Fraud Prevention

Stay informed. Stay safe.

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• Mail and Phone Fraud
• Phishing and Spoofing
• Computer Protection Tips

Mail and Phone Fraud

Lottery / Sweepstakes Scams

How can you tell the difference between a real sweepstakes and a scam?

Remember: You do not have to pay to enter a sweepstakes or collect a prize. If you're asked to pay, the sweepstakes is a scam.

Postal Inspectors suggest you ask yourself these questions to prevent being scammed:

• Does the promoter ask for your credit card number, checking account number, bank account information, or other personal account information? A legitimate prize company won't ask for this to declare you a winner.
• Do they ask you to wire money or make a payment in an urgent manner? Do you feel pressure to make a payment within a given time deadline to collect your prize?
• Does the advertising copy clearly state that no purchase is necessary to win and a purchase will not increase your chances of winning? You never have to pay to play or to collect your prize when the sweepstakes is legitimate.

Check Overpayment Scams

“Check overpayment” scams target consumers selling valuable items through classified ads or online auction sites. Unsuspecting sellers get stuck with a big loss when scammers pass off bogus cashier’s checks, corporate checks, or personal checks.

According to the Federal Trade Commission, a check overpayment scam begins when a scam artist replies to the classified ad or auction posting and offers to purchase the item for sale with a check, then comes up with a reason for writing the check for more than the purchase price for the item. The scammer asks the consumer to wire back the difference after the check is deposited. Later, the scammer’s check bounces, leaving the consumer liable for the entire amount. The FTC says the scam is able to progress because, though the checks are counterfeit, they may look good enough to fool bank tellers.

The FTC gives the following tips to avoid check overpayment scams:

• Know who you are dealing with – independently confirm your buyer’s name, street address, and telephone number.
• Never accept a check for more than your selling price.
• Never agree to wire back funds to a buyer – a legitimate buyer will not pressure you to do so, and you have limited recourse if there is a problem with a wire transfer.
• Resist pressure to “act now.” If the buyer’s offer is good now, it should be good when the check clears.
• If you accept payment by check, ask for a check drawn on a local bank or a bank with a local branch. You can visit that bank branch to determine if the check is legitimate.
• Consider an alternative method of payment, such as an escrow service or online payment service. If the buyer wants to use a service you have not heard of, be sure to check it out to be sure it is reliable – check its Web site, call its customer service hotline, and read its terms of agreement and privacy policy. If you do not feel comfortable with the service, do not use it.

Vishing

Vishing scams start with either an e-mail or text message that appears to originate from your financial institution, or a phone call or text message claiming that your account has experienced fraudulent activity and requires immediate attention. When you call the supplied number, an automated system, much like legitimate customer service systems, instructs you to enter your account number in order to be connected to a customer service representative.

Please know American State Bank will never initiate a call or text message to you and request your personal information. We may verify the information by our representative stating it first and then you confirm, but we will not contact you by email or phone and require you to state your personal account details. If you initiate the call to ASB, our representative will be required to ask you personal information to verify your identity. However, if we initiate the call, the request for personal information should not be necessary.

Tips for mailbox

• Switch to ASB’s iStatments – a more secure way of receiving your account statements.
• Safeguard financial information, especially your Social Security numbers, account numbers and statements. Be careful when disposing of used credit card receipts and pre-approved credit card solicitations.
• Retrieve mail as soon as possible after delivery to the mail receptacle. If a mail receptacle has a locking device, make sure it works. Apartment boxes should be maintained by the landlord.
• If expecting a check or credit card but are unable to be home when it is delivered, have a trusted friend get the mail.
• Report any suspicious activity to local police or Postal Inspector. Suspicious activity may be someone following the letter carrier, attempting to break into a postal vehicle or tampering with mail.
• Report non-receipt of valuable mail as soon as possible by calling banks, credit card issuers and the Postal Inspection Service.
• Use letter slots at the post office to mail letters or give them to your letter carrier.
• Consider having blank checks mailed to a bank for pick up.

Tips for phone

• Do not give out personal information, such as your account numbers, card numbers, Social Security/tax identification numbers, passwords, or PINs, unless you have initiated the call.
• Remember, ASB will not make an unsolicited call requesting your personal information.
• If you ever believe you are not talking to a representative of a legitimate company, hang up and call the phone number listed in the telephone book.

Phishing and Spoofing

Phishing scams use email messages which urge you to click on a link within the message to update personal information. This link then takes you to a “spoofed” website which is designed to look like the bank’s legitimate site.

To prevent phishing:

• Be suspicious of any email with urgent requests for personal financial information
• Don't use the links in an email to get to any web page if you suspect the message might not be authentic. Instead, call the company on the telephone, or log onto the website directly by typing in the Web address in your browser.
• Avoid filling out 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

Computer Protection Tips

Security Patches and Service Packs

By updating your computer with the latest security patches and service packs, your computer will be less vulnerable to the exploits that hackers take advantage of. Hackers take advantage of computers that are not sufficiently updated and the risk of losing personal information to them becomes a greater risk. Microsoft operating systems such as Windows XP and Windows Vista have a feature that provides automatic updating to allow users to keep their operating systems updated. Although this is a feature that can be disabled by users, it is recommended that computer users allow the automatic downloading and installation of these security patches and service packs. In addition, these updates will also keep your Internet browser current and patched to better protect your personal information and computer.

Internet Security Protection

Long gone are the days that the only computer vulnerability that was present was a computer virus. Now days, computers are exposed to Worms, Trojans, and advanced viruses. These are all threats that can affect the way your computer operates by causing damage to the operating system, propagating the virus to other computers, and can even allow intruders to take control of your PC. To protect your computer, users are encouraged to use an Internet Security Protection suite to protect computers from viruses, spyware, intruders/hacker, and spam. Internet Security products suites offer the following protection:

Anti-Virus Software

Anti-virus software protects computers from the thousands of viruses and malwares that exist today. The intent of a virus is to cause destruction or cause havoc to the computer making it unusable. Viruses are usually attached to a file that is sent via email or attached to a file that is shared among users. Users are encouraged to have the anti-virus module installed and updated with the most current virus definition files.

Anti-Spyware Software

Anti-spyware software protects computers from reporting back to Internet websites that collect your web traffic habits. Whenever you surf the Internet, some websites will install spyware on your computer and the website will “spy” on your web usage. Information is then sent back to the website that is collected from your computer. Spyware installed on your computer will also cause your computer’s performance to be degraded.

Firewalls

Internet security products provide firewalls that monitor and control inbound and outbound Internet traffic for your computer. In addition, firewalls can hide your computer from being seen in the Internet and this provides a better level of security while you are connected to the Internet. Hackers are continuously looking for computers that are easily seen on the Internet and if your computer is visible to a hacker, you become a victim to their intent. Firewalls also block unsolicited traffic to your computer and blocks installed programs from sending information from your computer to the Internet.

Spam

Spam is unwanted junk email or bulk email that is unsolicited by the computer user. Spam emails contain various messages ranging from get rich schemes to fraudulent scams. Anti-spam software blocks spam emails from being delivered to your email box. In the event that you receive a spam email, do not click on any hyperlinks in the email or respond to the spam email. You should immediately delete the email.

Passwords

In order to keep your passwords confidential and secured, follow these tips:

• If an email is sent to you soliciting for your account name and password, do not respond to the email and immediately delete the email. Reputable financial institutions will not solicit your account names and passwords.
• Keep your password private to you and do not share it with others
• When creating passwords, use passwords that are not easily guessed by others. Passwords containing birthdates, social security numbers, drivers license numbers, addresses, children’s or spouses names should not be used
• Most important, passwords should not be written down

In the event that you suspect that your bank login and password have been compromised or revealed to unauthorized individuals, please immediately contact your bank or institution.

Software Installations

Computer users should be wary of “free” or “shareware” programs that are available to them on the Internet or given to you by others. Usually, software that is “free” or that is “shareware” contains viruses, malware, or even spyware. Installing this type of software can make your PC vulnerable to hacking threats and can cause your computer to be un-operable. Users should only download or install software that is from a reputable company or website. If you are unsure about the software or company, call the company and talk to their technical support staff.