The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) has received numerous reports of a fraudulent e-mail that has the appearance of being sent from the FDIC. For more information you can visit the FDICs website.

The subject line of the e-mails state, “you need to check your Bank Deposit Insurance Coverage.” The e-mail tells recipients that, “You have received this message because you are a holder of a FDIC-insured bank account. Recently FDIC has officially named the bank you have opened your account with as a failed bank, thus, taking control of its assets.” The e-mail then directs recipients to click on a link stating, “You need to visit the official FDIC website and perform the following steps to check your Deposit Insurance Coverage.”

This e-mail and associated Web site are fraudulent. Recipients should consider the intent of this e-mail as an attempt to collect personal or confidential information, or to load malicious software onto end users’ computers and should not click on the link provided.

The FDIC does not issue unsolicited e-mails to consumers. Financial institutions and consumers should NOT follow the link in the fraudulent e-mail.

Criminals often use names of organizations we all know to lure users into clicking links that may infect their computer. Users should always ask themselves if an email makes sense. If not, never click links or open attachments in the email. If suspicious, contact the agency directly to verify legitimacy.

US-CERT asks users to be vigilant during the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2010 Census campaign and to watch for potential census scams.

According to the U.S. Census 2010 website, they began delivery of the printed census forms to every resident in the United States on March 1, 2010. The only way to complete the census is by filling in the form using pen and ink; in some instances, census takers will be visiting households to complete the form face-to-face. It is important to understand that the U.S. Census Bureau will not, under any circumstances, be providing an online option to complete the 2010 census form.

US-CERT encourages all residents in the United States to take the following measures to protect themselves:

• Review available information about the 2010 U.S. Census on the website.
• Familiarize yourself with what information the U.S. Census Bureau is collecting on the census form.
• Do not follow unsolicited web links of attachments in email messages.
• Refer to the Recognizing and Avoiding Email Scams (pdf) document for more information on avoiding email scams.
• Refer to the Avoiding Social Engineering and Phishing Attacks document for more information on social engineering attacks.

WASHINGTON, Jan. 26 – The American Bankers Association has been alerted that someone or a group of individuals sending emails purporting to be from ABA are actually part of a scam commonly known as phishing. These con artists are sending emails asking people to click on a link for more information — a popular technique to get financial information from the email recipient.

Phishing for financial information has been a long-standing practice. However, criminals are increasingly phishing for access to corporate, small business and government accounts and using that access to withdraw large sums of money from those accounts. Clicking on the link could enable fraudsters to download malicious software on to victims’ computers and steal bank passwords and other account information.

The emails inform recipients that an “unauthorized transaction” has been charged to their account using their “bank card.” The amount of the transactions is typically between $3,000 and $7,000. ABA would never contact a consumer and ask for financial information.

ABA is working with law enforcement to identify the source of the emails and to disrupt them. ABA offers the following advice to consumers, business and government organizations:

• Never give out financial information in response to an unsolicited phone call, fax or email, no matter how official it may seem. If you are uncertain, call your financial institution or the organization that is purportedly contacting you using a phone number you know is safe.
• If you have already responded to this type of call or email by providing financial information, contact your financial institution immediately to protect your account;
• Be extremely cautious about clicking on links within unsolicited emails. When in doubt, contact the organization purportedly sending the email.
• Inform the ABA about fraudulent phone calls and emails that use ABA’s name by sending an email to alert@aba.com.

Phishing Alert!

We have been notified of a scam in which customers and non customers are receiving emails indicating their Online Services have been suspended.  The email then instructs the customer to click on a link which it states takes them straight to a site to reactive their account. This link is not a valid link and it actually directs you to a fraudulent site. You are advised not to provide personal information. If you have any questions feel free to contact our customer service department at 1-888-262-5456.

Here is a copy of the email customers are receiving.

From: Central National Bank [mailto:Onlinesecurity@centralnational.com]
Sent: Thursday, June 04, 2009 8:05 AM

Subject: Access Suspended