 Vishing
Scam Tagets Consumers
Northeastern, US. (5/23/08)--Residents of New Jersey and surrounding states have
been receiving automated "vishing" telephone calls impersonating a local
financial institution. The automated calls have gone out to thousands of
consumers regardless of which financial institution they patronize. It is clear
that the perpetrators of this scam are not in possession of any specific
information for the financial institution that they are impersonating.
HOW THE SCAM WORKS
A consumer receives a
pre-recorded call identifying a specific financial institution. The message
informs the consumer that his/her personal bank accounts have been frozen. The
message advises the consumer to immediately input their ATM or debit card
number, expiration date, and PIN to re-activate the affected accounts.
Consumers should never furnish card information
via telephone or other means without knowing who it is going to. If you are
suspicious of any calls or attempts to gain access to this information, contact
your financial institution at a known number immediately.
CUNA shuts down new card-activation phish
attempt
MADISON, Wis. (10/29/07)--A new phishing-scam attempt using the Credit Union
National Association's name informs recipients about "irregular check card
activity" and advises them to call a toll-free number to get any restrictions
removed.
That is a "bad idea," says Dorothy Steffens, CUNA's vice president of web
services.
The call is a ploy to get personal account information, possibly for identity
theft purposes.
Recipients received a message as a "CUNA Alert: Irregular Check Card Activity"
on Thursday. It says:
"We detected irregular activity on check card on Oct. 25/2007. For your
protection, you must reactivate your card. Call us immediately at
1.866.840.2863. We will review the activity on your account with you and upon
verification, we will remove any restrictions placed on your account.
Please disregard this notice if you have already accessed the website or spoken
with one of our representatives."
As a trade association for U.S. credit unions, "CUNA does not maintain any type
of customer/member financial information," emphasized Steffens, adding that
"your financial institution would never request personal identification
information over the phone."
Anyone responding to the e-mail should contact their financial institution
directly using the phone number provided by it, she said.
Also, another phish making the rounds earlier with CUNA's name on it comes from
a gmail.com address and addresses "Credit Union National Association SERVICE."
It says CUNA ensures 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." It provides a "case ID" and a link to a
fake website mimicking CUNA's.
Recipients should not click on the resource link but should delete it. CUNA has
taken steps to shut down the fake site.
Phishing Email - 6/05/07
Credit union members are receiving scam
emails appearing to be from TFCU with a subject line reading
"ATTENTION : New Security Measures ! ". The email
explains that you must renew your account or risk it being "deactivated" and
provides a link that takes you to a fraudulent site. These emails are not
from Timberland Federal Credit Union.
If you ever have doubts about any link in an
email appearing to be from Timberland FCU, please go to our main website,
www.timberlandfcu.org and find the
information you are looking for.
If you have already responded to such an e-mail and provided any confidential
information, please notify Timberland FCU immediately by calling 1-800-477-3889.
Additionally, you can file formal complaints concerning any suspected fraudulent
e-mail with the Internet Fraud Complaint Center (IFCC) at
www.ic3.gov. The IFCC is a partnership between
the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the National White Collar Crime Center.
Telephone Phishing - 3/28/07
Credit union members are receiving scam calls
that are automated and insistent that the cardholder call a toll free number to
update important financial information. Once the toll free number is dialed an
automated phone system asks for the card number, PIN and expiration date. DO
NOT respond to any email or phone call that directs you to update you
personal information by dialing a telephone number. Only use the customer
service number on the back of your card.
"$50.00 Reward" Survey Is A Phish
Please be aware of any fraudulent “$50.00 Reward” e-mails that you may receive
by email. These surveys are part of recent scams aimed at securing confidential
personal data for possible identity theft.
E-mails are being sent in the name of CUNA (Credit Union National Association)
and NCUA (National Credit Union Administration). The CUNA phish uses a subject
line: "Get your $50.00 Reward Survey with Credit Union National Association."
The message includes the America’s Credit Unions brand logo.
The text of the NCUA message is addressed to "Dear National Credit Union
Administration Customer," offers a survey with five easy questions, and a $50
credit to the recipient’s account.
Neither CUNA nor NCUA are financial institutions; they don’t have consumer
accounts. The recipient message asks the recipient to click on the link. There,
the recipient is asked for financial information.
If you receive a "$50 Reward" email, do not click on the links provided. These
emails should be deleted.
National Credit Union Administration (NCUA)
Timberland FCU is aware that there are multiple e-mail fraud attempts, known as
“Phishing,” being initiated via e-mail sent to both Clearview members and the
general public that appear to be from the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA).
These e-mails may ask for the recipient to click on a link to verify their
credit union account registration. If the recipient proceeds, the link will
direct them to a false Web site and ask for their credit union account number
and pin, as well as other personal information.
These messages are a scam and should be deleted immediately. Timberland FCU will
never solicit e-mails requesting your credit union account number, password, pin
number, or other personal identity information. We remind you to only enter your
personal account information from a secure Web site.
If you have already responded to such an e-mail and provided any confidential
information, please notify Timberland FCU immediately by calling 1-800-477-3889.
If you feel that you have received a fraudulent phishing e-mail purportedly from
NCUA please forward the entire e-mail message to
Phishing@ncua.gov.
Additionally, you can file formal complaints concerning any suspected fraudulent
e-mail with the Internet Fraud Complaint Center (IFCC) at
www.ic3.gov. The IFCC is a partnership between
the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the National White Collar Crime Center.
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