Protect your finances with confidence.

Scammers may call or text pretending to be your financial institution or a merchant. They often create urgency by claiming there’s suspicious activity and ask you to “verify” your information.

Fraudulent emails may appear to come from trusted companies and ask you to click a link or provide information. These links often lead to fake websites designed to steal your login credentials.

You may be asked to deposit a check and send part of the money back. The check is fake, and you are responsible for the full amount.

Scammers play on emotions to build relationships online and then request money due to fake emergencies. Never send money to someone you haven’t met in person.

Scammers may build trust online and then pressure you into sharing explicit images. They then threaten to release them unless you pay. If this happens:

• Do not pay
• Stop all communication
• Save evidence (screenshots)
• Report and block the account
• File a report at www.ic3.gov

Scammers often request payment through cryptocurrency or gift cards. These payments are difficult to trace and recover. If a cryptocurrency deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Scammers pose as employers offering attractive "work-from-home" jobs or remote assistant positions, often for companies that people recognize, such as Amazon or Walmart. They may be seeking to obtain personal information through a phony hiring process, or may even ask you to deposit a "company check" for equipment and wire a portion of it back, only for the check to bounce later, leaving you on the hook for the balance.

Create unique, complex passwords and never share them. Avoid using easily accessible information like birthdays or pet names.

Use one-time passcodes or authentication apps whenever available for added security.

Account Alerts: In online or mobile banking. Click on the three lines at the top left of the screen, then select “Alert Settings.” Alert Preferences allows you to choose SMS zohotext and/or email alerts. Account Specific Alerts lets you turn on your preferred alerts.

Card Alerts: Navigate to ‘Cards’, select the second set of 3 dots for card controls. Under ‘Select controls’ use the pull-down menu and choose ‘Card alerts’ to set a transaction alert when your card is used.

Check your account activity regularly and review your monthly statements for unauthorized transactions.

Avoid accessing financial information on public Wi-Fi. Do not send sensitive information via email — use secure messaging in online banking or call us instead.

Never share your debit or credit card PIN and avoid storing it where others can find it.

Check your credit report at least once per year with each bureau to look for signs of identity theft.

Credit Bureaus:

• Equifax — www.equifax.com — 800-525-6285
• Experian — www.experian.com — 888-397-3742
• TransUnion — www.transunion.com — 800-916-8800