There is a new sophisticated Netflix phishing attack you need to watch out for. They start out very pleasant, saying they have some trouble with your billing info, and pretty please with sugar on top need you to update your payment details. But if you fall for it, they will try to steal your login details, your credit card data, your picture and your ID!

Think Before You Click!

• Never click on a login link or an account verification link in an email. If there is one, bail.
• Check for the green HTTPS padlock. If there isn’t one, bail.
• If there is a padlock, check the name of the site. If it’s not exactly what you expect, bail.
• Don’t ignore telltales such as spelling and grammar errors. If it looks wrong, bail.
• Guard your ID closely. If you’re asked for a selfie or ID when it isn’t absolutely necessary, bail.

Let’s take a closer look.

(Note the simple trick, right there in the subject line, of not spelling out the brand-theft text “Netflix” exactly: the crooks wrote the X as the Greek letter chi, so that Netflix came out as Netfli?.)

Next, you wind up here and that’s where they steal your credentials. But wait, there’s more…

Next, they steal your credit card data:

And trying to keep you on the hook, they throw in a Verfied by VISA page:

Then to add insult to injury, they make you confirm your identity by taking a selfie holding your identity card. Yikes!

An Apple scam is also going around.

Watch out for emails from Apple stating “someone has logged into your Apple ID from an unknown device.” It’s not real.

Stop. Look. Think. Don’t be fooled.

Information provided by Stu Sjouwerman, Founder and CEO of KnowBe4, Inc. Keeping You Informed. Keeping You Aware.

Make text banking your first defense against fraud.

Fraud can happen to anyone. It happened to me and text banking tried to warn me.

I was out of town. I noticed two purchase alerts in my messages. My wife and I share an account and she had recently been to a craft fair, so I assumed they were hers. I was in a hurry and did not verify the transactions. My mistake. A couple of hours later, my bank called to inform us these were fraudulent charges on my wife’s card. Luckily, they caught it quickly and canceled her card before other fraud occurred.

Fraud departments are great at what they do, but so are fraudsters. It’s ultimately up to me to keep track of what is happening on my account. Text banking allows me to monitor account activity quickly and easily throughout the day from my phone. If I don’t recognize an expense, I can check it out right then. Detecting fraud early can help minimize loss.

Many major credit card companies also offer text alerts. Let text banking help you guard your money.

Other cool features:

You can use text banking to check account balances, transfer money between accounts and notify you when your balance falls below a specific dollar amount. You can pick and choose which alerts you want to receive. Smartphone and Wi-Fi not required.

Learn more ways to protect your money at RCBbank.com/GetFit.

Want to know more about text banking?

For more information about text banking and to read frequently asked questions, visit our Text Banking page.

To sign up for text banking, visit any of our RCB Bank locations.

Message, data rates and fees may apply. Ask for details. Delivery of alerts may be delayed for various reasons, including service outages affecting your phone, wireless or internet provider, technology failures, and system capacity limitations. Any time you review your balance, keep in mind it may not reflect all transactions including recent debit card transactions or checks you have written.

Opinions expressed above are the personal opinions of the author and meant for generic illustration purposes only. Message, data rates and fees may apply.

By Jocelyn Wood, RCB Bank

Don’t wait for a criminal to steal your identity before you take action. Guard your ID with these preventative measures.

Monitor bank account and credit card statements regularly.

Lookout for suspicious or unauthorized activity.

“Watch closely for small amounts on your account activity,” said Assistant Vice President Fraud Denise Meyer, RCB Bank. “Fraudsters will make little purchases or withdrawals with various odd merchant names hoping you won’t notice.”

Set up for text alerts to notify you whenever a transaction occurs on your bank or credit card accounts.

Check your free credit reports.

Federal law allows you to request a free copy of your credit report once a year from each of the three national credit reporting companies (CRC). Request a copy online at www.annualcreditreport.com or call 1.877.322.8228.

Space out requests throughout the year to provide regular updates on your credit. See who is making inquiries on your credit. If it’s not a person or company you gave permission to, your information may be compromised.

Place a fraud alert/credit freeze with CRC.

When you have an alert on your report, a business must verify your identity before it issues credit, so it may try to contact you, according to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

Place a fraud alert at no cost with one CRC. They will then notify the other two. The alert lasts 90 days and can be renewed.

You can go a step further and lock down your credit with a credit freeze, which restricts access to your credit report. You’ll need to contact each CRC to place a credit freeze. There may be a fee.

Credit alerts and freezes may be effective at stopping someone from opening new credit accounts in your name, but it may not prevent the misuse of existing accounts. You still need to monitor all bank, credit card and insurance statements for fraudulent transactions.

Stay Alert

“Criminals take advantage of data breaches, natural disasters or other major crises and prey on people’s fears,” said Meyer.

Watch out for phishing emails pretending to be a government agency or credit reporting service.

Do not click on links from any email, text or social media message about data breaches.

If you think your information has been compromised, call your bank immediately. Read how to report and recover from ID theft at the FTC, www.identitytheft.gov.

Invest in yourself.

* 2017 Identity Fraud Study, Javelin Strategy & Research.
Opinions expressed above are the personal opinions of writer Jocelyn Wood,RCB Bank Creative Designer, and meant for generic illustration purposes only. RCB Bank, Member FDIC.
Published in Values Magazine ValueNews.com, October 2017