Financial Literacy Month: Fraud Prevention

Fraudsters are getting creative these days. We aim to protect our members from fraud by educating them on the latest fraud schemes and how to combat them. We all think we know how to spot a scam, but are you up to date on your fraud knowledge? Brush up on fraud prevention best practices with these tips.

One of the latest scams people are falling victim to is spoofing. Spoofing is when scammers impersonate a trusted institution. Scammers do this by using false caller IDs, email addresses, and text messages, and tend to impersonate Financial Institutions, Charity and Disaster funds, and Tech Support, to name a few.

Once these scammers contact someone through spoofing, they then start phishing. Phishing is when scammers ask specific questions to get sensitive information to access your accounts. Phishing is often used along with spoofing to make it look like the request comes from a legitimate source. Here are some tips to help you spot spoofing or phishing.

• Don’t answer calls from unknown numbers.
  It’s safer not to answer calls from unknown numbers, as they can be scams. Remember that fraudsters can also manipulate caller IDs and appear to be from a trusted institution. If you answer, but it doesn’t seem like who you’re expecting, hang up.
• Don’t give out personal information.
  Scammers will ask for information like addresses, phone numbers, birthdates, Social Security Numbers, PINs, passwords, and multifactor-identification codes to gain access to your financial accounts. Making passwords unique to the account and free of sensitive information helps safeguard against losing access to multiple accounts.
•  Use extreme caution with emails and texts with suspicious links.
  Scammers can set up access to your device through these links, making usernames, passwords, and multifactor identification codes easy to access. If you are sent something you aren’t expecting or there are spelling and grammatical errors, think twice about responding or clicking on links.
• Use caution if you are being pressured for payment or information.
• Fraudsters can be convincing. They use urgency to scare you into divulging information or procuring payment.
• Be Vigilant. 
  Watching your account for suspicious activity account can keep you from becoming a victim of fraud. If you see something unusual or a purchase you didn’t make, report it to your financial institution immediately. 

Please remember that Cedar Point will never call you to ask for your PINs, login credentials, or verification code. If you receive a call, text, or email asking for personal information from a phone number or email address claiming to be Cedar Point or feel uncomfortable about the call, do not respond. Instead, call Cedar Point at 301-863-7071 to verify the legitimacy of the call, text, or email. Our Call Center representatives are available Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturdays from 8:30 a.m. to noon.

Citations
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. (2024, March 13) “What are some common types of Scams?” Consumerfinance.gov. https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/what-are-some-common-types-of-scams-en-2092/

Federal Communications Commission. (2022, March 7) “Caller ID spoofing.” Fcc.gov. https://www.fcc.gov/spoofing

Federal Bureau of Investigation. (n.d.) “Common Scams and Crimes.” Fbi.gov. https://www.fbi.gov/how-we-can-help-you/scams-and-safety/common-scams-and-crimes

Posted by: Ashton Osborne, Public Relations Specialist