Financial Planning4 min read

3 Keys to Keep Your Money Safe From Fraud

By Scient

The Federal Trade Commission is taking extra measures to warn people of scammers that will use tactics to try and take your personal information. It’s important to remain aware of the current scams and schemes in order to protect yourself from fraudsters looking to take advantage of your vulnerability.

In order to stay vigilant and less susceptible to fraudsters, we want to share this information to help you avoid getting taken advantage of. The most current scam fraudsters are capitalizing on are the checks the U.S. might be sending American taxpayers. These scammers are looking to trap people into giving their information in order to take your money and capture your sensitive information such as social security numbers as well as card and account information.

To help combat this, we’ve put together a few tips to help you identify and fight these fraudsters should they try and take advantage of you:

 

Any money from the government will be in the form of a check and will not be immediate. Anyone who claims this money will be made immediately available is a scammer.
If you have to pay anything upfront before you receive anything, it is not legitimate. There are no fees and no hidden charges. Anyone who says otherwise is a scammer.
The government won’t call and ask for your Social Security number, bank account or credit card information. Anyone who does is a scammer.

If you receive any communication from someone with the above claims, The Federal Trade Commission urges you to report it and provides guidelines on how to do so. The FTC is also an invaluable resource to stay informed and knowledgeable of current scams and schemes. If you stay informed, you can combat fraudsters trying to steal from you.

 

Your privacy and protection are important to us. Feel free to reach out to us if you receive communication from an entity claiming to be from our credit union to verify its legitimacy. Thank you for all you do to make our organization great and we wish you all physical and financial wellness. If you need assistance, please feel free to reach out to us to discuss your options.

Remember: Scient Federal Credit Union will NEVER request sensitive information from you through email. And, if you are ever concerned about the legitimacy of a request, please contact us for verification before providing any personal or account information.