Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers is warning residents to be aware of bank scams because they are on the rise. The Federal Trade Commission has reported a tenfold increase in bank scams in the last three years.
Scams usually begin as fake emails or text messages from a legitimate-sounding bank. The messages may give you a security warning or fraud alert that sounds like a time-sensitive emergency. The AG’s office says if you respond by opening the email or clicking on the link, you may be connected to a fake website or fake bank representative.
The scammers will ask you for personal information, account numbers, passwords, or PINs. Once a scammer has obtained this information, they would have access to steal your money from your account or impersonate you for other financial transactions.
To protect yourself, Hilgers says know that your bank will never ask you to provide or confirm personal details or confidential information via text or email. Look for red flags like strange formatting, typos, incorrect grammar or spelling and do not respond to any message claiming to be from a bank that you don’t use.