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• Do not leave personal items like your wallet or purse in your car.
• Do not leave outgoing mail in your mailbox with the flag up. It is a notice to thieves that you may have checks in your mailbox. Try to always take outgoing mail to a post office drop box.
• Safeguard your Username and password. Never share your Username or password with anyone. Do not save your password in your browser.
• Use trusted devices. Avoid using public computers or public wireless access points for online banking and other activities involving sensitive information when possible. Criminals may be waiting to access your device.
• Never share your security questions and answers. 
• Keep antivirus software up to date and install regular system updates. This will help protect your computer from being vulnerable to viruses that might compromise your information. 
• Review your account statements every month. If you find a transaction that you did not authorize, contact your financial institutions, credit card companies, or any other organizations. You must tell them within 60 days of the date that your statement was delivered.
• Contact your financial institutions, credit card companies, and or any other organizations that could have been compromised if your login credentials have been lost or stolen. 
• Never provide your username, password, Social Security number or any other personal information through email or text. Financial institutions, credit card companies, or any other organizations will never ask for your personal information through an email or text. Contact financial institutions, credit card companies, or any other organizations through the normal means that you have always contacted them, do not click on any links or websites provided in the email or text.

More than 27 million Americans have experienced identity theft, and that number is growing every year. Just as your home, automobile or personal safety can be at risk from criminals, so can your financial information.

Tips to protect yourself against identity theft:

• Do not share personal information. Never give your passwords, PIN, checking account and credit card numbers or Social Security number to anyone unless you know the person or the organization. Organizations will never ask you for this type of sensitive information via email, text or during a phone call that they initiate without your request.
• Shred financial solicitations, bank statements or other papers containing personal information before disposing of them.
• Put outgoing mail into a secure, official Postal Service collection box.
• If you stop receiving your bills, call the companies generating the bills to find out why.
• Carefully review all account statements and investigate immediately if your bills include questionable items or charges.
• At least once a year, contact the major credit reporting companies (annualcreditreport.com) to review your credit report and make certain the information is correct.
• For more information, including steps to take if you become a victim of identity theft, visit the Federal Trade Commission's website at www.ftc.gov.

Children can — and do — become the targets of identity theft. Here’s how to safeguard your kids against child identity theft.

• Does your child have a credit history? This question may seem unusual to some, but children are often targeted for identity theft.
• With a child's Social Security number, a fraudster can open credit card and cell phone accounts, and even apply for apartments and home loans. And since your child might not run a credit check until they reach adulthood, identity theft can go unnoticed for years.

Here are three tips to help you prevent child identity theft.

1.  Protect Your Children's Information

• Identity theft prevention starts by keeping close tabs on your child's personal data. Take measures to securely store personal data, particularly all paper and electronic documents containing your child's Social Security number. Before throwing away any sensitive documents, be sure to shred them. Keeping antivirus software up to date may also help prevent digital security breaches.
• Also, as your child starts school and begins to join youth organizations, you'll encounter more forms asking for his or her Social Security number. If the local baseball league requests your child’s personal data, it may not be required. Ask how your child's information will be used and stored before sharing it with others.
• Consider placing a Credit Freeze on your child’s credit even if they do not currently have a credit history. To freeze your child’s credit report, you will need to contact the three major credit bureaus: Equifax, TransUnion, & Experian.

2.  Educate Your Children

• Until they're old enough to understand how to protect themselves, children don't need access to their Social Security numbers. Once they do have access to this information, teach them about safe internet use and the importance of keeping personal information private. Explain that clicking on links and downloading files from unknown sources can allow hackers to access financial and personal information — and the consequences that kind of theft could have for your family.

3.  Watch the Mail for Identity Theft Red Flags

• If you receive a notice from the IRS that your child didn't pay taxes or you start to receive collection calls or bills in their name, they may be a victim of identity theft. Even if your child receives just junk mail, check with the three credit reporting companies (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion) to see if they have a credit report. The companies may require copies of your child's birth certificate listing you as parent, your child's Social Security card, your government-issued ID, and proof of address to manually search your child's file.
• Even without warning signs, when your child is around the age of 16, you should check if they have a credit report. That way, if you discover any wrongdoing, you can correct it before they apply for a job or loan.
• If your child has been a victim of identity theft, request in writing that all three credit reporting companies remove all accounts, account inquiries, and collection notices associated with your child's name and Social Security number. Request each reporting agency to place a fraud alert on your child's account and contact each business where the information originated. This will help avoid further instances of fraud in the future.
• For more information on preventing and responding to child identity theft, visit the Federal Trade Commission's consumer information portal.

Fraudulent emails, text messages and websites designed to elicit your personal information can be very sophisticated and deceiving. Fraudulent emails and texts, known as “phishing” or “smishing” can look very similar to standard communications from your financial institutions, credit card companies, or any other organizations. If you see suspicious emails, texts or online requests asking for information or actions regarding your financial information, do not click on the links or reply to the messages. If you believe that you have received or replied to a suspicious email and provided private information about your account — including one-time codes, usernames, passwords and PINs — please contact your financial institutions, credit card companies, or any other organizations immediately.

On an almost daily basis, internet users are warned about the most recent hacking or infectious spyware incidents perpetrated by criminals who are seeking to illegally profit by obtaining your financial information and/or identity. Fight back against this crime by arming yourself with the knowledge to protect your identity and ensure your internet security. We encourage you to read this essential information.

There are several manufacturers of firewall and antivirus software; research what works best for you. In addition, some valuable consumer sites where you can learn more about the benefits of protecting yourself online include the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

No mobile or online banking platform or wireless data transmission system can be guaranteed to be absolutely secure and invulnerable to breach or compromise. However, following these tips can mitigate risk and help protect you against fraudulent activity.

• Understand today’s reality. Mobile devices are essentially small computers that need to be secured like a PC or laptop.
• Keep it safe. Maintaining physical control of your device is the first way to prevent abuse.
• Keep it updated. Set your device to install app and system updates automatically if possible. These updates often include security fixes.
• Use your security features. Use a passcode or PIN to help protect your device. Enable remote wipe and location features to help ensure that your personal information is protected if your device is lost or stolen.
• Beware of malicious applications. Use banks’ dedicated apps for secure financial transactions and download apps only from trusted sources like the Apple® App Store or Google® Play.
• Avoid links from unknown sources. Don’t click a link from sources you don’t trust, including emails and social media posts. Malicious links could direct you to websites or install applications that compromise your device.
• Use trusted networks. Connecting your device to unknown wireless networks can expose your data. Avoid accessing sensitive information, like banking, if using an unsecure or unknown network. If possible, switch to your cellular data plan for banking and then back to wireless when complete.
• Turn off unnecessary services. Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, location apps, NFC (near field communication) apps and other connection abilities can be disabled to protect your device when you’re not using them.
• Avoid putting your device at increased risk. Gaining system-level access — known as “rooting” for Android™ and “jailbreaking” for Apple® — may provide access to untrusted software or apps not intended for your device that can expose you to greater security risks.
• Encrypt your data. If your mobile device supports it, use encryption to help protect sensitive information.
• Be cautious when granting elevated privileges. When installing applications or external accessories, always inspect the permissions. They will tell you what access the apps/accessories need to function and will also tell you if the application is asking for more permissions than needed.
• Clear data from your smartphone frequently. With Text Banking, your phone will only store the information provided via text message, including your account nicknames, account balances and transaction history. As an extra measure of caution, you can delete text messages when they are no longer needed.

Financial fraud can happen to anyone. There are many ways you can reduce your exposure to financial scams and identity theft. Learn more about common financial scams, along with ways to identify them early and how you can protect yourself.

 How to Protect Yourself from Financial Scams

You may find the possibility of a scam compromising your financial accounts unnerving, but there are many ways you can protect yourself. Here are some tips to help reduce your risk.

• Review your accounts. Check your credit card and banking accounts on a regular basis to ensure that there are no unauthorized charges. To help you catch fraudulent charges quickly, monitor your online or mobile banking accounts daily.
• Change your account passwords. Switch out your passwords on sensitive accounts frequently, and make sure not to use the same password for multiple accounts.
• Use online transactions with caution. When shopping online, always make sure you are using a secure internet connection, and avoid using public Wi-Fi.
• Confirm all financial communication. Be wary of common scams such as phishing, a process in which scammers send emails posing as a bank and ask you to update or confirm your account information. Always contact your bank directly to ensure that your account information does not fall into the wrong hands. Also, remember that the IRS will never initiate contact with you via email, text, or social media to demand personal or financial information.
• Check your credit reports. At least once per year, check your credit report from Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion to make sure all your information is up to date and all your accounts are accurate. You can access your free report each year from AnnualCreditReport.com, but be cautious of lookalike sites that may charge unnecessary fees.
• Monitor your credit. You may also want to sign up for a credit monitoring service, which immediately alerts you to any activity relating to your credit history and accounts. This can be helpful in detecting suspicious inquiries or identity theft.
• Properly dispose of documents. If you are throwing away old bank statements or other paperwork with sensitive information such as account numbers, social security numbers, personal identification numbers, etc., make sure to shred everything before disposal.

Phishing (pronounced 'fishing') is a scam employed by cybercriminals to trick you into providing them with personal information that could be used to steal your identity.

The scam usually works like this: You receive an email that appears to come from a reputable company - one you recognize and possibly do business with - like your Internet provider, a bank, credit card company, government agency, etc. The language in the email will be designed to make you think you must respond immediately to solve a problem with your account, avoid cancellation, claim a valuable prize, etc. Most likely you will be asked to update or validate information - account number, password, Social Security number or other information that can be used to verify your account. You will be encouraged to click on a button to go to the organization's website. Don't do it!

If the email you received was part of a phishing scam, the link provided would take you to a fake website that looks just like the real thing. Or, it may actually be the real website, but will include pop-up windows designed to gather your personal information. Another objective of this scam may be to infiltrate your computer with a virus or software designed to spy on your Internet transactions.

It's never a good idea to open an email attachment you did not request or one from an unknown sender. And you should never provide confidential information in response to an email or call you did not initiate.

If you are concerned about your accounts as a result of receiving an email, visit the company's website directly (don't cut and paste the address in the phisher's email), or call to find out if there is a problem and let the company know you received the email.

There are many different ways to commit check fraud, but one of the most common is when criminals use forged checks to purchase merchandise or services. In some cases, victims are instructed to deposit fake checks and send a portion of the funds to another person. After the funds are withdrawn, the check is returned leaving the victim at a financial loss.

Protect yourself by watching for the following red flags:

• The amount of payment for the item or task is inflated
• The issuer of the check is unknown to you
• You are asked to withdraw the funds quickly and send it to someone else

Businesses are common criminal targets. In many cases, fraudsters target employees with access to company finances and con them via email into making wire transfers into accounts that look like they belong to the company or a trusted partner but are actually controlled by the criminal.

Techniques used to perpetuate this crime include spear-phishing, social engineering, identity theft, email spoofing, and use of malware.

Follow these best practices to help protect your business:

• Protect your computer network to prevent intrusion
• Verify email changes in wiring instructions by phone
• Verify new email requests for wires by phone
• Provide training to employees on how to protect company-issued computers and cell phones

Businesses who fall victim to a wire fraud loss from a compromised email request can file a complaint with the FBI at FBI-Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3).

Some criminals create fake job opportunities and use the application process as a way of collecting personal information from victims. Other criminals go one step further in offering applicants’ jobs and then requesting the victim send funds to pay for supplies, credit reports, software, or equipment.

Both of these schemes are more common with online job applications and work-from-home opportunities.

Watch for the following red flags while job hunting:

• The pay for the job is higher than expected
• The job description and requirements are vague
• You are expected to send money to someone you don’t know
• You are not able to find information about the company in online searches
• They ask for your bank account information or login

Criminals sometimes contact people by phone, email, or text congratulating them on winning a lottery, sweepstakes, or contest they did not enter. The message usually states that to receive the winnings you must first pay the taxes or another type of fee in advance. They then give instructions to mail or wire the payment to an individual.

If you find yourself in a winning situation, prevent it from becoming a losing one by being aware of the following:

• Taxes are typically deducted from lottery winnings, not paid up front
• Be extra cautious if you do not remember entering the lottery or contest
• Do not send funds to an unknown individual

Criminals sometimes contact people by phone, email, or text congratulating them on winning a lottery, sweepstakes, or contest they did not enter. The message usually states that to receive the winnings you must first pay the taxes or another type of fee in advance. They then give instructions to mail or wire the payment to an individual.

If you find yourself in a winning situation, prevent it from becoming a losing one by being aware of the following:

• Taxes are typically deducted from lottery winnings, not paid up front
• Be extra cautious if you do not remember entering the lottery or contest
• Do not send funds to an unknown individual