PCUMembers:BewareofFraudulentLetters!
Therehasbeenarecentsurgeoflettersreceivedbyourmembersandthoseatother financialinstitutionsthatappeartobejointlysentfromyourcreditunionorbankandany numberofgovernmentalagenciesorcomputersoftwarecompanies.Theseletters requestthatyousupplypersonalinformationsuchasaccountinformation,onlinebanking logins,andsecuritypasskeysorevendirectlyrequestfunds Theyoftencontainlinksto fakewebsitesthatwillappeartobevalidbutareonlysetuptostealyourcredentials Somelinksevencontainmalware,whichinstallsspywareonyourcomputerto discoverallegedlynefariouscontentthatcanleadtoextortion
Theselettersareascam.WewillneversendyoualetterinconjunctionwiththeIRS, FederalTradeCommission(FTC),CreditReportingBureaus,orMicrosoftOnlya fraudsterwouldextortmoneyandaskyoutothrowitinthetrunkofacarorgiveittoan Uberdriver
IfyoudoreceivealetterfromPeople'soranotheroneofyourfinancialinstitutionsthat includesthelogoofanothercompanyorgovernmentagency,donothesitatetocontact yournearestbranchforreviewbyourRiskManagementdepartment
It'sNOTAllRelative
Watchoutforscammerspretendingtobefamily
Ifyougetacallorletterfromsomeonesayingthey’reafamilymemberorclosefriendwho needsyoutosendmoneyrightawayviacourierbecausethey’rehurtorincarcerated,itis ascam
Theymaysayit’surgentandthatyou’retheonlyonewhocanhelpTheymayknowyour name,whereyoulive,andotherinformationtheycouldhavefoundonsocialmediasites Theymaytellyouit’simportanttokeepitsecretfromotherfamilymembersandfriends Theywillalwayssayyouhavetopayrightaway Don’tdoit!
Nevergiveastrangeryouraddressorpersonalinformation,anddonotprovidethemwith cashviacourier Nobailbondsman,hospital,orattorneywilleverrequestthatyou withdrawcurrencyfromyourPCUaccountandsendthecashbyUberORthrougha driverinanunmarkedcarthatcomestoyourhouseIfyouareinstructedtodothisand foryourpersonalsafetycallthepoliceimmediately!
EarningYourTrust…EveryDay
Moreandmoreofouroldermembersarebeingtargetedbyscammerswhoarewarning themnottotrusttheirfinancialinstitutionsorthepeoplethatworkthere.Thesefraudsters falselyadviseourseniorfriendsthat“Thebankorcreditunionisembezzling”orare“under investigationandcan’tbetrusted”Insomecases,they’reeveninstructingmemberstolie totellers
Thegoalofthesescammersistodestroyyourconfidenceinyourfinancialinstitutionand sendthemyourhard-earnedmoneyinsteadTheyaredirectingmemberstowithdrawall oftheirfundsincurrencyfromtheCreditUnionanddepositthemoneyintoafraudulent BitcoinATM,butoncethefundsareinthatATM,they’regoneandunrecoverable!
TheirmissionistostealyourmoneyOurmissionistoserveyourbestinterestsand protectyourassets.Beassured--yourmoneyissafewithus.Weadheretostrict regulatoryrequirementsimposedforyourprotectionbytheNationalCreditUnion Administrationaswellasanumberofstateandfederalagencies Wearealsoregularly auditedbytheRIDepartmentofBusinessRegulationInternally,People'smaintainsa robustauditprogram,includingmonitoringemployeeactivity
SpotandPreventElderFinancialAbuse
Eachyear,millionsofseniorcitizensarevictimizedbyfinancialfraudortheftofmoney, property,orvaluablepersonalinformationOften,anadultchildorotherrelativeis responsibleOthersituationsmayinvolvetrustedindividualssuchascaregivers,legal guardians,investmentadvisors,ornew“friends”
Sincethetypesofabusemaydifferwidely,itisimportanttotakeavarietyofprecautions
BecarefulwithpowersofattorneyApowerofattorneycanbeeasilymisused becauseitallowstheappointedpersontostepintoyourshoesanddoeverything youcando.
NEVERgiveoutyourbankaccountnumbers,SocialSecuritynumbers,personal identificationnumbers(PINs),passwords,orothersensitiveinformationunlessyou initiatethecontact
Keepyourcheckbook,accountstatements,andothersensitiveinformationinasafe placeShredpaperdocumentscontainingsensitiveinformationthatisnolonger needed.
Closelymonitoryourcreditcardandbankaccountstatementsforunauthorizedor suspicioustransactions
ReviewyourcreditreportthroughcreditagencieslikeEquifax,Experian,and TransUnion
Beawareofscamsinvolvingreversemortgages Theycanbecomplexproducts withavarietyofrisksandcosts.
Donotcomplywithrequestsfromstrangerstodepositacheckintoyouraccount
andwiresomeorallofitback.
Finally,andsadly,grandparentscamsareontherise.Ifyouusesocialmedia,many securityexpertsadviseagainstpostingthenames,addresses,birthdates,anddaily activitiesofrelativesbecauseathieflookingforpersonalinformationcanusethat informationtocalloremailanelderlypersonandpretendtobearelativeindistress—such asagrandchildbeinginjured,injail,orlostinaforeigncountry—andneedingmoneysent fast.
Financialfraudisontherise.Knowinghowtospotandpreventitwillhelpyouprotect yourselfandyourfinances.
BeontheLookoutforFakeCardReaders!
Overall,creditanddebitcardsequippedwithsecuritytoolsandfeaturesareverysafeto use.Butwhenyou’reusingthecardreaderatanATM,gaspump,orlocalgrocery, convenience,anddepartmentstores,watchoutforillegallyinstalledcreditcardskimmers. Whenyouswipeyourcreditordebitcards,thesefraudulentdevicesscanorskimyour informationand,withthehelpofBluetoothdevices,sendyourstoleninformationtothe thief’scomputerorphone.
AccordingtotheFBI,thesedevicesarecostingfinancialinstitutionsandconsumersmore than$1billioneachyear.Theseskimmersaren’talwayseasytospot,butthereareafew signsthataskimmerhasbeeninstalled:
Doesthecardreaderlookintact?Isthereanypieceofthemachinethat’soutof alignmentorlookstobecoveringanotherpart?
Doesthemachinefeellikeit’scomingapartinsomeplacesorisn’tproperly installed?
Isthepumppanelopen,oristhesecuritysealnearthecardreaderbroken?
Doesthecardslotandkeypadonyourreaderlookdifferentthanothersaroundyou?
Whilecreditcardsanddebitcardsaretypicallybothsafeoptions,creditcardsmayhave slightlymoreprotectionthandebitcardsiffraudweretooccur.Debitcards,youmust reportfraudulentactivitywithin60daysofyourstatementdatetoavoidliabilityforyour loss.
Asalways,checkingyourcardtransactionsregularlyandsettingupaccountalertscan helpyouspotfraudulenttransactions.
