A-K Valley Federal Credit Union Products that will Help You Protect Your Identity
Your secure Identity is a priority at A-K Valley Federal Credit Union. We provide you with a variety of products and services that can help keep your identity yours.
- Direct Deposit - Direct deposit is a free service that allows you to have your net pay, retirement and/or government issued checks electronically transferred into your credit union account every pay period. No worry about when you'll make it to the credit union before it closes, no long lines and your funds are available IMMEDIATELY!
- Home Banking - Save gas by eliminating Branch visits. You can check your balances, transfers funds and make credit card/loan payments.
- Bill Payment - You don't have to worry about mail theft, save on postage and check costs. Not to mention the time you'll save by not having to write out a check every month.
- Check your Credit Report - Check your credit report at freecreditreport.com.
- A subscription service that monitors changes in your credit report every business day. If anything changes you'll get an email alert so that you may investigate the change.
Security Tips
- At home keep personal information safe, especially if you have roommates or are having any work done in your home. Don't keep Personal Identification Numbers (PIN's) near your checkbook, ATM card, or debit card.
- Shred any papers with confidential information before you throw them out - even the junk mail. Anything with an account number can be used in identity theft. This includes prescreened credit card offers, receipts, canceled checks, credit union statements, expired charge cards, doctors' bills, and insurance documents.
- Don't give out any confidential information - such as your credit card number, social security number, or PIN number unless you initiated the contact with a business. Be careful of unexpected emails that look as if they are from a legitimate company asking you to enter some information at a linked website; sometimes phony websites can look real.
- Check your credit union and credit card statements regularly to make sure there is no unexplained activity.
- Consider canceling credit cards you haven't used in a long time.
- Keep track of when your bills usually arrive. If a bill does not arrive on time, call the company to make sure no changes have been made to your account. Often, identity thieves will change the address of a bill so that it will take you longer to figure out the scam.
- Carefully check your credit reports regularly. Your credit reports are important tools for limiting the amount of damage a thief can cause.
- When choosing a Personal Identification Number (PIN) for your ATM or for other purposes, use one that is hard to guess. Avoid the last four digits of your social security number, your mother's maiden name, birth dates, names of pets or even the name of your hometown baseball team. Try to mix numbers, letters and symbols.
- Make it harder for thieves to use your accounts. Put passwords on credit card, credit union, and phone accounts. Get credit cards with your picture on them. Call the companies that issue the accounts and find out what security options they offer.
- Use only secure sites when making online purchases. Secure pages begin with "https."
- Don't print your social security number on your checks.
- Be suspicious of any email or phone calls with urgent request for personal financial information. Never give out financial information such as checking and credit card numbers, or your Social Security number, unless you know the person or organization you're dealing with, even someone claiming to be from your credit union or bank.
- Don't use the links in an email to get to any web page and do not reply to the email.
- Report lost or stolen checks immediately. Always review new deliveries of checks to make sure none were stolen in transit.
- Notify your credit union, bank or credit card issuer immediately if you discover any erroneous or suspicious transactions on your statements.
Defend against ID Theft as soon as you suspect it.
- Place a "Fraud Alert" on your credit reports, and review the reports carfully. The alert tells creditiors to follow certain procedures before they open new accounts in your name or make changes to your existing accounts. The Three nationwide consumer reporting companies have toll-free numbers for placing an initial 90-day fraud alert; a call to one of these compaines(Equifax, Experian,or TransUnion) is sufficient. Placing a fraud alert entitles you to free copies of your credit reports. Look for inquireies from companies you haven't contacted, accounts you didn't open, and debts on your accounts that you can't explain.
- Close Accounts. Close any accounts that have been tampered with or established fraudulently.
♦ Call the security or fraud departments of each company where an account was opened or changed without your okay. Follow up in writing, with copies of supporting documents.
♦ Use the ID Theft Affidavit at ftc.gov/idtheft to support your written statement.
♦ Ask for Verification that the disputed account has been closed and the fraudulent debits discharged.
♦ Keep copies of documents and records of your conversations about the theft.
- File a police report. File a report with law enforcement officials to help you with creditors who may want proof of the crime.
- Report the theft to the Federal Trade Commission. Your report helps law enforcement officials across the country in their investigations.
Helpful Links
Equifax US Postal Inspection Service
PO Box 740241 475 L'Enfant Plaza SW
Atlanta, GA 30374 Washington, DC 20260
Report Fraud: 800-525-6285 Social Security Fraud Hot Line: 800-372-8347
Order a Credit Report: 800-685-1111
Experian Identity Theft Resource Center
PO Box 2002 PO Box 26833
Allen, TX 75013 San Diego, CA 92196
Report Fraud and 858-693-7935
Order a Credit Report: 888-EXPERIAN or 888-397-3742
TransUnion Privacy Rights Clearinghouse
PO Box 1000 3100 5th Ave, Suite B
Chester, PA 19022 San Diego, CA 92103
Report Fraud: 800-680-7289 619-298-3396
Order Credit Report: 800-916-8800
Federal Trade Commission Direct Marketing Association
Identity Theft Clearinghouse Mail Preference Service
600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW PO Box 643
Washington, DC 20580 Carmel, NY 10512
Report Fraud: 877- ID Theft (438-4338)
Social Security Administration
PO Box 17768
Baltimore MD 21235
Social Security Fraud Hot Line: 800-269-0271
For information on the latest identity theft scams and more information on identity theft, check out these websites:
http://ftc.gov/
http://www.ic3.gov/
http://www.consumer.gov/idtheft/
http://www.fraudtech.bizland.com/
http://www.nabihq.org/en-us/cons_and_scams/
http://www.snopes.com/
Debit Cards Too Risky for Online Shopping?
MADISON, Wis. (12/10/07)--Use the wrong payment method or the wrong piece of plastic when shopping online and someone you don't know could zero out your checking account balance in a matter of minutes. Remember some simple cyber rules to avoid becoming a statistic (Credit Union National Association center for personal finance).
It's a fact: The safest form of payment online is a credit card, although there still are risks, particularly if you don't know the reputation of the seller. But if you're a die-hard debit card user and insist on using it for online purchases, you're putting yourself at much greater risk than if you use a credit card for those same purchases.
Why? Because debit cards are regulated by the Electronic Funds Transfer Act, which is weaker than the law that regulates credit cards. What you need to remember has to do with liability:
- Credit card liability. Federal law protects you so your liability is no more than $50 (per card) if a crook uses your card fraudulently before you report the theft. Report the theft before the crook uses your card, and your liability is zero. Even if you're subject to the $50 liability, some issuers may waive that amount.
- Debit card liability. Here's where it gets sticky. If you report the theft within two business days, your liability is limited to $50, and again, some issuers may waive that amount. However, after two business days, your liability jumps to $500. And if you don't report the loss or theft within 60 days of receiving your statement, your liability is unlimited.
To further compound the problem, remember that debit card purchases are deducted immediately from your account. If the debit charges are unauthorized or incorrect--such as double billing--they may be harder to recover; to get your money back, you'll need to work it out with the merchant, which may be much more difficult for online transactions.
On the other hand, if you file a dispute over fraudulent charges made on your credit card, the card issuer's money is on the line--not yours--and it's up to the issuer to get the money from the merchant.
Bottom line: Don't use a debit card for online purchases. Use a credit card on sites of reputable sellers. And follow more simple advice from the Federal Trade Commission:
- Get the seller's phone number in case you have questions or problems.
- Type the seller's name in your search engine to see if there are unfavorable reviews.
- Read the website's privacy policy to see how your personal information will be used.
- Understand the return policies.
- When entering payment information, make sure the http:// changes to https:// in the site's URL address line.
- Don't shop online unless your computer has antivirus and antispyware software, and a firewall.
