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North Penn Bank Specials
Identity Theft Prevention |
Phishing
"Phishing" is a tactic that uses spam and e-mail to lure computer users to websites that look like reputable companies (including banks) to deceive them into divulging personal financial data. A large national bank's website was involved in one of the recent phishing scams. In this scam, bank customers received an e-mail from what appeared to be the bank informing them that their checking accounts would be closed if they did not provide the first 4 digits of their ATM card number. To prevent phishing, banks should educate customers about these new ID theft tactics by posting or publishing some general tips for Internet security. These customer tips should include messages not to reply to any e-mail that requests personal information and to be very suspicious of any e-mail from a business or person that asks for the customer¡¦s password, social security number, or other sensitive information.
Spoofing
"Spoofing" is the act of masking your identity and pretending to be someone else or another device. For instance, you may receive an e-mail from someone alleging to be a bank, e-commerce site or a security help desk informing you that your account is in danger of being closed unless you click a URL to confirm that it's active. On closer inspection the URL turns out to be bogus, leading you to a Web page that attempts to harvest your information, such as bank account numbers or credit card information. The misleading URLs hide easily in rich-text e-mail where the actual target of the URL is not displayed.
A spoofed URL can not only harvest user information through a form, it can also plant spyware or Trojans on Windows computers, which can then be used to hijack sensitive information either already on those PCs or sent from it later. For example, a malicious program planted at a spoofed URL could log keystrokes to get passwords, account numbers or other personal data. To prevent spoofing, banks should educate customers about these new ID theft tactics by posting or publishing some general tips for Internet security.
The following precautionary measures are recommended by law enforcement
X Do not give personal information, such as account numbers or social security numbers, over the telephone, through the mail, or over the Internet unless you initiated the contact or know with whom you are dealing.
X Store personal information in a safe place and tear up old credit card receipts, ATM receipts, old account statements, and unused credit card offers before throwing them away.
X Protect your PINs and other passwords. Avoid using easily available information like your mother¡¦s maiden name, your birth date, the last four digits of your social security number, your phone number, etc.,
X Carry only the minimum amount of identifying information and the number of credit cards that you need.
X Pay attention to billing cycles and statements. Inquire if you do not receive a monthly bill it may mean that an identity thief has diverted the bill.
X Check account statements carefully to ensure all charges, checks, or withdrawals were authorized by you.
X Guard your mail from theft. If you have the type of mailbox with a flag to signal the box contains mail, do not leave bill payment envelopes in your mailbox with the flag up. Instead, deposit them in a post office collection box or at the local post office. Promptly remove incoming mail.
X Order copies of your credit report to ensure it is accurate.
For more information or to file an identity theft complaint you can visit the Federal Trade Commission websites at https://www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov/
or http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/consumer.shtm
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Online Banking and Bill Payment |
| Go to our Internet Banking site and sign up for FREE bill payment. Standard $30.00 overdraft fee applies to all ACH returned items as well as a $25.00 return item charge from our Bill Payment provider.
Unauthorized access or use of this site is not permitted and constitutes a crime punishable by law.
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