Special Alerts

Alert: 7/22/10:
NACHA—The Electronic Payments Association said it has received reports that individuals and companies have received a fraudulent e-mail that has the appearance of having been sent from NACHA. The subject line of the e-mail states: "Unauthorized ACH Transaction." The e-mail includes a link that redirects the individual to a fraudulent website and contains a link that is almost certainly an executable virus with malware. NACHA noted that it does not send communications to individuals or organizations about individual ACH transactions that they originate or receive. Read more from NACHA.

Alert: 6/4/10:
The City of Duluth is warning debit, credit, and ATM card holders, many are being targeted by an automated dialer generated call claiming to be from a financial institution, not necessarily their own.

The call states that their account is about to be deactivated, canceled, frozen, or locked. Card holders are then instructed to reactivate the account. They are instructed to press the 1 key and enter their card number, expiration date, Personal Identification Number (PIN) and three digit card security code.

Police would like to remind citizens to never give out account or card number, expiration date, PIN, security code, or any other personal information to anyone who initiates a call to you.

Contact your financial institution using a trusted phone number if you have to verify if there is a problem with your account.

Alert: 5/15/10:
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) recently released a warning on its website to all financial institutions that a fraudulent email with the subject line, "Just for your time" has been sent to many bank customers as part of a new phishing scam. The email appears to be from the FDIC, with logos and verbiage that might suggest that the email is legitimate.

The FDIC urges banks to educate their customers of the following indications that they have received this fraudulent email:

The subject line states, "Just for your time."
The body of the email asks recipients to take a "quick and easy five questions survey."
The email offers a cash incentive, stating that individuals who take the survey will be credited $50.00 to their accounts.
Personal information (e.g., name, account numbers, and other confidential information) is solicited.
A fraudulent link to the survey is provided.

To protect customers as well as their financial assets and personal information, banks should heed this warning and educate their customers on the proper techniques for detecting, preventing and reporting suspected instances of this type of fraudulent behavior. The expertise of an accredited banking training provider can also be used to educate employees and customers alike about what a legitimate email from a regulatory agency looks like in comparison to a fraudulent one.

Alert: 5/01/10:
The 2010 federal census is in full bloom. Questionnaires are on the way to every known household in the country. However, US-CERT has already posted an alert reminding its subscribers of the likelihood that scammers will seize the opportunity to send emails claiming to be from the Census Bureau soliciting confidential information or laced with links to malware infections. The Bureau has clearly stated that it will not use the Internet for its 2010 collection of census data.

Alert: 12/3/09:
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) is reminding financial institutions, businesses and consumers that fraudulent correspondence claiming to be from the FDIC continues to be mailed, faxed and e-mailed in the United States and other countries. The correspondence uses various techniques to gain the trust of recipients in hopes they will provide sensitive personal information, including bank account numbers, that can be used to steal money and other assets. Recipients should NOT, under any circumstances, respond to the fraudulent requests. Institutions also are encouraged to inform customers that fraud artists may use the names of the FDIC and other government agencies and to take appropriate precautions.

The criminals, knowing that people trust the FDIC name, have duplicated the official logo and seal in fraudulent letters, forms, certificates and other correspondence. Recent examples have included invoices, bills, transfer forms, guarantees, endorsements, and confirmations of stock and investment purchases. In some cases, recipients were asked to complete fraudulent forms and return them by fax or e-mail. In other cases, recipients were asked to remit funds via check or wire transfer service.

The FDIC rarely sends unsolicited bills or other similar documents to financial institutions, businesses and consumers. In particular, the FDIC does not send unsolicited correspondence asking for sensitive personal information, including bank account information. Anyone receiving such correspondence should contact the FDIC immediately by calling toll-free at 1-877-ASK-FDIC (1-877-275-3342) or by e-mailing to alert@fdic.gov. Do not use contact information listed for the FDIC in the correspondence because it is likely to be falsified.

Information about counterfeit items, cyber-fraud incidents and other fraudulent activity may be forwarded to the FDIC's Cyber-Fraud and Financial Crimes Section, 550 17th Street, N.W., Room F-3054, Washington, D.C. 20429, or transmitted electronically to alert@fdic.gov. Questions related to fraudulent correspondence, deposit insurance or consumer issues should be submitted to the FDIC using an online form that can be accessed at http://www2.fdic.gov/starsmail/index.asp.

Alert: 12/3/09:
A Scam has targeting area cell phone numbers with an automated message asking call recipients to verify their banking information. If you entered any of your Lake Bank Banking information as part of an automated call plaese call us immediately at 218-834-2111, or 218-226-4959.

Alert: 10/27/09:
A phishing email is currently circulating that appears to be from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). The email includes a link that will forward users to a fraudulent website that will request personal information and attempt to infect the user’s machine with viruses.

Attack Details: The email appears to be from “consumeralerts@fdic.gov” and the subject of the email states “you need to check your Bank Deposit Insurance Coverage”. The email also includes a link and asks users to visit the link and verify personal information. When the link is clicked, the user is forwarded to a page similar to an FDIC page, and the page requests personal information. To make matters worse, when the link is clicked, the page also automatically downloads at least two malicious executables. FDIC Advisory

Alert:3/17/09:
We just received an alert about a new e-mail based scam. The scam looks legitimate and can be very deceiving. Customers are falsely notified by e-mail that their Visa cards may have been compromised due to fraudulent activity. It provides official-looking info about Visa’s commitment to fighting fraud, along with a false “Case ID Number”. It also directs cardholders to verify their identity through the Web in order to continue using online services. Below is an example:

Dear Visa Cardholder, Continuous Monitoring is an integral part of Visa’s multiple layers of security. In addition, to other fraud monitoring tools, we can often spot fraud based upon transactions on the card that are outside of cardholders typical purchasing pattern. This allows us to spot fraudulent activity as quickly as possible and acts as an early-warning system to identify fraudulent activity. During a recent checkout we detected suspicious activity and your Visa card may have been compromised. Fraudulent activity made it necessary to limit your card for online services. Your Case ID Number is: DD7Q8QQ9EDR7. Conform to our security requirements and in order to continue online services with your card, we must validate your identity.

Please click here to verity your identity.

Visa takes online security very seriously so that you can shop safely on the Internet. As part of our commitment to fighting fraud we have the right to investigate, prevent, or take action regarding illegal activities, suspected, fraud, situations involving potential threats to the physical safety of any person, or violations of the terms and conditions for using Visa.

Sincerely,
Visa Customer Service

Please remember that The Lake Bank, Visa, or MasterCard will never ask you to verify personal information over the telephone or via email. If you receive an email like the one shown above or have any questions, please call us at 218-834-2111.

2/25/09: We’ve been alerted by our debit card company that two known scams have resurfaced in the past week.

Phishing Alert:2/24/09: Phishing Alert: We have been notified of a recent scam in which customers and non-customers of The Lake Bank are being sent an email asking to update their personal information via a link that will take the user to a site that is not The Lake Bank’s site.

Please know that The Lake Bank will never send you an email asking for your personal information. If you receive an email asking you to provide personal and/or sensitive information, do not click on any link and do not send the information. Even if the website and/or email appear genuine – do not continue. If you have any questions please call us at (218) 834-2111.

THE FRAUDULENT PHISHING EMAIL TEXT IS SIMILAR TO THE FOLLOWING:

Dear NetTeller Banking Customer:
This letter is addressed to you as your Bank provides NetTeller Banking Service. Please notice that a new version of a NetTeller Confirmation Form has been released. This form synchronizes Customers’ data with its account entries on a central NetTeller banking server. Each NetTeller Banking user is required to fill in the NetTeller Confirmation Form. Please, click the link below to access the NetTeller Confirmation Form. In order to fill in the form correctly, please follow the instructions on the website.

(FRAUDULENT LINK)

NetTeller apologizes for the inconveniences caused to you, and is very grateful for your cooperation. NetTeller Banking

Scam #1
The first scam begins with the fraudster making a telephone call claiming to be from MasterCard of Visa and wanting to verify unusual purchases on an account. Since there were really no purchases made, the card holder will state the transactions are not valid and is then told by the scam artist that a credit will be issued to his or her account.

The caller will then say he or she needs to confirm that the cardholder has possession of the card, so he or she will ask for the three digit code on a signature panel of the card. For Visa cards, this code is the Card Verification Value 2 (CVV2), and for MasterCard it is the Card Validation Code 2 (CVV2).

If the cardholder provides that code, the caller will indicate the code verifies the card is in the cardholder’s possession and hangs up. The fraudster now has that three-digit code in conjunction with the card number and expiration date they already know. The person can now begin making fraudulent Internet or telephone purchases.

Typically, if you receive a call claiming to be from MasterCard, the next day you may receive one claiming to be from Visa or visa versa.

Scam #2
Afraudster posing as a representative from MasterCard or Visa asks cardholders for account information to confirm a prize they have supposedly won. The caller may already have some information about the cardholder, such as name, card number, and card expiration date.

The caller asks questions to get the three-digit code for Visa or MasterCard (CVV2) number. Once he or she has this information, the scam artist can shop online or by telephone.

The Lake Bank has also been alerted that the “Canadian Granny Scam” has struck in our area.
In this scam, crooks pose as grandchildren to get private information and money out of senior citizens.
The crook calls a senior citizen and pretends to be a grandchild seeking help.
"Grandma?" the scammer asks, waiting to see how she will respond.
"Joey?" replies grandma, trying to figure out who's calling.
That's good enough for the crook, who now poses as "Joey" to gain granny's trust. The crook tells granny that he went to Canada...
...to attend a wedding
...to the lake with friends
...for a job interview.
...or any number of other reasons.
The crook, still posing as "Joey," claims that he has...
...been in an auto accident and needs cash to get home.
...been arrested and needs bail money.
...been hospitalized and needs emergency money.
...or any hard luck story that might persuade granny to send cash.
The crook tells granny to wire money to him through Western Union. Western Union does not accept checks, so granny goes to the bank to make a withdrawal. (Granny could also try to wire directly out of her bank.) Convinced that her grandson needs help, Granny wires the money as requested. "Joey" stressed to Granny that it was an emergency, so when she calls his parents to check with them and gets their answering machine she doesn't waste any more time trying to track them down. By the time granny catches up to Joey and finds out he was never in Canada, the money is gone and the crook is scamming another senior citizen.

12/1/08 - Possible ATM/Debit Card Vishing Attack: The Lake Bank has been alerted by Shazam, our debit/ATM card servicer, that a vishing fraud attack is targeting Shazam’s participating financial institutions. The attack consists of an automated telephone call in which a prerecorded voice advises the recipient that the call is on behalf of Shazam and that the cardholder must “reactivate” his or her card by entering information immediately. These calls are fraudulent and have not been authorized by Shazam.

If you receive one of these automated calls DO NOT enter any card information. Please call the bank immediately at 218-834-2111 or 218-226-4959.

"Vishing" is the use of fraudulent telephone calls using pirated recordings of telephone services from well-known financial institutions. The object is to trick you into believing that your bank is calling to confirm personal information such as account numbers, PINS and passwords. Your answers are recorded and the information is then used for identity theft. New technology can also allow the thief to display your bank or card company's information on your caller ID, which may further trick you into trusting them.

If you get a telephone call from someone who says they are with your bank and/or credit company and they ask you to provide or confirm any personal information that the bank should already have:

Do NOT answer any questions.
Hang up immediately.
Call your bank or credit company directly (using a phone number on your statement or in the phone book) and tell them what happened.

FDIC deposit insurance set permanently at $250,000 per depositor. The Lake Bank is also participating in the FDIC's Transaction Account Guarantee Program. Under that program, through December 31, 2010, all noninterest-bearing transaction accounts are fully guaranteed by the FDIC for the entire amount in the account. Coverage under the Transaction Account Guarantee Program is in addition to and separate from the coverage available under the FDIC's general deposit insurance rules. Investment Checking accounts earn a rate higher than allowed under this program, therefore, are not guaranteed above normal FDIC insurance limits.