|
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
SCAM ALERT
Members have recently received calls, primarily to a cell phone, that are fraudulent. The caller states that the member’s debit card has experienced problems and accountholder information is requested. Please be aware that this is a scam.
DO NOT respond to these calls or provide any account information. Remember, Service One Credit Union will NEVER ask you for sensitive personal card or account information by phone or email.
U.S. Census Bureau Potential Scam Alert
According to the U.S. Census 2010 website, delivery of printed census forms to every resident in the United States begins in March. It is important to understand that the U.S. Census Bureau will NOT be providing an online option to complete the 2010 census form. All residents should take care NOT to follow unsolicited web links of attachments in email messages. The only way to complete the census is by filling in the paper form.
ATTENTION VISA DEBIT CARD (ONE CARD) MEMBERS
Service One Credit Union was notified by VISA U.S.A. that some of our member’s cardholder information could have been compromised due to a security breach associated with a large company who processes transactions for merchants. Please be assured that this compromise is not specific to Service One and that other institutions have also received the same notification.
Please note that fraudulent activity has not been reported, but, as a precautionary measure, cards have been re-issued. Old cards will remain active until June 30th to ensure that members have received their new card and pin number, and have had time to activate the new card. Activation instructions are outlined on the front of the card. Members should provide their new account number to any merchants who automatically charge their account on an arranged basis.
In some instances, members may have received two cards in error. These members should contact the credit union at (270) 796-8500 or 800-759-8500. Our staff will be able to assist you.
Service One values your membership and we apologize for any inconvenience this may cause you. We are committed to serving your financial needs and we appreciate the opportunity to serve you.
Scam Alerts
ALERT # 1
The following email has been sent to Service One Credit Union members. This email is fraudulent please do not respond.
From: Quimper Community FCU
Subject: Alert: Message for Customer Service
Email ID#: xxxxxxxxxxxx
Date:
Your VISA debit card was locked on 12/08/2008 by our Quimper CU Fraud Department.
Your security is important to us. If you are unaware of this change, please contact us immediately at 1-800-xxx-xxxx.
To protect your privacy, messages from Quimper CU will never ask you for any information through e-mail that would be uniquely identify you.
DO NOT call or respond to the fraudulent email listed above. Remember Service One Credit Union will NEVER ask you for sensitive personal account information by PHONE or EMAIL.
ALERT # 2
Members have recently received calls (some in the middle of the night) that are fraudulent. The message on the call states that their Southeast Financial Credit Union Visa card has been subject to unauthorized use or has some other problem, and requests that they call a stated number. Please be aware that this is a scam. Neither Service One nor Southeast Financial has initiated these calls.
DO NOT respond to these calls or provide any account information. Remember, Service One Credit Union will NEVER ask you for sensitive personal card or account information by phone or email.
Fraudulent Email Warning
THE FOLLOWING FRAUDULENT EMAIL HAS BEEN CIRCULATED FROM AN UNAUTHORIZED SOURCE.
Service One Credit Union knows that you care how information about you is used and shared, and we appreciate your trust that we will do so carefully and sensibly. However we recently noticed that your account was accessed from several foregin IP addresess. Because information about our customers is an important part of our business we treated this matter as a possible fraudulent attempt to obtain your personal (sensitive) information. This has resulted in the suspension of your account untill your personal information can be verified .
To do so please call us immediately at our free Audio Response Telephone Service: 1-888-xxx-xxxx
If the verification process is successful your account will be restored in a matter of minutes.
Please Note: If your account information is not updated within the next 24 hours, we will assume this account has been compromised and will be permanently suspended. We apologize for this inconvenience, but the purpose of this verification is to ensure that your account has not been fraudulently used and to combat fraud.
IF YOU SHOULD RECEIVE THIS EMAIL DO NOT RESPOND OR CALL THE NUMBER PROVIDED. Service One Credit Union will NEVER ask you for sensitive personal card or account information by phone or email.
WARNING: Fraudulent Cashier's Check Alert
Counterfeit Cashier's Checks appearing to be drawn on Service One Credit Union have surfaced in various states. If you receive a cashier's check as part of a "Secret Shopper" request, for the Internet purchase of items such as automobiles or jewelry, or if you received a check that you were not expecting, the check may be counterfeit. Questions may be directed to 800-759-8500.
Scam Alert Links
Looks too Good to be True
Identity Theft
Scam Alert Movie Clips
All the King's Men
Longshot
Web of Deceit
Phishing Scam - NCUA
Once again, several credit unions have reported that their members are being targeted in another phishing scam involving the NCUA. This most recent scam, much like those in the past, was initiated via e-mail appearing to be from NCUA.
The sender is NOT NCUA.
This false e-mail asked the recipient to click on a link to verify their credit union account registration. If the recipient proceeded to do so, the link directed them to a false Web site and asked for their credit union account number and personal identification number (PIN), along with other personal information.
NCUA never asks credit union members for such personal information. Anyone who receives an e-mail that purports to be from NCUA and asks for account information should consider it to be a fraud and should not follow the instructions in the e-mail. If you have received a fraudulent phishing e-mail purportedly from NCUA please forward the entire e-mail message to Phishing@ncua.gov.
Also, formal complaints can be filed concerning any suspected fraudulent e-mail with the Internet Fraud Complaint Center (IFCC) at ncua@ic3.gov. The IFCC is a partnership between the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the National White Collar Crime Center. NCUA, CUNA and state agencies do not request or solicit personal information via e-mail from the general public or credit union members.
GIFT CARD SCAMS
Holiday Theft Warning
Well the crooks have found a way to rob you of your gift card balance. If you buy Gift Cards from a display rack that has various store cards you may become a victim of theft. Crooks are now jotting down the card numbers in the store and then wait a few days and call to see how much of a balance THEY have on the card. Once they find the card is "activated", and then they go online and start shopping. You may want to purchase your card from a customer service person, where they do not have the Gift Cards viewable to the public. Please share this with all your family and friends...
HOW TO AVOID GIFT CARD SCAMS
*Purchase gift cards only from reputable sources, preferably directly from the store.
*Don't soley rely on a clerk's selecting cards for you from publicly-inaccessible stock as your one and only protection against being defrauded. Also examine both sides of cards yourself, keeping an eye out for signs of tampering and/or the exposure of the cards' PINs. Refuse to purchase cards where either is evident.
*If acquiring cards on the Internet, buy them from the online versions of the stores they are to be used in. Never buy them from auction sites, even if it looks like you could score a real bargain by doing so. Remind yourself that cards sold through auction sites have often turned out to be stolen or counterfeit.
*Keep your receipt as proof of purchase for as longs as you have value stored on the card. Should you ever lose that gift card, use that receipt to ask the retailer to issue you a replacement. (Not all retailers will do this. But at least some do, so ask.)
*Immediately after buying a gift card in a store, ask the cashier to scan the card itself to ensure the plastic you bought is valid and bears the proper value. (This will protect you against the card's having been swapped out of is packaging for a zero-balance one.)
*Bear in mind that reputable companies will not ask gift card buyers to provide their Social Security numbers, bank account information, or dates of birth. If when trying to purchase such cards you're asked for this, walk away from the deal.
*If the card's issuer offers this option, register your gift card at that store's web site. Doing so gives you the ability to periodically check your card's balance online and so catch on to any misuse of the card far earlier than you otherwise would.
Jury Duty Scam
Most of us take those summonses for jury duty seriously, but enough people skip out on their civic duty, that a new and ominous kind of scam has surfaced. Fall for it and your identity could be stolen, reports CBS.
In this con, someone calls pretending to be a court official who threateningly says a warrant has been issued for your arrest because you didn't show up for jury duty. The caller claims to be a jury coordinator. If you protest that you never received a summons for jury duty, the scammer asks you for your Social Security number and date of birth so he or she can verify the information and cancel the arrest warrant. Sometimes they even ask for credit card numbers. Give out any of this information and bingo! Your identity just got stolen.
The scam has been reported so far in 11 states. This (scam) is particularly insidious because they use intimidation over the phone to try to bully people into giving information by pretending they're with the court system. The FBI and the federal court system have issued nationwide alerts on their web sites, warning consumers about the fraud.
Recent Credit Union Counterfeit Checks
SCENARIO/METHOD: Counterfeit Official Credit Union Checks
Brookline Municipal Credit Union, Brookline, MA
The credit union reports a counterfeit cashier's checks situation. Several individuals in various states have contacted the credit union to report they received a mailing which included a Brookline Municipal Credit Union Cashier's Check in the amount of $3,720.00, payable to the individual. The cover letter has no company name, a return address in Winnipeg and informs them that they were selected to be secret shoppers. They are to take the check to Wal-Mart and pose as a customer sending a MoneyGram payment to a "relative" in Canada. After sending a designated amount and paying the MoneyGram service fee, they are to keep $400.00 of the check for training pay.
The checks contain the correct name and address of Brookline Municipal Credit Union, the correct routing number, but an invalid account number. The checks contain an fake 800#, which is answered by a recording posing as Brookline Municipal. There is then a menu of choices, but no live response. Authorized signature on checks appears as: Mary Meffe. Lower left corner of checks indicates: Remitter: S.S.. For additional information contact Deborah L. Ulrich, Office Manager, at 617-232-9410.
San Antonio Citizens FCU,San Antonio, Florida
The credit union's official checks have been counterfeited. Persons are receiving $2900.00 checks with a letter stating that they are lottery winners and need to cash the check and send some part of the proceeds to Canada to further process their winnings. The checks have the correct name, logo, address and routing number. They look very authentic. The counterfeit checks have "Cashier's Check" displayed, authentic check do not. The authorized signature on the checks is Kate Lang or Long. All remitters are Stacey Stewart. For additional information or questions contact, Patty Sarne, at 352-588-2732.
First Entertainment Credit Union, Hollywood, California
Equity Management Group Payment & Securities, Inc. is providing counterfeit Cashier's Check with the logo of First Entertainment CU. One of our members received two Cashier's checks #03-40064702 $3,950.00, and #03-40064716 each for $3,950.00. The checks do not use the credit union's routing and transit number and indicates Wescorp on top of check. For additional information contact Silvia Chab, Fraud Specialist, at 323-845-4497.
Indiana Members Credit Union, Indianapolis, Indiana
Several people have received counterfeit checks that have been mailed out of Canada (FedEx) and later they receive a corresponding e-mail from Nigeria. Most of the checks have been for $4,820. The checks have a logo similar to the credit union's and state "Cashier's Check". The counterfeit checks have a phone number at the bottom to verify funds. Our checks to not have a phone number to call. For additional information contact Sandie Perry, at 317-554-8146.
Justice Federal Credit Union, Chantilly, Virginia
On May 11, 2006 the credit union received a call to verify an official check in the amount of $66,510.30. A search revealed this was a counterfeit item. The counterfeit items contain the credit union's routing number (254074413). However the counterfeit item differs from the original in that there is no date, the check number is not aligned with the branch number. The words "OFFICIAL CHECK" are centered between the logo and the check number. On legitimate checks "OFFICIAL CHECK" is not centered. Lastly, the credit union phone number has been removed from under the logo. The original item was issued on March 3, 2006 and cleared on March 14, 2006. The credit unions investigation revealed that the check was sent as part of an internet scam to an employee of a law firm based in Dallas Texas. To date approximately 10 counterfeit checks have been presented for payment. For additional information contact Susan Baugh, Risk Manager, or Vickie Erdmann, Risk Specialist at 703-480-5300.
Spokane Teachers Credit Union, Spokane, Washington
The counterfeit checks contain the following features. Names are in bold, on the Pay line – the dollar amounts are in bold and italics with ** in front of the dollar amount. The written amount is also typed in all caps and in italics with several asterisks after it. They are printed on quality light green marble paper. The back indicates endorse here – do not write below this line and security info on the bottom. The sequence numbers do not match the credit union's Cashier's checks sequence. They use the same 5 digits and then change the 6th and 7th digit.
Check #3875578 – Printed with W. 106 Nora address with a security feature banner across the top. Payable to Julie Hakola for $650.98 and below to the order of Julie Hakola, 3906 S 66th Street, Tacoma, Wa 98409, endorsed on the back by her and deposited to Wells Fargo Bank, Portland. Memo Line had: Pay Period 5/17/06 to 5/30/06. Signed over to a Mike Sanchez and deposited at Bank of America.
Check #3875552 – Printed with W. 106 Nora address with a security feature banner across the top. Pay to the Order of Eila Alexa Contreras, 801 Barksdale Ave, Tacoma Wa 98327 for $547.93.
Check #3875585 - Printed with W. 106 Nora address with a security feature banner across the top. Pay to the Order of Suzanne Younker, 1324 E 54th Street, Tacoma WA 98404 for $245.00. Negotiated at Fred Meyer.
This appears to be the same fraud that was occurring at ATM’s in Portland, Seattle and Spokane about a year ago. The same banks, Fred Meyer, and the checks are identical in how they are made out along with the security feature strip. Any information you have concerning this matter should be brought to the attention Katie Reynolds, Member Support Manager, at 509-344-2166.
Three Rivers Credit Union, Bainbridge, Georgia
Counterfeit checks use the credit unions old RTN, which used to be First Community Bank, but is now Park Avenue Bank - 061201819. The logo and logo placement is accurate, but there is no address. The authorized signer - more than one person - Robin L. Whitlow's name easily made out. The account number is 01298132. Check number - 6 digits, start with 331875 - no sequential order. Any information you have concerning this matter should be brought to the attention Wanda A Miller at 229-243-8131.
Champion Credit Union, Inc., Toledo, Ohio
Champion Credit Union was contacted by a bank in West Virginia to verify funds on an official check. The checks contain the credit union's name and address (Champion Credit Union, 1347 South Detroit Avenue, Toledo, OH 43614), but a phone number that answers at a Coastline Credit Union (1-866-736-6851). The micro line does not contain Champion Credit Union's routing number and contains a check number that does not match the check number at the top of the check. It also contains an invalid account number for CCU official checks. Amount is $7,380.00 and remitter is shown as A.I.T. This appears to be the same scam that Coastline Credit union is warning about on their website. Account number being used is the same as the counterfeit's they experienced. Any information you have concerning this matter should be brought to the attention of Christina Reisinger at 419-407-4140.
United Community Credit Union, Galina Park, Texas
The credit union has been notified and faxed copies of three fraudulent cashier’s checks with United Community Credit Union as the Payer. They received the first call from Navy Federal Credit Union in Annapolis, Maryland on a ck #10592 in amount of $12,900.00. One of their member’s received this check for an item purchased from him on E-Bay. An Internet company, Cardomain called about two checks they received, #10589 and #10591 that the Payer was listed as United Community Credit Union also. These were also used to purchase items over the Internet. All three checks appear to be produced by the same person and are all signed with the same name and signature : E D__ J__________. Most of the features of the check are very similar to the credit union's: the logo in upper left corner, the words-CASHIER’S CHECK-in the top middle,& the Notice to Members: box- next to that. The routing number belongs to Wells Fargo Bank and the account number listed is not a good account number with United Community Credit Union. The fraudulent items contain an extra line which says: SIGNATURE HAS A COLORED BACKGROUND-BORDER CONTAINS MICROPRINTING. The credit union checks do not have this line. At the top of UCCU Cashier Checks in a red border it states: THIS CHECK HAS VARIOUS SECURITY FEATURES INCLUDING COLORED BACKGROUND, MICROPRINTING & WATERMARK, but on the fraudulent items there is different wording in this border and these items have a blue border. According to Navy Federal Credit Union they are almost tricolor – like a blue fading into a purple into a pink, while our checks are red. These are very good counterfeit items, they passed all the security checks and even the black light test, but because it referenced an E-Bay item purchase they called to verify the check and found out the ABA# belonged to Wells Fargo. Any information you have concerning this matter should be brought to the attention of Carol Thompson, VP/Accounting/Operations, at 832-615-4013.
Coast Line Credit Union, South Portland Maine
The counterfeit checks use the credit unions RTN (211288417) this is the RTN for member checks not official checks. The counterfeit checks contain the bogus phone number of 1-866-736-6851. The account number of 7405305, and six digit check numbers. The credit union only uses 5 digit check numbers. The authorized signature is not legible. Any information you have concerning this matter should be brought to the attention of Connie Poulin, at 207-799-7245.
A Common Currency for Online Fraud
The New York Times
April 26, 2005
Through a dating site, Kevin McCrary began corresponding with a woman in Nigeria. The woman asked him to buy a computer and mail it to her, and sent him postal money orders that turned out to be forged.
Fake checks have been the stock in trade of online fraud artists for years. Now authorities are noting a surge in schemes involving sophisticated counterfeiting of a different form of payment: United States postal money orders. And the fleecing of victims often begins in an e-mail in-box.
In the last six months, the F.B.I. and postal inspectors say, international forgers - mostly in Nigeria, but also in Ghana and Eastern Europe - appear to have turned new attention to the United States postal money order. More than 3,700 counterfeit postal money orders were intercepted from October to December, exceeding the total for the previous 12 months, according to postal inspectors.
Moreover, 160 arrests have been made in the United States since October in cases where people have been suspected of knowingly receiving fraudulent postal money orders or trying to cash them, Paul Krenn, a spokesman for the United States Postal Inspection Service, said.
"The quality of what they are producing is very good," he said, adding that ordinary consumers can easily be fooled. "They are not going to know what they are looking at," he said.
Despite the arrests, however, the schemes often do not involve attempts by the fraud artists to cash the postal money orders. In many cases, unwitting victims, often contacted by an e-mail message or in an online chat room, are deceived into accepting the bogus money orders as payment for items they are selling, or into cashing the orders in return for a fee. It is the latest twist in a long series of Internet schemes that use bogus financial instruments to bilk unsuspecting victims out of merchandise and cash.
The United States Postal Service would not estimate the dollar value of the counterfeit postal money orders it has intercepted. But law enforcement officials estimate that the amount runs into the millions of dollars.
The trend is significant, because unlike private business checks or even other money orders, the postal money order is generally regarded as one of the more difficult financial documents to counterfeit because of its watermarks, security threads and a rainbow of inked patterns and tones.
The fake money orders have been received by small Internet retailers, classified advertisers or others lured into an Internet confidence scheme, from sellers of Siberian Husky puppies in Iowa to art dealers in Indiana. Some consumers, authorities say, are simply not using common sense.
One victim, Kevin McCrary, a 56-year-old Manhattan business consultant, would not dispute that. After falling prey to a fake postal money order scheme, he said, "I couldn't reach around far enough to kick myself."
Single and lonely, Mr. McCrary joined an international online dating site, Elitemate.com. In late January, he was contacted by someone claiming to be a young woman from Nigeria. She - or perhaps he, or even they, Mr. McCrary now concedes - went by the name of Ogisi Douglas.
Their e-mail exchanges were barely a week old before the supposed Ms. Douglas asked Mr. McCrary for his help buying a laptop computer. Mr. McCrary purchased a $1,500 laptop, and after he received two United States postal money orders for $950 each, he sent the laptop to an address in Nigeria.
Neither Mr. McCrary nor the teller at the J. P. Morgan Chase branch where he deposited the postal money orders knew they were bogus. It was only after he was asked to buy more computers and received several more postal money orders that he discovered, after trying to cash them at a post office, that he had been duped.
He had not yet sent out any more computers. But the cost of the first laptop was a total loss: the money from the first two postal money orders was ultimately debited from his Chase account.
"I felt, obviously, a bit foolish for not listening to those little voices that say: 'Something's not quite right here. You don't have all the information on this person,' " said Mr. McCrary, whose parents, Tex McCrary and Jinx Falkenburg, helped define the talk radio format in the 1940's. "But it all moved very fast."
Mr. Krenn said that postal inspectors had been working with other delivery agencies to intercept packages containing bogus money orders as they entered the United States, as well as warning financial institutions to be vigilant. He said tips for identifying counterfeit postal money orders were available online, at www.usps.com/postalinspectors.
The best way to identify a genuine postal money order, postal service officials say, is to look for the telltale watermark, which, when held up to the light, should reveal an image of Benjamin Franklin. Genuine postal money orders also have a security strip running alongside the watermark, just to the right. If held to the light, a microfiber strip will show the letters "USPS" along its length.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation issued a special alert last month, notifying bank executives of the problem, and Thomas Kelly, a spokesman for J. P. Morgan Chase, said that it had issued a security alert to all its branches regarding the counterfeit postal money orders.
In a typical swindle, a seller is sent counterfeit postal money orders in excess of the cost of the item being ordered. The seller is then asked to keep the cost of the purchase and ship back the balance in cash, along with the merchandise.
Dave Thompson, a bicycling enthusiast from Spokane, Wash., said he had received two $1,000 United States postal money orders for "a piece of bicycle equipment worth 50 bucks."
"The postal money order is probably the safest, most recognizable noncurrency negotiable instrument," said Mr. Thompson, who, like many people who buy and sell small items online, said postal money orders were a standard part of the online swap meet. "If this is counterfeited to a wide degree, people will be less willing to accept it and the Internet business will slow down over all."
Sales of postal money orders have already been declining, from 233 million money orders in 2000 to 188 million last year. Even so, that brought in about $230 million in fees - 90 cents for a money order under $500; $1.25 for those up to $1,000, the maximum amount allowed.
At least eight arrests have been made in Nigeria in recent months, said Dan Larkin, a chief for the F.B.I.'s Internet Crime Complaint Center, and arrests in the United States are mounting.
On March 3, Christopher R. Zeblisky was arrested in South Milwaukee, Wis., accused of trying to withdraw the proceeds of a deposit of eight counterfeit $1,000 postal money orders.
A week later, in Charleston, W. Va., Manuel G. Roberts was arrested and accused of possessing of 64 counterfeit checks written for more than $670,000 and 8 counterfeit postal money orders totaling almost $8,000.
And two weeks ago, postal inspectors and F.B.I. agents in Puerto Rico arrested William Arocho-Valentín shortly after they said he had cashed 19 counterfeit postal money orders, traced to West Africa, for more than $18,000. Mr. Arocho-Valentín had $35,000 worth of bogus postal money orders in his possession when he was arrested, the authorities said.
Some recipients of fraudulent money orders have also come under the scrutiny of law enforcement officials.
Phil Barone, who sells hand-made saxophone mouthpieces at www.philbarone.com, says he was questioned last week by police at a post office in Croton, N.Y., after he tried to cash what turned out to be three fake $1,000 postal money orders he had received by mail from a customer in Nigeria. Mr. Barone said his car was searched and that detectives visited his house before they were satisfied that he was not involved in the scheme.
"That was very unpleasant," Mr. Barone said.
Mr. McCrary, meanwhile, is still corresponding with his Nigerian e-mail friend, Ogisi Douglas, who apparently does not know that he has discovered the fraud. He says he is trying to keep her engaged in the scheme until he can find some way to get law enforcement, either here or in Nigeria, to arrest the people responsible.
"It is often said that nobody is perfect," Ogisi Douglas wrote in a greeting card to Mr. McCrary three weeks ago. "But my love for you have made me blind to your faults and imperfections."
Security Features for U.S. Postal Money Orders
IRS Warns of e-Mail Scam about Tax Refunds
WASHINGTON - The Internal Revenue Service today issued a consumer alert about an Internet scam in which consumers receive an e-mail informing them of a tax refund. The e-mail, which claims to be from the IRS, directs the consumer to a link that requests personal information, such as Social Security number and credit card information.
This scheme is an attempt to trick the e-mail recipients into disclosing their personal and financial data. The practice is called "phishing" for information.
The information fraudulently obtained is then used to steal the taxpayer's identity and financial assets. Generally, identity thieves use someone's personal data to steal his or her financial accounts, run up charges on the victim's existing credit cards, apply for new loans, credit cards, services or benefits in the victim's name and even file fraudulent tax returns.
The bogus e-mail, which claims to come from "tax refunds@irs.gov," tells the recipient that he or she is eligible to receive a tax refund for a given amount. It then says that, to access a form for the tax refund, the recipient must use a link contained in the e-mail. The link then asks for the personal and financial information.
The IRS does not ask for personal identifying or financial information via unsolicited e-mail. Additionally, taxpayers do not have to complete a special form to obtain a refund.
If you receive an unsolicited e-mail purporting to be from the IRS, take the following steps:
ˇP Do not open any attachments to the e-mail, in case they contain malicious code that will infect your computer.
ˇP Contact the IRS at 1-800-829-1040 to determine whether the IRS is trying to contact you about a tax refund.
The IRS has seen numerous attempts over the years to defraud the public and the federal government through a variety of schemes, including abusive tax avoidance transactions, identity theft, claims for slavery reparations, frivolous arguments and more. More information on these schemes may be found on the criminal enforcement page at IRS.gov.
Internal Revenue Service
E-mail Notification
CUNA
SCENARIO/METHOD: Credit Union National Association (CUNA) "Phished" CUNA, NOT CUNA Mutual Group, is continually being used as the subject of a phishing message targeting your credit union members to collect personal account information, plastic card numbers and passwords. CUNA is warning people who receive the e-mail not to click on the link to the fake web page, just delete the message. Link to CUNA web site with warning.
The fraudulent message may use graphics from CUNA's web site. The message alleges "FCU NOTICE: Important Security Update" "Credit Union is constantly working to ensure security by regularly screening the accounts in our system. We recently reviewed your account, and we need more information to help us provide you with secure service. Until we can collect this information, your access to sensitive account features will be limited. We would like to restore your access as soon as possible, and we apologize for the inconvenience." The message provides a link to restore account access. The link will take the user to a spoofed web site. There are numerous versions of the e-mail being sent to credit union members.
CUNA does not have such a link on its CUNA.org site, and there is no security update process for accounts by CUNA. CUNA does not have access to credit union member accounts. CUNA is pursuing proactive actions to shut down any unauthorized web sites and servers.
San Mateo CU Used In New Lottery Scam
The Credit Union Journal
December 8, 2005
SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (12/07/05) -- Authorities are warning of a new financial fraud making the rounds in which phony San Mateo CU checks are being distributed that claim to represent lottery winnings that can be claimed by calling a number with a 905 area code. Callers to the number, which has been traced to Canada, are asked to send personal account information or funds to claim their 'winnings,' according to the consumer affairs office of the district attorney.
|
|
|
|
