Account Security
The security of your personal account information is of the utmost importance to Jolt Credit Union. Staff will handle your account transactions with care and assist you if you have any account questions or concerns. There are a number of ways that you can continuously protect your account information.
At a minimum, review your monthly or quarterly statements to ensure that all transactions are legitimate and can be verified. You can view your transaction history more frequently using Online Banking or Mobile Banking.
Enroll in eStatements for secure online delivery of your statement and avoid possible mail fraud.
Beware before you share. Use caution when sharing account information via phone, internet or text. Jolt Credit Union will never contact you for this information. Please view additional security tips that could help prevent fraud.
Memorize your PIN for your ATM or Debit Card - never write the PIN on your card or share this with anyone.
Contact Jolt Credit Union if you suspect that there are fraudulent transactions on your account; or if you have provided your personal account information to anyone.
Familiarize yourself with common scams that you could fall victim to. We have created a list for you of the scams we are aware of at this time.
Identity Theft is the crime of stealing someone's personal, identifying information for the purpose of using that information fraudulently. This could include social security numbers, credit card and banking account numbers, usernames, and passwords. Fraudulent uses often include: opening new credit accounts, taking out loans in the victim's name, stealing money from financial accounts, or using available credit.
Identity Theft can affect anyone and can cause financial and emotional distress. Jolt Credit Union takes great pride in your membership and has implemented practices to protect your identity.
Protect Your Identity
WHAT JOLT IS DOING TO PROTECT YOUR IDENTITY:
- Verify the identity of who we speak to over the phone prior to giving out account information using non-public personal questions.
- Request address changes in writing with a signature of the primary or joint account holder
- Address change notices submitted by the U.S. Postal Service are confirmed with the primary or joint account holder before being changed in our system
- May request your photo ID prior to a transaction
- Recommend that members place a password on Jolt Credit Union accounts
Please contact the police, credit bureau reporting agencies, and your financial institutions if you fear or know you have become a victim of identity theft. We have provided additional information for you on how to protect yourself from becoming a victim of identity theft and what to do should you become a victim.
Current Scams
A common scam that is targeting area residents is checks being delivered via mail with instructions to send a portion of that check to another location, usually by Western Union™, MoneyGram™ or money order. It may seem legitimate because the instructions also state to keep a small dollar amount for your time and trouble spent. However, the check you deposited into your Jolt Credit Union account may come back as a fraudulent item. If you withdrew the funds, your account will be debited the amount of the check, which often times results in a large sum of money being owed to the financial institution.
OTHER SCAMS INCLUDE:
Lottery Checks – these mailings generally consist of Lottery winnings, sometimes from a reputable lottery organization or foreign country. An important question to ask yourself is, “have I ever played this lottery?”
Work from home scams – be very careful when contacting agencies offering “Work from Home” opportunities. Scam artists have found it easy to prey on the unemployed.
Recorded phone calls – phone calls requesting that you enter your credit card number, expiration date, and/or security code are not legitimate phone calls. Financial institutions already have this information.
E-mail solicitations – messages received via e-mail requesting personal account information should be immediately deleted. Do not click on links within these messages as it could redirect you to a hazardous site.
Text messages – cell phone text messages notifying you of a problem with your debit or credit card are becoming popular. Typically these messages have included a phone number to call to verify personal card information. If you bank with a financial institution that offers text messages, contact them directly to check out the situation.
Online Auction sites – if you sell and item using an online auction site, such as Ebay or Craig’s List, be cautious of accepting payment via check. Some scam artists have found success in sending a check made payable for more than the item was sold for and request that you send the overage back to them.
If you have received a check in the mail and question the validity of the item please notify the credit union immediately - we are here to assist you and can take necessary steps to verify that item and protect your account.
* Remember to be cautious when giving out any personal information over the phone, Internet or in-person. Jolt will never solicit members for personal or account information.*
Internet & Email Security Tips
- Be suspicious of any e-mail with urgent requests for personal financial information unless the e-mail is digitally signed (you can’t be sure it wasn’t forged or ‘spoofed’). Phishers typically: (1) include upsetting or exciting (but false) statements in their emails to get people to react immediately; (2) ask for confidential information such as usernames, passwords, credit card numbers, social security numbers, account numbers, etc.; and (3) do not personalize the e-mail message (while valid messages from your credit union should be).
- Always ensure that you’re using a secure website when submitting credit card or other sensitive information via your Web browser. To make sure you’re on a secure Web server, check the beginning of the Web address in your browsers address bar – it should be https:// rather than just http://.
- Consider installing a Web browser tool bar to help protect you from known phishing fraud websites.
- Regularly log into your online accounts and don’t wait for as long as a month before you check each account.
- Regularly check your financial institution, credit, and debit card statements to ensure that all transactions are legitimate. If anything is suspicious, contact your financial institution (s) and card issuers.
- Ensure that your browser is up to date and security patches applied.
- Always report “phishing” or “spoofed” e-mails to the following groups:
- Forward the e-mail to the Federal Trade Commission at spam@uce.gov
- Forward the e-mail to the “abuse” e-mail address at the company that is being spoofed
- When forwarding spoofed messages, always include the entire original e-mail with its original header information intact
- Forward the e-mail to the Federal Trade Commission at spam@uce.gov
SMARTPHONE SECURITY TIPS:
The Identity Theft Resource Center, San Diego, Calif., recommends these best practices for mobile device users:
- Password-protect your phone. Use a strong password (numbers, upper- and lower-case letters, and symbols).
- Enroll in a backup/wiping program. This service backs up information on your smartphone to your home computer and "wipes" your phone if it's lost or stolen.
- Install security software. Companies offer antivirus, malware, and security software designed for smartphones. Make sure you download software updates.
- Download apps from trusted sources. Some "bad apps" contain malware.
- Do not access financial accounts from free, public networks. Public Wi-Fi hotspots are a prime target for hackers who then have direct access to your mobile device.