FTC Addresses Equifax Scams

Scams Follow Equifax Breach

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has sent out an article about a new scam exploiting the Equifax hack. See the article below. To stay current on the latest scams and what to do to avoid them, review our Fraud Alerts page. This page is continually updated with the latest information and advice from many sources.

Equifax isn’t calling

September 14, 2017, by Lisa Weintraub Schifferle
Attorney, FTC, Division of Consumer and Business Education

Ring, ring. “This is Equifax calling to verify your account information.” Stop. Don’t tell them anything. They’re not from Equifax. It’s a scam. Equifax will not call you out of the blue.

That’s just one scam you might see after Equifax’s recent data breach. Other calls might try to trick you into giving your personal information. Here are some tips for recognizing and preventing phone scams and imposter scams:

Don’t give personal information. Don’t provide any personal or financial information unless you’ve initiated the call and it’s to a phone number you know is correct.
Don’t trust caller ID. Scammers can spoof their numbers so it looks like they are calling from a particular company, even when they’re not.
If you get a robocall, hang up. Don’t press 1 to speak to a live operator or any other key to take your number off the list. If you respond by pressing any number, it will probably just lead to more robocalls.

If you’ve already received a call that you think is fake, report it to the FTC.

If you gave your personal information to an imposter, it’s time to change any compromised passwords, account numbers or security questions. And if you’re concerned about identity theft, visit IdentityTheft.gov to learn how you can protect yourself.

For more information about the Equifax breach, visit Equifax’s website, www.equifaxsecurity2017.com or contact their call center at 866-447-7559.

The Equifax Data Breach

Equifax Data Breach: Protecting Your Identity

Equifax is one of the credit bureaus that gather data to produce and update your credit score. Freedom sends Equifax data on members who apply for loans in order to check credit worthiness.

A few months ago hackers breached the Equifax database. As a result, some individuals had their social security number, driver’s license number, or other data compromised.

Equifax is mailing notices to people who were affected by the data breach. In the meantime, there ARE things you can do to lower your risk of identity theft:

Check to see if you may have been impacted by the data breach.
If your data has been compromised, sign up for FREE Equifax identity theft monitoring.
Continue to use best practices to prevent identity theft:
1. Use strong passwords. By definition, a strong password consists of at least six characters that are a combination of letters, numbers and symbols (@, #, $, %, etc.) if allowed. Passwords are typically case-sensitive, so a strong password contains letters in both uppercase and lowercase. The longer a password, the stronger it is.
2. Do NOT respond to requests for personal information received by phone call or email. Freedom will never call or email to ask you for personal information.
3. Do not write down personal information such as your credit card number or personal identification number (PIN).
4. Do not let debit and credit cards out of your sight.
5. Cover your hand when entering your PIN at an ATM or a store.

CUAid for Victims of Hurricane Harvey

Help Texans in Need

Helping Those Hit by Hurricane Harvey

The National Credit Union Foundation has activated the online disaster relief system CUAid.coop. This web site helps raise money for credit union people affected by Hurricane Harvey.

Donations may be made directly at CUAid.coop. Alternatively, go to the CUAid PayPal link to use a credit or debit card or a PayPal account. Your restricted donation goes to CUAid.

You can also make a donation via the American Red Cross.

Freedom works to make a difference in our community, and our country. Join us and Belong to Something Special.