Safety and Security

CONSUMER

• How can someone steal your identity?
  • Break into your home.
  • Take your identification from your wallet or purse.
  • Intercept bills from your mailbox.
  • Go through your trash to find personal information.
  • Call you on the phone pretending to be from a bank or other credit grantor and get personal information.
  • Change your mailing address without you knowing it to receive your statements and bills.
  • Steal personal records from your employer.
  • Find unsecured internet sites containing personal information.
• What does the criminal do with your information?
  • Apply for credit cards/loans for themselves using your name.
  • Use their address as if it were yours to get your billing statements.
  • Buy merchandise using your credit card or credit card number.
  • Get phone and other utility service at their residence in your name.
• What steps can you take to help prevent identity theft?
  • Do not carry your Social Security card in your wallet. Only give out your SSN when absolutely necessary.
  • Protect your PIN. Watch out for “shoulder surfers.” Use your free hand to shield the keypad when using your debit card.
  • Collect mail promptly. Ask the post office to put your mail on hold when you are away from home for an extended period of time.
  • Pay attention to your billing cycles. If bills or statements are late, contact the sender.
  • Keep your receipts. Promptly compare receipts with account statements. Watch for unauthorized transactions.
  • Shred unwanted receipts, credit offers, account statements, and expired cards, to prevent dumpster divers getting your personal information.
  • Store personal information in a safe place at home and at work. Do not leave it lying around.
  • Do not respond to unsolicited requests for personal information in the mail, over the phone or online.
  • Ensure software installed on your home computer has proper security settings.
  • Check your credit report once a year. Check it more frequently if you suspect someone has gained access to your account information. ^*

  ^*Many states allow a free copy of your credit report from each of the three major credit reporting agencies.

• How do I order a copy of my credit report?

  To order a copy of your credit report, contact:

  Equifax
  800-685-1111
  www.equifax.com

  Experian
  888-397-3742
  www.experian.com

  TransUnion
  800-888-4213
  www.transunion.com

• How do you report identity theft or fraud?
  • Report it to your financial institution. Call the phone number on your account statement or on the back of your credit or debit card.
  • Report the fraud to your local police immediately. Keep a copy of the police report.
  • Contact the credit-reporting bureaus and ask them to place a fraud alert.
• What is "PHISHING"?

  Phishing scams are one of the fastest-growing forms of fraud. Phishing involves a false email message that uses a company’s website graphics and logos falsely. In order to steal your identity, fraudsters attempt to entice you to provide personal financial details; such as credit card numbers, usernames, passwords, or social security numbers.

• Security tips for your online information

  At SouthCrest Bank, we care about your financial well-being. SouthCrest Bank takes fraud seriously and proactively monitors your accounts at all times. Even with our controls, you should also monitor your account closely, as your knowledge of your accounts is the best defense. We are providing some tips to help you, in the event your information is ever lost, stolen or exposed.

  Depending on the information compromised, there are steps you can take to help protect yourself from identity theft. Regardless of what type of compromise occurs, you can leverage online and mobile banking to monitor your account activity regularly and report any suspicious activity immediately by calling SouthCrest Bank at 855-972-2265.

• Social Security Number
  • Monitor your credit reports, and check for any new accounts you do not recognize.
  • Obtain credit reports from all three bureaus.
    • Equifax
      800-685-1111
      www.equifax.com
    • Experian
      888-397-3742
      www.experian.com
    • TransUnion
      800-888-4213
      www.transunion.com
  • Consider placing a credit freeze on your profile. A credit freeze makes it harder for someone to obtain new accounts in your name. Be aware, however, that you will need to lift the freeze on your credit file should you want to open a new deposit account or if you seek any type of loan (including credit cards). Each of the three credit bureaus offers a way for you to place and lift credit freezes online.
• Online banking credentials
  • Login to your Online Banking account via a known, secure computer, and change your password.
  • Use a username and password that is unique only to SouthCrest Bank and that is not shared or similar to username and passwords used for any other service.
  • Use strong usernames and passwords and avoid the use of characters from your email, phone number or other personally identifiable information.
  • Monitor account activity to check for suspicious transactions/account changes.
• Bank account or debit/credit card information
  • Contact the issuing bank to cancel your debit card, place stop payment on checks, freeze your account(s) that have been compromised.
  • Call 855-972-2265 to report a lost or stolen SouthCrest Bank debit card.
  • Review your account history and recent transactions for any suspicious activity.
  • Update your card/bank account information as needed on applicable automatic payments/Bill Pay items.

  As part of SouthCrest Bank’s ongoing effort to secure your personal information, you may also find the following tips helpful:

  • Use online or mobile banking to monitor your account activity routinely and report any suspicious activity immediately.
  • Ensure your contact information (phone, email, address) is up to date.
  • Download and attach your debit card to SecurLOCK^™ Equip App to monitor, freeze, or update at any time.
• Report Fraud

  It is important to report any suspicious, unauthorized or fraudulent activity on your SouthCrest Bank accounts as soon as possible.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

• What is Online fraud?

  Fraudsters are known to use stolen usernames and passwords from one website to try to gain access to financial websites. With the increased use of mobile devices and cashless funds transfers, perpetrators of fraud have more complex and stealthy ways to take advantage of consumers and business owners. Protecting client accounts and information is a top priority for SouthCrest Bank. While we have extensive programs in place to safeguard information, we are most effective when we are able to coordinate and work together with our clients.

  One of the easiest ways you can help prevent online fraud is by using unique passwords for different online accounts — especially for bank accounts, whether here at SouthCrest Bank or elsewhere. Different passwords can help ensure that any compromise is limited to individual Web sites or accounts, as it is not uncommon for those committing fraud to use stolen passwords from one site or account across other online profiles.

• How do you protect yourself?

  We strongly recommend that your SouthCrest Bank online banking Username and Password are unique and exclusive to SouthCrest Bank. If they are not currently unique to your SouthCrest Bank account(s), we encourage you to change them as soon as possible.

  Clients who use the same Username and Passwords for multiple websites may have increased risk of being exposed to online fraud or unauthorized access to your financial accounts. Using different Usernames and Passwords can help ensure that any compromise is limited to individual sites or accounts. It is not uncommon for those committing fraud to use stolen log-in information for other websites another.

• What should you do if you see a transaction on your account that you did not authorize?

  If you notice any unauthorized transactions on your account, please contact us as soon. Please be prepared to identify which transactions are fraudulent.

• Email, text, and voicemail safety
  • Be wary of unsolicited emails or texts with links; do not click on links or respond in any way. These may contain harmful viruses.
  • Some tips for identifying suspicious emails and texts: look for misspellings, beware of urgent language in the subject line, and notice lack of details in the email signature (legitimate businesses provide accurate contact details).
• Wire fraud

  It is important to remember that wire transfers are an immediate form of payment; once a scammer has obtained the wired funds, the transfer cannot be reversed, even if it is fraudulent. If illegal activity is suspected, report the matter to local law enforcement agencies, SouthCrest Bank, and to the Federal Trade Commission at www.ftc.gov or 1-877-FTC-HELP.

• Protect your business
  • Make sure your company policies and procedures regarding wire transfers and other banking activities are understood and practiced.
  • Establish an employee awareness program with procedures for incoming and outgoing payments. Dual control is recommended.
    Make sure your employees know when a scam happens, how it was perpetrated, and motivate them to remain vigilant.