Know Your Scams

Some manipulative tactics are on the rise. Learn how to identify them so you can help protect yourself.

Is that unusual or even slightly disconcerting email, phone call or text really from a company you trust or a government worker? If your gut tells you something is off, it probably is. Scammers could be after confidential information such as your Social Security number, bank account details or credit card numbers, and they’re attempting to get it using social engineering—essentially, manipulating you into giving out your data.

Social engineering messages usually have common giveaways like generic greetings (“Dear customer”), vague subject lines or unknown senders. Urgency can be another tip-off, like demands for a response or immediate action. Or they might contain an offer that seems too good to be true, like a sizable cash prize. You may also see a request to verify your personal data, or to give access to your computer for a software update.

It’s smart to stop before you respond to any message or click any URL and consider whether it’s valid. New social engineering maneuvers are always emerging. For example, scammers may collect information from social networking platforms, such as Facebook and LinkedIn, to create highly personalized messages.

Scammers use three main social engineering techniques to try to trick people into disclosing personal information. Protect yourself by learning how to spot them:

Phishing

What is phishing? An email message that asks you to click on a link, download a file or reply with confidential information.

Red flags to look for:

• Spelling and grammatical errors.
• Apparent typos in the sender’s address, such as accounts@firststatebank.com.
• An unusual URL or a link that points to a different site than the one mentioned in the message.
• A request not to call the sender.

Smart Tip:

Don't Click on the link or give out your information if anything looks suspicious. To verify a message, visit your bank or company's website by entering their address directly into your browser or by using a bookmark that you made for yourself. Turn on your email spam filter to prevent some suspicious emails from getting to you. If you believe an email is a phishing attempt, use your email service's junk report or block feature.

Vishing