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The Stephenson
National Bank & Trust (SNB&T) and the
Wisconsin Bankers Association (WBA) warn
residents to be leery of phone scams that
crop up around a holiday weekend. |
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“Scammers target
holidays because of the possibility that
banks are closed,” emphasized John Reinke,
SNB&T president. “They prey on the fact that
consumers may be going out of town or
spending money during the holiday. What
we’ve seen are consumers who receive a fake
message about their accounts and instead of
examining whether it is legitimate, they
react on urgency and many times become
victims.” |
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| Wisconsin
consumers need to be prepared for the
possibility of a phone scam targeting the
upcoming Fourth of July weekend, warns the
WBA. The upcoming holiday provides an
excellent opportunity for criminals to use
vishing scams on an unsuspecting public.
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| Vishing is a
scam using Voice over IP (VoIP) to gain
access to a victim’s personal information.
The name is a combination of “voice”
phishing. Typically, victims receive a call
from a recorded voice informing them that
their bank account is frozen and also
provides a toll-free number to utilize in
reinstating the account if the customer can
verify their personal information.
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| Vishing scams
can be extremely convincing as many people
are still unaware of this method of fraud.
When timed to coincide with a holiday,
vishing is even more effective as banks are
closed for the occasion and consumers may
not have easy access to their accounts for
verification purposes. |
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| WBA believes
such a scam could target consumers on the
upcoming Fourth of July holiday. |
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An educated,
cautious consumer is the number one defense
against any scam. When consumers receive
phone calls or e-mails from agencies
claiming to be a financial institution and
requesting verification of their personal
information, consumers should protect
themselves by following these steps: |
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Stop. Do not respond immediately.
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Think. Why would my bank need this
information? |
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Call. The number on your bank
statement or in the phone book. |
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| “No bank or
legitimate business will request a customer
to verify personal information such as PINs,
bank account numbers or Social Security
numbers over the phone,” explained Kurt
Bauer, WBA’s president/CEO. “Unless you
initiate the contact, you should never give
this information out.” |
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Personal
information that you should never release in
a conversation not initiated by you
includes: |
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Bank Account Numbers |
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Bank Card Numbers - Credit or Debit
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Personal Identification Numbers (PINs)
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Social Security Numbers |
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| If a person
receives this type of request over the
phone, WBA suggests they should note the
name of the caller, the institution
represented and contact information. The
consumer should then contact said
institution, using contact information
gleaned from a different source like a bank
statement, to verify the request.
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If the request
was not legitimate, the incident should be
reported to the police, the misrepresented
institution and the consumer’s financial
agencies. The same guidelines and
suggestions apply to e-mail requests for
personal information. |
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“Criminals are
constantly inventing new techniques or
variations on old ones to steal personal
information,” Bauer said. “If a consumer is
ever in doubt about a request, they should
immediately contact the police or their
financial institution. Both agencies are
well equipped to determine the legitimacy of
the request and will be happy to offer
assistance.” |
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The Stephenson
National Bank & Trust is a 133-year old
independent community bank with assets of
$236 million and Trust assets exceeding $196
million. Offices are located in Marinette
and Oconto, Wis. and Menominee, Mich. For
more information about The Stephenson
National Bank & Trust visit
www.snbt.com. |
