The Internet offers the potential for safe, convenient ways to shop for financial services and conduct credit union business, any day, any time. However, members need to make good online choices - decisions that may help avoid costly surprises and scams.
Recent fraud alerts and tips for protecting your personal information are provided below. You may also download:
Tips to Safely Conduct Financial Transactions Over the Internet, courtesy of the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA). (91.5KB)
Take Charge: Fighting Back Against Identity Theft, provided by the Federal Trade Commission, U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the United States Secret Service (6.89MB)
Talking About Identity Theft: A How-to Guide, a workbook provided by the Federal Trade Commission (6.25MB)
Additionally, we have partnered with Digital Defense to provide an informational library on different security threats. Each module has an associated online quiz to test your knowledge. Please take a moment to tour.
To download Adobe Acrobat Reader, click here.
Recent Fraud Alerts
Beware of Credit Union Phishing Attacks
July 31, 2008 - Financial Center is aware of several recent phishing attacks using a variation on the credit union's name. Please be reminded that Financial Center will never ask for your confidential account information via e-mail.
If you have any further questions, please contact Member Services at 317.916.7700 or 1.800.473.2328.
FBI Warns of IRS Stimulus Scam
June 11, 2008 - The FBI issued an e-scam alert (back in May - hopefully this isn't too late!) that warns of a scam involving IRS stimulus payments. The FBI warns consumers of recently reported spam e-mail purportedly from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) which is actually an attempt to steal consumer information. The e-mail advises the recipient that direct deposit is the fastest and easiest way to receive their economic stimulus tax rebate. The message contains a hyperlink to a fraudulent form which requests the recipient's personally identifiable information, including bank account information. To convince consumers to reply, the e-mail warns that a failure to complete the form in a timely manner will delay the issuance of the rebate check.
One example of this IRS spam e-mail message is as follows:
"Over 130 million Americans will receive refunds as part of President Bush's program to jumpstart the economy. Our records indicate that you are qualified to receive the 2008 Economic Stimulus Refund. The fastest and easiest way to receive your refund is by direct deposit to your checking/savings account. Please follow the link and fill out the form and submit before May 10th, 2008 to ensure that your refund will be processed as soon as possible. Submitting your form on May 10th, 2008 or later means that your refund will be delayed due to the volume of requests we anticipate for the Economic Stimulus Refund.
To access Economic Stimulus refund, please click here."
Consumers are advised that the IRS does not initiate taxpayer communications via e-mail. In addition, the IRS does not request detailed personal information via e-mail or ask taxpayers for the PIN numbers, passwords, or similar secret access information for their credit card, bank, or other financial accounts.
Please be cautious of unsolicited e-mails. It is recommended not to open e-mails from unknown senders because they often contain viruses or other malicious software. It is also recommended to avoid clicking links in e-mails received from unknown senders as this is a popular method of directing victims to phishing websites.
IRS warns of new scams against taxpayers
April 24, 2008 - IRS has posted new warnings about phone and e-mail scams, both tied to this year’s economic stimulus payments and tax season, by fraudsters seeking to acquire taxpayers’ financial institution account numbers and other sensitive data.
In one of the scenarios, people have been contacted by phone and told by the caller that they need to provide their account numbers in order to get the stimulus payments. But IRS isn’t calling or e-mailing people for this information; it’s making the payments based on information in taxpayers’ tax returns.
In another case, people are receiving an e-mail with a link to a form where recipients are told they must provide information to receive their payments by direct deposit. IRS says the senders are probably really trying to get recipients’ personal and financial information so they can clean out their accounts. And taxpayers that want to receive tax refunds, or stimulus payment, by direct deposit are already instructed to provide the required information on their tax returns, it notes.
Hoosier Warns Indiana Residents about False Winner Claims
February 25, 2008 - The Hoosier Lottery is warning Indiana residents about false winner claims sent to individuals by email.
"The Hoosier Lottery does not email individuals to tell them that they have won any of our draw games like Powerball and Hoosier Lotto," said Security Director Michael Bare of the Hoosier Lottery. "The Hoosier Lottery does not know who winners are until the individual winner comes forward to Hoosier Lottery Headquarters or any of our regional offices with a winning ticket to claim their prize."
Some individuals are receiving notices that they've won certain Lottery games, when, in fact, they’ve never played any of the games before.
The Hoosier Lottery Web site gives players links to three different agencies to contact if they feel they have been the victim of an illegal scam. These links are found under Lottery Info and Security Awareness: www.in.gov/hoosierlottery/misc/securityawareness.asp
"We want all Indiana residents, whether they play our games or not, to be safe and avoid these types of scams," said Executive Director Kathryn A. Densborn of the Hoosier Lottery. "Please contact the Attorney General, Fraudwatch International, or the Federal Trade Commission if you feel as though you are a victim of one of these scams."
The Hoosier Lottery reminds all players to play responsibly. For more information about The Hoosier Lottery, logon to www.hoosierlottery.com.
Phishing Attempt – E-mail Solicitation Using NCUA Address
February 21, 2008 - In cases reported to NCUA, the perpetrator(s) sent e-mails to credit union members and the general public stating that the “National Credit Union Administration temporarily suspended your account due to fraud attempts”. The e-mail goes on to state “to reactivate your account call the toll free number” provided. The e-mail is addressed as originating from the NCUA Region 1, Albany, New York office and the phone number to call has an Albany area code of 518.
NCUA does not ask credit union members or the general public for such information. Anyone who receives an e-mail that purports to be from NCUA and asks for account information should consider it to be a fraudulent attempt to obtain their personal account data for an illegal purpose and should not follow the instructions in the e-mail.
Persons affected by this scam, and variants of this scam, should be advised to forward the entire e-mail message to Phishing@ncua.gov. Additionally, formal complaints concerning any suspected fraudulent e-mail can be filed 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.
STOP - THINK - CLICK
7 Practices for Safer Computing
August 13, 2007 - OnGuardOnline.gov provides practical tips from the federal government and the technology industry to help you be on guard against Internet fraud, secure your computer, and protect your personal information.
- Protect your personal information. It's valuable.
- Know who you're dealing with.
- Use anti-virus and anti-spyware software, as well as a firewall, and update them all regularly.
- Be sure to set up your operating sustem and Web browser software properly, and update them regularly.
- Protect your passwords.
- Back up important files.
- Learn who to contact if something goes wrong online.
Read more about the 7 Practices or visit OnGuardOnline.gov.
What You Need to Know About Phishing
Financial Center is committed to ensuring account privacy and security. Part of this commitment is through member education. You can protect your private information by practicing good security habits and reporting any suspicious contacts either via email, phone or the U.S. Postal service.
Financial Center does not contact our members via e-mail to verify or request account numbers, PINs, or other security information. If you receive an email requesting personal information, consider it fraudulant and DO NOT respond with any personal information and forward this email to Phishing@fcfcu.com.
Protect your personal information:
- Use caution in selecting your PIN number and passwords.
- Be cautious about revealing account numbers, Social Security or Tax I.D. numbers and other private information to other persons.
- Protect your account numbers, card numbers, PINs and passwords.
- Regularly log into your online accounts and don't wait for as long as a month before you check each account.
- Never give out personal data through the mail or via an e-mail solicitation unless you have initiated the contact. Avoid filling our forms in email messages that ask for personal financial information. You should only communicate information such as credit card numbers or account information via a secure website or the telephone.
- Do not email confidential information to the credit union using your personal e-mail accounts. You may email us using our Secure Contact Center Form at https://apps.fcfcu.com/contactForm.html.
- Additionally, we have provided an Identity Theft Coach which coaches you to safeguard personal and financial records from fraud and identity theft. Click on the Identity Theft Coach icon for more information.
- If you have been a victim of a phishing attack, a report can be filed with the Internet Crime Complaint Center run by the FBI and the National White Collar Crime Center.