Identity
Theft:
Tools to Prevent Identity Theft
Marblehead Bank has bank privacy policies in place to protect
your identity and your accounts against theft and fraud.
Password protection for online transactions help assure online
security when using our online services, you develop a secret
password that only you know. The bank also has another layer
of authentication for the protection of online transactions.
OnGuard provides strong authentication to protect our customer’s
online account from unauthorized access.
OnGuard uses a series of personal questions, and tracks
the way our customers access our secure site. At each logon,
OnGuard will check the way our customers are accessing our
site. When there are certain access changes, and at certain
intervals, OnGuard will challenge our customers to answer
one of their personal questions to ensure their identity.
There is no additional hardware or software required. It
is simple, safe and reliable.
Encryption of online transactions with Marblehead Bank converts
your information into secure code, protecting you against
hackers.
Three forms of identity theft on the Internet are described
below:
PHISHING: This high-tech scam uses spam to deceive customers
into disclosing their credit/debit card numbers, bank account
information, social security numbers, passwords, and other
sensitive person information. Customers are usually deceived
by deceptive emails and or fake (spoofed) websites. The classic
phishing attack involves a deceptive email that claims 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. The email usually includes
a hyperlink to a spoofed website that looks exactly like
the site of the legitimate financial institution. The email
typically instructs the recipient to click on the included
hyperlink, go to the financial institution website, and log
in using the customer’s user name and password in order
to fix the problem. In reality, the spoofed website is simply
collecting customer user name and passwords in order to hijack
accounts.
HACKING: Fraudsters hack into financial institution or service
provider computer systems and databases to steal confidential
customer information. Marblehead Bank has stringent security
on its financial information.
SPYWARE: Information necessary to hijack accounts is obtained
by inserting malicious software, often referred to as spyware,
on a customer’s personal computer at home or on a computer
used by many customers in a public facility like an Internet
café. Spyware can be secretly loaded when a user opens
a seemingly safe email attachment or clicks on a pop-up advertisement.
The spyware collects selected information (ex. User names,
passwords, account numbers) from customers of certain financial
institutions and forwards that information to the fraudster.
A common type of spyware is a keystroke logger, a program
that records what the user types on the computer keyboard
and sends that information to the person who installed the
program.
Maximum security is only possible with the help of our customers.
Below are some suggestions:
- Do not give out financial information such as account
numbers of your checking, savings, debit, or credit card.
Do not give out your Social Security number, unless you
know the person or organization.
- Report lost or stolen checks
immediately.
- Notify us of any suspicious phone inquiries
such as those asking for account information to “verify
a statement” or “award
a prize.”
- Closely guard your ATM and/or Debit card
Personal Identification Number and ATM and/or Debit receipts.
- Shred
any financial solicitations and bank statements before
deposing of them.
- Put outgoing mail into a secure, official
Postal Service collection box.
- If regular bills fail to
reach you call the company to find out why.
- If your bills
include questionable items don’t ignore
them. Instead investigate immediately to prevent any possible
fraud.
- Periodically contact the major credit report companies
to review your file and make certain the information is
correct. (See information below related to FACT Act to
learn about obtaining free reports.)
- Credit Reporting Bureaus
Equifax (www.equifax.com)
Place a fraud alert: 1-888-766-0008
Order a credit report: 1-800-685-1111
Experian (www.experian.com)
Place a fraud alert: 1-888-397-3742
Order a credit report: 1-888-397-3742
TransUnion (www.transunion.com)
Place a fraud alert: 1-800-680-7289
Order a credit report: 1-800-888-4213
FACT Act Will Help Fight Identity Theft
The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACT Act)
will help reduce identity theft according to Congress and
the Federal Trade Commission. For example, one provision
requires the three major credit-reporting agencies to provide
consumers with a free copy of their own credit report.
Another provision to help prevent identity theft is the
National Fraud Alert System. Consumers, who reasonably suspect
they have been or may be victimized by identity theft, or
who are military personnel on active duty away from home,
can place an alert on their credit files. The alert will
put potential creditors on notice that they must proceed
with caution when granting credit.
Other measures that will help consumers recover their credit
reputation after they have been victimized:
- Credit reporting agencies must stop reporting allegedly
fraudulent account information when a consumer establishes
that her or she has been the victim of identity theft
- Creditors
or businesses must provide copies of business records or
fraudulent accounts or transactions related to them. This
information can assist victims in proving that they are,
in fact, victims.
- Consumers will be allowed to report accounts
affected by identity theft directly to creditors – in
addition to credit reporting agencies to prevent the spread
of erroneous information.
HOW TO OBTAIN A FREE CREDIT REPORT:
www.annualcreditreport.com
(877)322-8228
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