for more information:
http://www.fbi.gov/page2/july10/scareware_070910.html
