Farmers Bank N.A.

In today's electronic communication world, security is of increasing importance. In this linked brochure and the links below, we offer ways to protect yourself against identity theft, fraud, computer viruses and more. All of us need to be vigilant in protecting our information and identity. Click the word "security" above for more information.

Resources

3 Major Credit Reporting Companies below:

Be Aware! Farmers Bank & Trust will not call you and ask for any personal information or your account number, under any circumstance. If someone calls you and identifies theirself as an employee of the bank and asks for personal information or your account number, PLEASE DO NOT give them any information. Please notify us immediately of the attempt.

American Bankers Assocation Alert

American Banker Association has been alerted that individuals are making phone calls purporting to be from the ABA. These con artists are calling people telling them that the receiver's personal financial information is on the Internet and the ABA is calling them as a courtesy. The ABA would never call you and request information. This is a scam, please do not give anyone your information

FDCI Alert

The FDIC is alerting the public to questionable solicitations directed at homeowners. The solicitations suggest that homeowners can receive cash grants or equity disbursements through the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) if they apply for a mortgage loan secured by the consumer's home. Questions about these solicitations can be directed to the FDIC's toll-free Central Call Center at 1-877-275-3342 (1-877-ASK-FDIC).

IRS warning

The IRS is warning consumers about phony email scams that resemble the Internal Revenue Service. The requests look legitimate because the images and content are copied from the actual IRS Website. The IRS said it doesn't send out unsolicited emails or ask for personal and financial data, so please question any emails that appear to be from the IRS and ask for sensitive information.

Personalized Phishing Scams Represent New On-line Threat

Cyota, a provider of anti-fraud and on-line security solutions for financial institutions, announced a new type of phishing attack, which it has dubbed “personalized phishing.” With this type of new on-line scam, a fraudsters targets accountholders by name to lure individuals into divulging sensitive information. Cyota’s anti-fraud command center detected this type of attack against several of its customers and immediately began blocking access to and taking down these sites, it says. Contrary to a typical phishing attack, where fraudsters send out hundreds and even thousands of e-mails, these new personalized phishing attacks target individual accountholders at specific banks. The fraudster uses real stolen information about the accountholder, such as a name or account number, to make the message look legitimate and to lure the person into divulging even more information.

More Than 40 Percent of Adults Have Received Phishing Emails

Incidents of phishing and identity theft continue to increase dramatically, according to a nationwide survey of consumers released by payments company First Data Corp. The survey found that 6.8 percent of adults have been victims of identity theft and 43.4 percent of adults have received a phishing e-mail. Further, the study indicates that as many as 54 million Americans have been victims of ID-related fraud. First Data officials say that nearly 5 percent of phishing attacks are successful, despite significant efforts by the financial community to raise awareness to educate consumers about phishing. First Data said that Regions Financial Corp. is one institution that it is working with to educate consumers how to recognize phishing schemes.

Hackers Use Two New Tricks To Steal Online Identities; Scams Are Harder to Detect

By KEVIN J. DELANEY
Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
May 17, 2005; Page B1

Many consumers have grown savvy to "phishing" scams, which use fake emails that appear to come from banks or other businesses to con recipients into supplying personal data over the Web. So fraudsters have come up with new tricks to steal identities online that are even harder to detect. Security experts say two of these scams with some of the most damaging potential are called evil twins and pharming.
Evil twins are wireless networks that pretend to offer trusty Wi-Fi connections to the Internet like those available at some coffee shops, hotels and conferences. On a laptop screen, an evil-twin Wi-Fi hotspot can look identical to one of the tens of thousands of legitimate public networks that consumers log on to every day, sometimes even copying the sign-in page. But that's just a front, and fraudsters who set up the connections attempt to capture any passwords or credit-card numbers that consumers using the link may type.
In pharming, thieves redirect a consumer to an imposter Web page even when the individual types the correct address into his browser. They can do this by changing -- or "poisoning" -- some of the address information that Internet service providers store to speed up Web browsing. Some ISPs and companies have a software bug on their computer servers that lets fraudsters hack in and change those addresses.
Pharming and evil twins aren't yet widespread and certainly haven't become the huge problems that phishing and spyware are. But they're insidious because they can be harder to detect. The growth of such scams shows that the cat-and-mouse game between fraudsters and those seeking to safeguard consumers online is far from over.
Evil twins "are the new frontier" in ID theft, warns Ken Silva, chief security officer at Verisign Inc., a Mountain View, Calif. company that provides Internet-security services. Hackers in the past have eavesdropped when consumers use legitimate Wi-Fi services in public places. But consumers have been able to use encrypted connections and other techniques for safeguarding their data.

FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION 3/1/2005

How can you be sure? The Federal Trade Commission reports, you may have encountered a scam if:

A deal sounds too good to be true.
The appeal tugs on your heartstrings. Be especially careful when offers and solicitations deal with recent tragedies or subjects close to your heart. You're less likely to think clearly.
You are pressured to make an immediate decision. Scam artists know they have to hook you on the first try -- if you have time to think about their offer, chances are you'll see it for what it really is.
There's no paperwork. Scam artists will tell you that you don't need to see the paperwork. Be sure to ask for all the information in writing, whether you're being asked to support a charity or buy a valuable antique.
A "free" offer suddenly isn't. Ask for the offer conditions and the total cost to you -- shipping and handling, tax, etc. Don't agree to pay for something you've supposedly won (and don't remember entering to win).
For in-person offers, you're asked to provide cash. Craft fairs and flea markets aside, most legitimate companies will be able to set up merchant accounts with credit-card companies. Scam artists prefer untraceable methods of payment such as cash and money orders.
You're asked to provide financial information over the phone. Never give out your credit-card number, Social Security number or other personal or financial information over the phone -- unless you initiated the phone call.
You're asked to pay the full cost of a service in advance. Never pay the entire cost up front. A deposit of one-third of the total is standard, with additional payments as the work progresses. Make the final payment only after the job is finished and you are satisfied. Be sure to put your deposit and any payments on your credit card -- the company can back you up if the business or salesperson doesn't come through.

To report fraud, call the FTC Consumer Response Center at 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357).

MAKING IT EASY FOR THE THIEVES – 3/25/2005 – ABA NewsBytes

Ninety-two percent of Londoners in a recent identity-theft study were willing to part with personal information about themselves in exchange for the chance to win a theater ticket. In the Infosecurity Europe study, 94 percent of people approached on the street gave away their mother's maiden name and pet's name; 98 percent their address; 96 percent the name of their first school; 92 percent their date of birth; and 92 percent their home phone number. Said researcher Claire Sellick: "One woman in the survey said 'I work for a bank and this information could be used to open a bank account.' I replied 'yes,' and she then proceeded to give me all her details."

Security Tip: Avoid Deals Too Good to Be True

This may be an obvious one, but it's still worth pointing out.
When searching for bargains on the Internet, be very skeptical of sites with which you don't have an established relationship and which you don't know from reputation. Don't assume that a site which shows up in a Google or other search listing has been vetted in any way.
Last week Panda Software exposed a series of scam web pages selling deeply-discounted airline tickets. The known sites have been disabled, but it is likely that others will pop up with the same or similar characteristics.
The scammers have put a lot of work into search-engine placement with the hope of attracting shoppers looking for the lowest price. The link takes them to a site that contains a form asking for the card name, number, expiration date and CVV (card verification value). After users provide the information, they're brought to a page that says an error has occurred and tells them how they can pay by postal money order. This means some victims could actually lose their credit card information and the value of the money order.
The fact that no e-mail is involved may disguise from some users the fact that this is actually a rather conventional phishing attack.