Con artists now use email to try to
hijack your personal financial information. In a scam known as "phishing", swindlers claim to be from a reputable company and send out thousands of
fake emails in hopes that consumers will respond with their bank account
information, credit card numbers, passwords or other sensitive
information.
These emails can look quit convincing,
with company logos and banners copied from actual Web sites. Often, they
will tell you that their security procedure has changed or that they need
to update (or validate) your information, and then direct you to a
look-alike Web site. If you respond, the thieves use your information to
order goods and services or obtain credit.
What you can do to protect yourself.
The following are some tips to avoid
becoming a victim of a phishing scam:
- Never give out your personal financial
information in response to an unsolicited phone call, fax, or email, no
matter how official it may seem.
- Do not respond to emails that may warn
of dire consequences unless you validate your information immediately.
Contact the company to confirm the e-mail's validity using a telephone
number or Web address you know to be genuine.
- Check your credit card and bank
account statements regularly and look for unauthorized transactions,
even small ones. Some thieves hope small transactions will go unnoticed.
Report any discrepancies immediately.
- When submitting financial
information to a Web site, look for the padlock or key icon at the
bottom of your browser, and make sure the Internet address begins with
"https". This signals that your information is secure during
transmission.
- Report suspicious activity to the
Internet Crime Compliant Center, a partnership between the FBI and the
National White Collar Crime Center.
- If you respond to an email, contact
your bank immediately so they can protect your account and your
identity. For information on identity theft, visit
www.consumer.gov/idtheft/.
- For more information on phishing,
visit the following sites:
- Federal Deposit Insurance
Corporation (www.fdic.gov)
- Federal Trade Commission (ftc.gov)
- Anti-Phishing Working Group
- Internet Fraud Complaint Center -
A partnership between the FBI and the National White Collar Crime
Center (NW3C).
