Protect Yourself Against PhishingWhat to do if you, your employees or customers receive an e-mail asking for personal information that you suspect is fictitious (phishing): Forward the e-mail to the Federal Government investigation service at
spam@uce.gov.
Forward the e-mail to the company, Financial Institution, or organization impersonated in the phishing e-mail. Most organizations have information on their websites about where to report problems.
Report e-mail fraud claiming to be from Visa by forwarding the suspicious message to
phishing@visa.com.
The best way to combat phish and reduce losses is to educate yourself and your customers. For tips about protecting yourself and your data online, visit
http://onguardonline.gov.
Avoiding Cashier’s Check Fraud Many consumers have become victims of scams involving a fraudulent cashier’s check. A cashier’s check is a check that is issued by a bank, and sold to its customer or another purchaser, that is a direct obligation of the bank. Cashier’s checks are viewed as relatively risk-free instruments and, therefore, are often used as a trusted form of payment to consumers for goods and services.
However, cashier’s checks lately have become an attractive vehicle for fraud when used for payments to consumers. Although the amount of a cashier’s check quickly becomes “available” for withdrawal by the consumer after the consumer deposits the check, these funds do not belong to the consumer if the check proves to be fraudulent. It may take weeks to discover that a cashier’s check is fraudulent.In the meantime, the consumer may have irrevocably wired the funds to a scam artist or otherwise used the funds – only to find out later, when the fraud is detected – that the consumer owes the bank the full amount of the cashier’s check that had been deposited.
This OCC Consumer Advisory on Avoiding Cashier’s Check Fraud gives you information on some common scams and some steps you can take to avoid becoming a victim. Although this advisory focuses on cashier’s checks, you may find the information useful if you transact business using other official bank instruments, such as money orders and official checks.