‘Tis the Season for Scams

As your trusted financial institution, we send periodic newsletters to keep our valued members updated on recent fraud trends and share tips on how to mitigate and prevent fraud. This month we’re focusing on Holiday Scams, Employment Scams and Red Flags.

The holidays are officially here, and the financial industry is gearing up to tackle its most fraudulent activity-filled months of the year. With the multiple expenses of the holiday months, this brings even more vulnerability for scams. This month we will review some of the more common holiday scams and red flags to look for during your monthly activities. 

Top 3 scams to look out for this season are:

1. Puppy Scams – With many people attempting to add a new member to the family for the holidays, puppy scams seem to be more reoccurring during this time of the year. Scammers may use fake photos, have limited communication or even go as far as impersonating a well-known breeder. We encourage our members to avoid sending payments via wires or real-time payments such as CashApp or Zelle. 
2. Toy Scams – Every holiday season we see many parents looking for the season’s hot toys that quickly sell out in stores and online. Scammers do market research and they are aware of which toys are being sought after. Any links or ads found on social media should be taken with extra precaution, especially when extra-low prices are advertised. We encourage you to research before you buy. 
3. Facebook Marketplace Scams – Facebook Marketplace can be a great resource for buying and selling, especially within your local community. However, scams are nothing new on this platform since it can be difficult to vet sellers and buyers. Signs of common Facebook Marketplace scams are requests for advanced payments, overpayment for an item, and not letting buyers see an item before purchase.

Here is what to do to prevent these types of scams:

• Purchase merchandise from reputable dealers or establishments, or individuals that hold the trademark, copyright, or patent.
• Do your homework on the individual or company to ensure that they are legitimate, starting with obtaining a physical address rather than simply a post office box and a telephone number, and call the seller to see if the phone number is correct and working.
• Send an e-mail to the seller to make sure the e-mail address is active and be wary of those that utilize free e-mail services where a credit card is not required to open the account.
• Check with the Better Business Bureau from the seller’s area.
• Don’t reply to unsolicited e-mails. Be cautious when dealing with individuals/companies from outside of the USA.
• Inquire about returns and warranties.
• When making a purchase online make sure the transaction is secure when you electronically send your card numbers. 
• Use secure and traceable transactions. Avoid paying by wire transfer, Zelle, prepaid money card, gift card, or other non-traditional payment methods. 
• The shipment tracking information you received might be fake. Don’t just click on the tracking link; go to the shipper’s website and type in the code for yourself to see if it is real.
• Be careful purchasing sought-after products, especially during the holiday season. The risk of online purchase scams rises during the holidays because more people are making online purchases, but also because scammers are offering the most popular products for the season at great prices. If it is too good to be true, then it is probably fake.

Be Cautious of Employment Scams

Along with real-time payment scams, we are expecting an increase in employment scams. We’ve recently seen members fall victim to an art job scam, in which they were given a fraudulent check to deposit into their account in order to purchase art supplies. They deposited the check, not knowing the item was fraudulent, and used the funds to purchase products. The employer then stated they had overpaid them and requested funds to be sent back to them via Zelle. The debit card purchases along with the Zelle transactions caused them to be in the negative once the check was returned as Altered/Fictitious. 

Here’s what to do to prevent these scams:

• Never provide sensitive financial or personal information.
• Do not agree to have your earnings directly deposited into your bank accounts from any new or unknown employer—you do not want to give access to your account until you know it is completely legitimate and trustworthy.
• Never agree to a wire transfer of any sort or Zelle—no legitimate job opportunity is going to involve wire and Zelle transfers.
• Be wary of any recruiter who asks for money from you upfront in return for finding you a job or providing job leads.
• Ignore postings that guarantee you a job, and do not be swayed by amazing testimonials or money-back guarantees—these are simply marketing gimmicks designed to make you feel more at ease in falling for the scam.
• Verify through the company and call their human resources department.
• Trust your instincts—if anything about the way the job interview or hiring process seems suspicious, then most likely it is fake. Contact the organization directly on your own to confirm the legitimacy of the position before taking any further action.

Protecting our members from falling a victim to a scam is part of our member service.

Please do not hesitate to contact us with questions and concerns, we are here to help!