Account Fraud/Account Hijacking

County Bank provides the following information to inform and assist you in understanding unusual activities that could affect your banking experience. For more information about any of the topics below, please contact your local banking office.

Account Fraud

County Bank strives to eliminate account fraud whenever possible. But clever thieves seem to find new, innovative ways to steal from unwary consumers. For more information about account fraud, contact your banker or visit the National Fraud Information Center at www.fraud.org.

Today, check fraud goes far beyond forged and counterfeit checks. Sophisticated computer technology allows clever thieves to steal from bank accounts in ways never imagined just a few years ago! Account fraud, more than ever, is identity theft. In the latest example, con artists use fictitious bank forms and fraudulent bank correspondence to obtain customers’ personal and banking information. The forms and correspondence, which use the bank’s logo and letterhead, purport to be from the bank’s fraud control division.

These criminals imply that the customer’s account has already been compromised, and, as part of the bank’s “investigation,” ask the customer to provide sensitive personal and financial information. A toll-free number and a prepaid envelope are included to help the customer pass along the information to the criminal. Go to your bank to verify all unusual requests for information.

Working with law enforcement and regulatory agencies, County Bank has developed a checklist that helps you to protect your money by stopping account fraud before someone empties your bank account.

Fraud Prevention Guidelines:

  • Protect your checking account number. Don’t give it to a stranger, even one claiming to be from your bank. In the hands of a criminal, your number can turn your account into an open cash drawer.
  • Report lost or stolen checks immediately. Your bank will block payment on any checks with those numbers.
  • Store cancelled checks and guard new checks closely.
  • Notify your banker of suspicious phone inquiries such as those asking for account information to “award a prize,” “verify a statement,” as part of a “fraud investigation,” or so-called “advance fee fraud” schemes.
  • Guard your ATM PIN and ATM receipts, they have information that unlocks your account to thieves.
  • Check your balance frequently. Review and reconcile your checking account statement for accuracy.
  • Learn about new ways to eliminate paper documents, especially electronic payment options available through your bank.

Account Hijacking & Identity Theft

It is the fastest growing form of identity theft, and it can have the most devastating affect. It is called Account Hijacking, and some 2 million people were victimized last year alone. Account hijacking occurs when a criminal obtains your personal banking information and uses it to take over your bank accounts. It can take weeks or months to discover. Fortunately, there are steps you can take to protect yourself.

Step 1: Understand the Threat

Often, the account hijacker uses one or more methods to obtain your personal data. You should be particularly aware of two, phishing and spyware.

  • Hijacking by Phishing - Deceives customers into providing their user names, passwords, and account numbers via deceptive e-mail, fake (spoofed) Web sites, or both. The classic phishing attack involves a deceptive email that purports to be from a legitimate financial institution. The email typically tells the customer that there is some sort of problem with the customer’s account, and instructs the recipient to click on the included hyperlink to ”fix” the problem. In reality, the spoofed Web site is simply collecting customer user names and passwords in order to hijack accounts.
  • Hijacking with Spyware - Works by inserting malicious software, often referred to as “spyware,” on a person’s personal computer. Spyware can be loaded when a user opens a seemingly innocuous email attachment or clicks on a pop-up advertisement. The spyware collects selected information (e.g.: user names, passwords, and account numbers) and forwards that information to the fraudster.

Step 2: Fortify Your System

When it comes to account hijacking, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure! Here are some basic safety tips you can implement immediately:

  • Password Protection—If your password is easy for you to remember, the chances are good it is also easy for an Internet hacker to figure out. Experts advise a combination of letters and numbers and avoiding pet names, your home address, and similar easy-to-crack codes.
  • Virus Vaccines—Your computer’s anti-virus software is like a vaccine—it works at first, but you need to keep it up-to-date to guard against new strains.
  • Patching the Firewall—This protective wall between the outside world and your computer can help prevent unauthorized access to your computer. Updates are called patches, and you should check regularly with your software company to be sure you have the latest patches
  • Zap the Spyware—Anti-spyware programs are readily available, and every computer connected to the Internet should have software installed and updated regularly.
  • No “Phishing” Allowed—If you receive an unexpected email, or one that you consider suspicious, delete it. Remember: your bank will never email you and ask you to go to another site to “verify information.”

Quick Facts about Account Hijacking

  • Two million people were hit with account hijacking last year, and over half believe it was from a phishing email.
  • Illegal checking account transfers resulting from account hijacking are becoming more prevalent, according to the FDIC.
  • Overall account fraud totals more than $2.4 billion annually, $1,200 per victim.
  • People who monitor their accounts online (rather than just with mailed statements) can detect hijacking earlier. In one report, victims’ losses were one-eighth of those who detected the crime via paper statements due to early detection.

Step 3: Vigilance Pays

Chances are you will never be victimized by account hijacking identity theft. But if you are victimized, early detection is critical.

  • Check your statements regularly - If something seems irregular, contact your banker to discuss it. An encouraging note: a recent study showed that customers who monitor their accounts online discover problems sooner.
  • Check your credit report at least annually. You are entitled to one free credit report annually from each of the three major credit bureaus. If a hijacker is misusing your credit, clues are likely to show up here. For a free report: www.annualcreditreport.com. Your bank is taking substantive measures to protect the safety and security of your accounts. By acting today to strengthen security at your end of the Internet highway, hijackers will have an even tougher time. Stop by your bank soon to learn more.

Direct Deposit & You

County Bank partners with U.S. Department of Treasury in the National GO DIRECT campaign. Click here to discover how direct deposit can help you prevent fraud.

Checks in the 21st Century

Checks Are Changing with CHECK 21.

In October 2003, the Check Clearing for the 21st Century Act became law. Now known simply as Check 21, the legislation’s goals include “to improve the overall efficiency of the nation’s payments system.” Most checks must be physically transported—whether across town or across the country—before they can be cleared. This is expensive and time-consuming. Check 21 provides a new option: legal acceptance of paper reproductions of original checks. This reproduction is called a “substitute check” and is produced from a digital image of the original check.

How Will Check 21 Affect You?

By Oct. 28, 2004, every bank will be required to accept substitute checks, just as they currently accept your original paper checks. If you receive your canceled checks or electronic images of your canceled checks with your account statement, you will begin seeing substitute checks after that date. A substitute check is the legal equivalent of the original check and will include all the information contained on the original. Check 21 includes several safeguards for check-writing consumers. Check 21 helps speed check clearing, so check fraud can be discovered faster. Faster fraud detection means faster resolution for customers. Another safeguard: A bank that creates a substitute check must warrant that it is accurate. The bank also has to make sure that the substitute check is produced in accordance with industry standards for quality.

A Word about Check Conversion

You may already have experienced two other emerging payment practices, and each is an example of “check conversion,” which uses the automated clearinghouse, or ACH, system. In the first example, a retailer converts a paper check into an electronic ACH payment on the spot. In this situation, if you’ve written a check for a purchase, you are handed the check back immediately after it’s converted into an electronic ACH payment at the store or shop. In the second example, regular billers (telephone, utilities and credit card providers, for example) convert your check payments into ACH payments. The check has been “converted” to an electronic format, and you won’t receive a copy of the original. The payment will be reflected in your bank statement, which becomes the legally accepted proof of your payment. Keep in mind that both of these example transactions are different from substitute checks. All of these changes allow for faster payment processing and even better service to the nation’s banking customers.

Efficient Check Clearing Benefits You

The improvements brought about through Check 21 allow for faster payment processing and even better service to you, our banking customer. A few of the benefits include:

  • Faster check clearing
  • Decreased fraud
  • Less paper
  • Increased security

Bank Regulators

County Bank is regulated by Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).

Because County Bank is a state–chartered financial institution, we are also regulated by the State of California, Department of Financial Institutions located in the California Commissioner’s office in San Francisco, California.

The bank is not endorsing or guaranteeing the products, information, or recommendations provided by linked sites. The bank is not liable for any failure of products or services advertised on those sites. Each third party site may have a privacy policy different than the bank. The linked third part website may provide less security than the bank’s website.