PS Bank Fraud Prevention Series: Preventing Email Scams

As your financial partner, we are vigilant in our efforts to protect you from becoming a victim of fraud. Email spoofing is the creation of an email message using a forged sender address. These are often sophisticated, authentic-looking messages that are very good at tricking the receiver into taking action that releases confidential financial information. Knowing what to look for can help safeguard you from losses due to forged emails attempting to initiate fraudulent requests.

1. Avoid clicking suspicious links

If an email pressures you to click a link — whether it’s to verify your login credentials or make a payment, you can be sure it’s a scam. Banks never ask you to do that. It’s best to avoid clicking links in an email. Before you click, hover over the link to reveal where it really leads. When in doubt, call your bank directly, or visit their website by typing the URL directly into your browser.

2. Raise the red flag on scare tactics

Banks will never use scare tactics, threats, or high-pressure language to get you to act quickly, but scammers will. Demands for urgent action should put you on high alert. No matter how authentic an email may appear, never reply with personal information like your password, PIN, or social security number.

3. Watch for attachments and typos

Your bank will never send attachments like a PDF in an unexpected email. Misspellings and poor grammar are also warning signs of a phishing scam.

4. Be skeptical of every email

In the same way defensive driving prevents car accidents, always treating incoming email as a potential risk will protect you from scams. Fraudulent emails can appear very convincing, using official language and logos, and even similar URLs. Always be alert.

What to do if you receive a scam email:

• Take a deep breath. In most cases, it’s perfectly safe to open a scam email or text. Modern mail apps, like Gmail, detect and block any code or malware from running when you open an email. The key is not to click links or download any attachments.

• Do not download any attachments in the message. Attachments may contain malware such as viruses, worms or spyware.

• Do not click links that appear in the message. Links in phishing messages direct you to fraudulent websites.

• Do not reply to the sender. Ignore any requests from the sender and do not call any phone numbers provided in the message.

You can always contact PS Bank if you think you've been a victim of any type of fraud. Call 866-746-1011 or email [email protected] to speak with a member of our Customer Care Team.

All content in this blog has been sourced from the American Bankers Association website in collaboration with its "Banks Never Ask That" initiative. To learn more, visit: https://www.banksneveraskthat.com/