In today’s world, criminals are hard at work devising and using various scams to fool consumers into providing personal information, exposing their hard earned financial assets to theft and fraud. Here are some different ways to protect yourself from such situations.

1. Never give out your personal or financial information to someone you do not know or trust. (Especially PIN numbers and passwords)
2. Always keep your receipts. That way you can verify purchases and dispute any charges that do not match
3. Review your statement and account activity regularly
4. Immediately report any unknown activity or unexpected contact to your financial institution
5. Always keep virus protection up to date
6. Make sure you are on the correct site address and that it is secure before performing any transactions

If you think you have been the victim of a scam contact your financial institution immediately and follow their instructions to further protect yourself.  You can visit https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/#/ to learn more about how to report fraud or https://www.identitytheft.gov/ to report identity theft and get a recovery plan.