Phishing Scams

What is Phishing?

Phishing is a cyber attack through email, text messages (called smishing), phone calls (called vishing), and other forms of communications. The scammer pretends to be from a reputable company (including your bank) to gain access to your personal information. Our bank will never send out an email or text requesting you to provide, update, or confirm sensitive data.

Phishing emails often include links that include a legitimate company's name or website address. The fraudulent emails will disguise or forge the sender's email address so they appear to be from a legitimate company.

Learn more about phishing and all the information your bank will NEVER ask you for over the phone, in an email, or through a text at "Banks Never Ask That". Play games and take the quiz to see how good you are at spotting a scam!

The Red Flags of Phishing

1. Watch for emails, texts, or calls requesting any of your confidential information, including your bank account numbers, social security number, name, address, user IDs, passwords, credit and debit card numbers, date of birth, maiden names, etc.
2. Look our for emails or texts with spelling errors.
3. Any email, text, or phone call with a sense of urgency, or requesting immediate action.
4. Watch out for for texts or emails saying your account is in danger of being closed or threaten you with legal action. Never click on a link sent via a text message.
5. Watch out for any texts asking for personal information.
6. Any email pressuring you to click a link to verify your login credentials or make a payment.
7. Scammers use scare tactics and threats to confuse you into acting without thinking. Any email, text or phone call demanding urgent action is a red flag!
8. An unexpected email or text saying it's from someone you know, such as a coworker in another department, with a link they want you to click on. Always confirm unexpected emails or texts. If you get an unexpected phone call, you can hang up and call back at the number you have on file for that person to confirm it was really them.

Ways to Avoid Phishing Scams

• Never give out sensitive information to unsolicited email, phone, text, or pop-up website requests! This includes your bank password, PIN, or a one-time login code, even if the personal asking you says they are from your bank. No bank will ever ask for these things from you.
• Scammers can have any number show up on your Caller ID. Don't trust your caller ID if it says your bank is calling and then the callers asks for personal information.
• Never click on links in text messages or emails that you were not expecting.
• Slow down and think before you act.
• Use payment apps such as Cash App, Paypal, Venmo, or Zelle to only pay friends or family only.
• Be wary of texts or calls about payment apps.
• Type website addresses (URL) into browsers instead of clicking on links in emails.
• Change User IDs and passwords every 30 days.
• Keep anti-virus and anti-spam filtering software on your computers, tablets, and mobile devices up to date.

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