BEWARE OF SCAMS AND CHECK FRAUD

The banking industry has seen a large increase in scams and fraudulent check cashing attempts. At Newfield National Bank we take the protection of our customers very seriously.

            Below are some precautions you can take to protect your personal information:

Never give your personal or financial information to someone unless you have initiated the contact and have verified that you know who you’re communicating with.

Do NOT believe your Caller ID – Today’s technology allows scammers to create fake caller ID information.

Spot Imposters – Scammers often use high pressure tactics or pretend to be someone you trust. Common examples are charities, government officials (Social Security Administration), or well-known companies. Microsoft and Amazon will not send unsolicited e-mails to request personal or financial information to provide technical support.

Do NOT pay up front for promises – Someone may ask you to pay in advance for things like debt relief or loan offers. They may even say you won a prize, but first you must pay the taxes or fees.

Do NOT deposit a check from an unknown source – If you receive a check from an unknown source, please consult with your local bank before depositing. IF THE CHECK IS DISCOVERED TO BE FRAUDULENT, YOU MAY BE RESPONSIBLE FOR REPAYING THE LOSS OF FUNDS.

Online Sales – Potential buyers from out of state or other countries may send payments with a request to be paid back in cash or gift cards.

Consider how you pay – Credit Cards may have some fraud protection built in, but other payment methods may not. Money Orders have the greatest risk or loss, followed by reloadable visa/Mastercard’s and gift cards. Government agencies and honest companies will not require you to use these payment methods.

Talk to someone – Talk to someone you trust, family members , trusted friends or advisors, your local banker, or the police before you give out your personal information, send money, or allow access to your computer.

Protecting your BUSINESS account – We offer Positive Pay for all business accounts; this service is free, and it works through your online banking platform to help you mitigate fraud. Learn More

Fake shipping notification emails and text messages: What you need to know this holiday season.

When you order something online, you might get several emails or text messages about your order: Confirming your order. Telling you it shipped. Saying it's out for delivery. Notifying you about delivery. Did you know that scammers send fake package shipment and delivery notifications to try to steal people's personal information - not just at the holidays, but all year long? Here's what you need to know to protect yourself from these scams.

The bogus stories the scammers deliver

The scammers send bogus messages by email or text. The message might say that you missed a delivery attempt and ask you to click on a link to re-schedule the delivery. Or it could say that your item is ready to ship but you need to update your shipping preferences. Some create a sense of urgency by saying if you don't respond right away, they'll return your package to the sender.

They want you to click on the link without thinking about it and enter your personal or financial information. But the site is fake. A look-alike of a real website. And it'll capture all the information you enter. The link could also install harmful malware on your phone or computer that steals your information. Things like your usernames and passwords to your online banking, email, or social media accounts that scammers could use to steal your identity and open new accounts in your name.

What to do

• If you get a message about an unexpected package delivery that tells you to click on a link for some reason, don't click.
• If you think the message might be legitimate, contact the shipping company using a phone number or website you know is real. Don't use the information in the message.
• If you think it could be about something you recently ordered, go to the site where you bought the item and look up the shipping and delivery status there.
• No matter the time of year, it always pays to protect your personal information. Check out these resources to help you weed out spam text messages, phishing emails, and unwanted calls.

Prevention tips

Take these tips with you to become a smarter consumer and avoid fraud:

• Know who you’re dealing with. In any transaction you conduct, make sure to check with your state or local consumer protection agency and the Better Business Bureau (BBB) to see if the seller, charity, company, or organization is credible. Be especially wary if the entity is unfamiliar to you. Always call the number found on a website’s contact information to make sure the number legitimately belongs to the entity you are dealing with.
• Pay the safest way. Credit cards are the safest way to pay for online purchases because you can dispute the charges if you never get the goods or services or if the offer was misrepresented. Federal law limits your liability to $50 if someone makes unauthorized charges to your account, and most credit card issuers will remove them completely if you report the problem promptly.
• Guard your personal information. Crooks pretending to be from companies you do business with may call or send an email, claiming they need to verify your personal information. Don’t provide your credit card or bank account number unless you are actually paying for something and know who you are sending payment to. Your social security number should not be necessary unless you are applying for credit. Be especially suspicious if someone claiming to be from a company with whom you have an account asks for information that the business already has.
• Stay safe online. Don’t send sensitive information such as credit card numbers by email because it’s not secure. Look for clues about security on Web sites. At the point where you are asked to provide your financial or other sensitive information, the letters at the beginning of the address bar at the top of the screen should change from “http” to “https” or “shttp.” Your browser may also show that the information is being encrypted, or scrambled, so no one who might intercept it can read it. But while your information may be safe in transmission, that’s no guarantee that the company will store it securely. See what Web sites say about how your information is safeguarded in storage.
• Be cautious about unsolicited emails. They are often fraudulent. If you are familiar with the company or charity that sent you the email and you don’t want to receive further messages, send a reply asking for them to be removed from the email list. However, responding to unknown senders may simply verify that yours is a working email address and results in even more unwanted messages from strangers. The best approach may simply be to delete the email.
• Resist pressure. Legitimate companies and charities will be happy to give you time to make a decision. It’s probably a scam if they demand that you act immediately or won’t take “No” for an answer. Some scammers may also demand you pay off a loan immediately or damaging consequences may occur, always take time to look into who is requesting the money before you pay up.
• Don’t believe promises of easy money. If someone claims that you can earn money with little or no work, get a loan or credit card even if you have bad credit, or make money on an investment with little or no risk, it’s probably a scam. Oftentimes, offers that seem too good to be true, actually are too good to be true.
• Fully understand the offer. A legitimate seller will give you all the details about the products or services, the total price, the delivery time, the refund and cancellation policies, and the terms of any warranty. Contact the seller if any of these details are missing, if they are unable to provide the details, it may be a sign that it’s a scam.
• Get off credit marketing lists. Credit bureaus compile marketing lists for pre-approved offers of credit. These mailings are a goldmine for identity thieves, who may steal them and apply for credit in your name. Get off these mailing lists by calling 888-567-8688 (your social security number will be required to verify your identity). Removing yourself from these lists does not hurt your chances of applying for or getting credit.
• Check your credit reports regularly. If you find accounts that don’t belong to you or other incorrect information, follow the instructions for disputing those items. You can ask for free copies of your credit reports in certain situations. If you were denied credit because of information in a credit report, you can ask the credit bureau that the report came from for a free copy of your file. And if you are the victim of identity theft, you can ask all three of the major credit bureaus for free copies of your reports. Contact the credit bureaus at: Equifax, 800-685-111; Experian, 800-311-4769; TransUnion, 800-888-4213.

Everyone can request free copies of their credit reports once a year. In addition to the rights described above, a new federal law entitles all consumers to ask each of the three major credit bureaus for free copies of their reports once in every 12-month period. Go to www.ftc.gov/credit or call 877-382-4357 for more details and to see when you can make your requests. You don’t have to ask all three credit bureaus for your reports at the same time; you can stagger your requests if you prefer. Do not contact the credit bureaus directly for these free annual reports. They are only available by calling 877-322-8228 or going to www.annualcreditreport.com. You can make your requests by phone or online or download a form to mail your requests.

• Be cautious about offers for credit monitoring services. Why pay extra for them when you can get your credit reports for free or very cheap? Read the description of the services carefully. Unless you’re a victim of serious and ongoing identity theft, buying a service that alerts you to certain activities in your credit files probably isn’t worthwhile, especially if it costs hundreds of dollars a year. You can purchase copies of your credit reports anytime for about $9 through the bureaus’ Web sites or by phone: Equifax, 800-685-111; Experian, 800-311-4769; TransUnion, 800-888-4213.