Fraud Prevention

At United Midwest Savings Bank, keeping your personal information secure is our priority. Each year scam artists and identity thieves steal billions of dollars from unsuspecting consumers. We’ve taken proactive steps to ensure your security online, on our mobile app and within our offices by using secure technology. Scams are constantly changing so we continually work to find ways to protect you, but there are also ways you can protect yourself by knowing what to look out for.

How you can protect yourself:

Steps to minimize your risk of fraud and theft.

Never reply to emails, phone calls, or text messages that request your personal information.

United Midwest Savings Bank will never contact you by phone or email to ask for your account numbers, PIN numbers, or any other confidential information. We only ask you for confidential information to verify your identity when you initiate contact with us. To contact us online, type UMWSB.com into your Internet browser. To contact us by phone, dial one of the toll-free or local numbers listed on our website or in your account statement.

Make a list of the contents of your wallet.

Make a list of every ATM or debit card, credit card, driver’s license number and other forms of ID you carry in your wallet or purse. Keep the list in a safe place at home and update it regularly. You will need this list if your wallet or purse is ever lost or stolen. Never carry your Social Security Number in your wallet or purse. Also, never put any paper onto which you’ve jotted down PINs, passwords, or login information in your wallet or purse.

Go paperless! And when you can't, keep an eye on your mail.

Sign up for free e-statements and electronic bill pay. Go to UMWSB.com or your local branch. You can sign up for e-statements for most other credit cards, utility payments, mortgage payments, etc. Changes in the mail you receive may be an indication of fraud or ID theft. Missing bills or statements may indicate someone is tampering with your mail or your identity. To prevent mail fraud: 1. Go paperless for your banking needs. 2. If you will be away from home for 3 - 30 days, sign up for “Hold Mail Service.” The Post Office has a forwarding service if you will be gone more than 30 days. 3. Call the U.S. Postal Service at 800-275-8777 or submit a “Mail Hold” request online. https://holdmail.usps.com

Monitor your paper statement, bills, and online accounts.

Check the transactions listed on your bank statements, credit card bills, utility bills, and online accounts regularly for unauthorized transactions. If you spot something suspicious, report it immediately.

Only do business with companies you know and trust.

When making online transactions, be sure the website uses secure encryption. To tell if a website is secure, the URL will likely start with https:// and it will often have a lock symbol next to the URL.

Protect yourself with up-to-date anti-virus software.

Anti-virus software protects your computer from malicious software, also known as “malware”. Sometimes hackers will offer anti-virus software in a pop-up window that turns out to be malware when you click it. NEVER click on a pop-up offing anti-virus software! Instead, go directly to the website of a reputable vendor to get your anti-virus software instead.

Be cautious when sharing a computer.

If you use a shared computer – such as a library or lab computer – or share a computer with roommates, log out and clear cookies after every computer session.

Password protect all of your electronics.

Enable the password feature on your cellphone, laptop, Kindle, iPad, or any electronic devices that contain personal information about you – including, phone numbers, banking information – anything you don’t want in the hands of strangers. If your password-protected device is lost or stolen, your personal information is then not immediately accessible to others. Additionally, most devices have “remote wipe” capability that allows you to erase addresses, phone numbers, emails, photos and other sensitive content on a lost or stolen phone. Wiping a lost or stolen phone restores the device it to its factory settings. Refer to the manufacturer’s website to learn specifics for your device.

Phone scams are on the rise

With so much attention on different types of fraud found online today, many might believe that phone scams are no longer much of an issue. That's exactly what scammers are counting on.

What is the "Grandparent Scam?"

One of the latest phone scams is referred to as “The Grandparent Scam.” Beware if you receive an urgent phone call from someone claiming to be a family member. In this particular scam, the caller pretends to be a grandchild in trouble—an accident, in the hospital, in jail or possibly in a foreign country. The caller seems to provide just enough detail and the voice so familiar that the entire situation is very convincing.

Sometimes the caller will try to make the situation even more realistic by providing the “grandparent” with a number to call a “reliable” third party number they provide to “explain everything.” They say this number is for a person of authority such as a police officer, attorney, or doctor. The key element of the scam is the caller then asks for money to be sent or wired and “don’t tell Mom or Dad.”

Tips to prevent phone scams

While the "Grandparent Scam" has been around for years, its prevalence is on the rise again. Here are a few tips:

Victims of this scam can be chosen randomly or carefully selected. Sometimes the scammers buy lists with very specific information. They might also pour through social media sites for information or hack into email accounts. Be careful what you post and use extra caution with your email—such as using multi-factor authorization to log in.
If you receive one of these phone calls, the first thing to do is not panic! Try to ask very specific questions that only a family member would know. Get off the phone to call your grandchild or other family members with the number(s) you already have for them to verify the situation. DO NOT call any number the scammer may give to you. The minute money is requested, this should be a red flag about the situation.

If you think you might be a victim of fraud, a phone scam or ID theft

To learn more on how to recover from identity theft and fraud, visit the FTC’s Identity Theft Consumer Information page: https://consumer.ftc.gov/features/identity-theft

If you are the victim of a scam, contact local law enforcement and report it to the FTC website ftc.gov/complaint or by calling 1-877-FTC-HELP. For more information about fraud and scams, AARP provides helpful tips and advice at https://www.aarp.org/money/scams-fraud/.