1st Community Credit Union

Latest Fraud In Our Area

1st Community Credit Union warns consumers of a scam in which victims receive a phone call with an offer of a lower interest rate on their credit card. The automated message assures you that you can get your credit card interest rate lowered to 6.99 percent or that their agency can cut your rate in half if you simply press 1 to continue with a live operator or 3 to stop receiving the phone messages.

Pressing 1 results in a live person picking up and identifying themselves only as being with a generic credit service. They claim to be able to lower your interest rate if you share some basic information. Never give personal information such as PIN number, account number, or Social Security number over the telephone. Credit card companies and legitimate financial institutions will not call with offers of lowered interest rates and ask for personal information over the telephone.

Don't fall for economic stimulus scams

Be on the lookout for an e-mail from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) encouraging you to submit a form to make sure you get your economic stimulus check. Why? The e-mail is not from the IRS, and if you click on the link, it's likely you'll be the victim of a scam, according to the Credit Union National Association's (CUNA's) center for personal finance.

The e-mail urges the reader to click on a link in the e-mail, fill out a form, and submit the form for a speedy refund. The end of the message acknowledges that you may have received the e-mail in your spam folder "because of the large amount of e-mails we are sending out or because of the restrictions implemented by your ISP (Internet service provider)." Don't fall for it, delete it. The message is a ploy to redirect you to the crook's website to obtain your personal information and commit fraud.

The IRS never asks for account information by phone or e-mail. If someone calls you or e-mails you claiming to be from the IRS and asking for personal, sensitive information, hang up or delete the message. Additionally, if you receive an e-mail alert that you are being audited and you are instructed to click on the link provided and provide personal information, delete the e-mail. It is a phishing scam.

Increase In Car Warranty Scams

1st Community Credit Union has learned that Car Warranty Scams are increasing in our area. A Warranty Scam, whether it is attempted by postcard or phone call, attempts to pressure the victim into buying an expensive extended car warranty. The caller (or postcard) urgently warns the victim that their warranty is about to expire and uses high-pressure sales tactics to convince consumers to renew their warranty automatically by providing their account number for an automatic withdrawal of funds. This scam has been especially targeting senior citizens, but anyone can become a victim to the intimidation these scammers use. Follow these tips:

Beware of phone calls and mailings that appear to come from your automobile manufacturer or local dealership offering extended warranty coverage.
Beware of pre-recorded phone calls that ask you to use your touchtone phone to enter personal information

Never give out personal financial information like your account number, or your Social Security Number over the phone

Many victims that have received these offers say their car warranty expired long before they received this call; If you are considering an extended warranty, find out the terms of your current warranty, deal directly with live people at the dealership or manufacturer, and always get information in writing before you agree to anything. Do not respond to unsolicited offers to extend your warranty.

If you have any questions or concerns, or if you recently received a high-pressure phone call that resulted in you giving out your account number, please contact 1st Community Credit Union. Our Member Service Representatives will provide you with assistance in safeguarding your funds.

"Relay Scams" are increasing in our area. Relay is used by Hearing Impaired and Speech Impaired individuals to conduct business by telephone. (A Relay Service operator communicates through TTY or internet connection and relays the text conversation to the hearing person on the other end of the phone, then types back what the hearing person says). Relay is a valuable service to the deaf community, giving impaired individuals equal access to America's telephone network.

If you have never received a Relay phone call before and you suddenly receive one, use common sense and be cautious. This valuable service can occasionally fall victim to unscrupulous scammers who abuse the service to con consumers and business owners. Fraudsters in foreign countries have discovered that the internet-based Relay (known as IP Relay) service is free, thus they can place a free long-distance call, order merchandise using stolen credit card numbers, receive the merchandise shipped from the victim, and resell it on the black market. The Relay operators must pledge complete secrecy and are prohibited from engaging in conversation other than relaying messages between parties, even if they suspect that the person on the other end is conducting a scam.

If you receive a call in response to an ad that you have placed in a newspaper, trade magazine, or on the internet (such as when you are selling a motorcycle, boat, or car), use common sense to avoid becoming a victim. Ask the same questions that you would ask any hearing caller. Never give out personal, sensitive information such as account numbers or Social Security numbers, etc. And never ship an item until you have proof that payment has cleared. This may take several weeks.

If you own a business and receive a purchase order by relay, use the same common sense and safe business practices that you use for any telephone orders. The FCC (Federal Communications Commission) encourages businesses that accept orders by telephone to take steps to ensure that, when they receive a relay call, the credit card is valid and the purchaser is authorized to use the particular credit card, just as they would do with any other telephone order. The FCC also reminds businesses that, if they accept telephone orders from the general public, they cannot refuse to accept them from persons with hearing or speech disabilities calling through a relay service. AT&T cautions that if multiple sets of credit cards are attempted for billing, be skeptical, as this is the most common practice used during the relay scam.

*It is not the intention of 1st Community Credit Union to discourage members from accepting Relay calls. This information is posted strictly to increase awareness of secure practices for our membership.

1st Community Credit Union has learned that there have been several victims of fraudulent account charges lately, particularly charges between $29 - $40. These charges show up in checking accounts and are most frequently made by Market Billing "on behalf of" other companies. Market Billing is reportedly based in Cyprus.

One method of scamming money from unsuspecting consumers is to make a small charge to a victim's account and wait to see if the charge is disputed. If the small charge remains undisputed, the scammer will make larger fraudulent charges to the same account over the course of a few weeks, ending just before the next statement comes out. By then the victim has lost a great deal of their hard-earned funds.

1st Community Credit Union takes the security of your funds very seriously. It is a good idea to check your monthly statements or view account activity online to make sure that nothing suspicious has been fraudulently charged to your account. Use extreme caution when dealing with any company or online source that you are not familiar with. Look for security features on websites such as a padlock in the bottom right-hand corner of your browser. You should not give any personal information over the telephone, nor should you confirm information if a caller is asking for verification of certain personal identification.

You may request a free credit report to review your credit accounts and identify any inaccuracies. The federal Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACT Act) requires each of the three consumer reporting companies to provide a free copy of your credit report, at your request, once every 12 months. To order your free report, go to www.AnnualCreditReport.com by clicking on the Credit Report button on our home page or call 877-322-8228. There are other websites that are frequently advertised on television that claim to be your source for free credit reports, however www.AnnualCreditReport.com is the ONLY source recommended by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). If you receive an e-mail or a pop-up ad that claims to be affiliated with the Annual Credit Report Request Service authorized by the FACT Act, do not reply and do not click on any link in the message. Also be wary of companies that make claims regarding Credit Repair.

It is important to share information on scams with older family members and friends. Scammers prefer to prey on the elderly, and will resort to harassment if they feel it will get them the information they desire. Work together with elderly family members to come up with a plan of what they will say and do if they are contacted with requests for sensitive information. Another group that is vulnerable - College Students. This may be the first time they are on their own and taking care of their own finances. They may feel pressed to give out information if they aren't familiar with scams. To read about scams that are out there, click on the name of the scam below:

This is a dangerous new twist on a familiar phishing email. People nationwide are receiving the exact same letter, the only difference being the telephone number. Please read the text of the email below. There are no links (other than to consumer.gov/idtheft), but the scam happens when the recipient dials the phone number:

We regret to inform you that we have received numerous fraudulent emails which ask for personal account information. The emails contained links to fraudulent pages that looked legit. Please remember that we will never ask for personal account information via email or web pages.

Because of this we are launching a new security system to make Credit Union accounts more secure and safe. To take advantage of our new consumer Identity Theft Protection Program we had to deactivate access to your card account.

Activation is free of charge and will take place as soon as you finish the activation process.

Here is additional information about this scam: They're using an interactive voice system with an American telephone number. The voice recording collects a 16-digit card number, the expiration date and the ATM pin number with a confirmation. It then tells you you've been validated, thanks you and hangs up. The voice sounds like it's pulled from a text-2-speech program.

If you receive this email, do not respond in any way and do not call the phone number mentioned in the email.

The following email is a scam. Victims of this scam are asked to receive Cashiers Checks, deposit them into an account, then immediately wire the funds to three different addresses in Africa. The Cashiers Checks are counterfeit, and subsequent emails become more threatening. Don't fall for this 'Work At Home' scam. The following example is typed complete with grammatical and punctuation mistakes from the original email:

WE HAVE A JOB OFFER AVAILABLE FOR YOU IN RESPONSE TO YOUR INITIAL REQUESTING THE JOB SEARCH DIRECTORY IS FOR USA/CANADA ONLY.WE BASED IN UK.WE HAVE BEEN RECEIVING ORDERS FROM NORTHERN AMERICA, WHICH WE HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO PROCESS COMPLETELY SINCE WE DO NOT HAVE A PAYMENT RECEIVING PERSONNEL IN THESE AREAS.WE HAVE DECIDED TO RECRUIT PAYMENT OFFICERS ONLINE HENCE WE WILL BE NEEDING A REPRESENTATIVE TO PROCESS OUR PAYMENTS IN THESE AREAS.if interested get back with this information

A victim of this scam shared with us the email that was received when the check was verified to be fraudulent and there were no funds wired to Africa as emails had instructed. Again, the email example is typed with errors intact:

Greetings to you,I don't know what you are up to,with your sudden silence over the payment you receive from our client,i mailed you more than 2-3 times but you never reply back,if you know that you are not ready to work you should have not given down your details to the company and am sure you are aware of the fact that you can never abscond with the company's funds and if your intention is to made away with the company's fund,you will face the penalty and will be sue to court.So i will urge you to get back to me within 48 hours if only you don't want to face the penalty,your response is needed urgently concerning this payment and I need you to get back to me as soon as possible.

I will await your urgent response within 48 hours or else your details will be forward to the FBI and I can bet it with you that you can never made away with the company funds.

Have a nice day and do expect the FBI visitation if you fail to comply with my instructions.

Lottery, Sweepstakes, Prize Jackpot.....no matter what it is called in the letter you receive with the cashiers check, we call it a scam.

Citizens in our area have received large checks in the mail, claiming that they have won $100,000. The letter is accompanied by a cashiers check (amounts vary, but one check was for $4,600) that is supposedly for financing Legal and Administration Fees. The letter informs the victims that all fees are to be paid through a Money Gram wire transfer or Western Union, after depositing the check to their account, of course. The check is phony, and we urge everyone to spread the word to friends and family not to fall for this scam. Today's technology makes it all too simple for criminals to copy, alter, or counterfeit such checks; and anyone from college students to the elderly can become a victim.

If the "winning letterholders" had deposited the check to their account and wired the money, they would have been legally obligated to repay those funds when the check was returned as a bogus check. In the past, some victims have been known to deposit the check and go on a shopping spree to celebrate their winnings; when the phony check bounces they must pay it all back. Victims may even end up taking out a loan for the entire amount of their loss to pay it back, with interest, a little at a time. Don't become a victim - if you receive a check along with an announcement that you have won a payoff in a lottery, please consult your financial institution or report it to the proper authorities.

Email claiming to be from your financial institution. Offers to deposit $80 into your account just for taking a quick online survey. After you fill in the survey you are asked to fill in your account number and personal information 'so they can deposit your reward'.

Phone call informing you that you have been selected to receive a large grant. Asks for your account information so the grant can be deposited and the 'small fee' can be deducted directly from your account. If you have not applied for a grant and this call is coming out of the blue, do not give out any information, no matter how convincing the caller sounds.

You receive a money order or cashiers check in the mail from someone you've chatted with over the internet, with a request that funds be deposited to your account and then wired to a foreign country (various reasons given); please be cautious. Upon investigation, it is always discovered that these items are counterfeit.

1. Assume that any unsolicited check or money order may be fraudulent until proven otherwise

3. If you are selling an item over the internet and you receive a cashiers check made out for more than the purchase price of the item, assume that something is not right with the check and proceed with caution. Bring the check to your credit union for verification before shipping the item, and let the member service representative know the circumstances. Your credit union will be happy to assist you in finding out whether the check is fraudulent or not

4. Never assist a 'friend' you met in a chat room by depositing a check or money order and wiring funds

7. Do not be intimidated by an email or phone call in which sender/caller suggests dire consequences if you do not immediately provide or verify financial information

8. If you believe the contact to be legitimate, go to the company Website by typing in the site address directly or using a page you have previously bookmarked, instead of using a link provided in the e-mail

9. If you fall victim to an attack, act immediately to protect yourself. Alert your financial institution. Place fraud alerts on your credit files. Monitor your credit files and account statements closely. Your credit union Member Service Representatives will be happy to assist you and provide contact information for the three major credit bureaus.

You actually say very little, and they never ask for or tell you the Credit Card number, because they already have it. What the scammers want is the 3-digit PIN number on the back of the card, and they ask you to give them the number, "to verify that you are in possession of the card". Don't give it to them. Instead, tell them you'll call VISA or Master card directly for verification of their conversation.

You receive a letter (sometimes in response to posting your resume on a job website) and the letter offers you a job as a Secret Shopper or Mystery Shopper. The first probational training task is to pose as a customer to an assigned place of business, do a wire transfer, and evaluate the performance of the person waiting on you. A Cashiers Check is enclosed with the letter and you are instructed to wire by Western Union and/or Money gram. There is promise of this becoming a weekly employment opportunity.

You would be required to pay back the full amount of the fraudulent check, including all of the funds that were wired out

There is no way to trace where the letter came from – phony names and addresses

The phone number is no longer valid by the time the check is discovered to be fraudulent

Victims receive a $126.50 charge on their telephone bill for 'operator service provider charges'. A previous phone call asking to verify name, address, and phone number results in this charge being placed on the phone bill. Don't verify information for unknown companies.

Victims receive an official-looking invoice from CRS - Central Registration out of New York for a 'standard registration via hosting service' (web domain name)....total due between $900 - $1000. THIS IS A SCAM....do not pay this invoice.

You receive a phone call from someone claiming to represent a company that 'works in partnership' with your financial institution to protect against fraud. The caller tells you that someone has tried to access your account. Caller asks you to read off the numbers on the bottom of your checkbook (for verification purposes), and also asks for the next check number. The caller is very persistent, creating a sense of urgency. If you receive a phone call similar to this, refuse to give any information and hang up. If you are concerned that the call may be real, call your financial institution directly and ask them to check for suspicious transactions.

Another Phone Scam in our Area:
In this scam, the elderly person is told that Medicare is sending out new cards and the caller needs financial and personal information.
Medicare will never ask for financial information over the phone. Anyone receiving such a phone call should end the conversation and call the Delmarva Foundation at 1-877-772-3379.

This advice for consumers who are thinking about responding to a foreign lottery or other potential cross-border scams, from the Federal Trade Commission:

The scammer calls claiming to work for the local court and claims you've failed to report for jury duty. He tells you that a warrant has been issued for your arrest. The victim will often rightly claim they never received the jury duty notification. The scammer then asks the victim for confidential information for "verification" purposes. Specifically, the scammer asks for the victim's Social Security number, birth date, and sometimes even for credit card numbers and other private information, exactly what the scammer needs to commit identity theft. Protecting yourself is simple: Never give this info out when you receive a phone call.