In our blog post earlier this week we touched on keeping yourself safe when online shopping. We’re still on the topic of cyber security, but today we’ll focus on identifying and avoiding scams hidden on websites, in emails and even in text messages. 

Be sure you play it smart online and with suspicious texts to your phone.

Cyber criminals are always trying to up their game when it comes to getting your information, and Americans lost over $10 million last year to online crimes. Here’s how to make sure you don’t lose a cent.

Website Safety

Everything you search and click on is cataloged, and marketers use this information to show you ads for things you might be interested in. Unfortunately, criminals can do this as well. If you go to a website searching for something in particular, be cautious about the ads you see. Some are legitimate, but others aren’t.

Be cautious when clicking ads. You can hover over the ad so the web address you’ll be taken to by clicking will either pop-up next to your cursor or will appear in the bottom left corner of the browser window. This is an easy way to see if the ad is valid or not.

Email Safety

We’ve covered this topic before, but here’s a little refresher:

·        Check the email address of the sender. If you don’t recognize or the name of the sender and the address don’t match up, it could be a scammer

·        Obvious typos in the body of the message are also a huge red flag

·        Hover over links in the message. If they take you to an address that has nothing to do with the message or the sender, DON’T CLICK THEM!

Almost all companies have policies not to email customers asking for personal or financial information. If you receive a suspicious email, go here to file a complaint, then delete the email immediately.

Phone Safety

You’ve most likely heard about harassing calls from people saying they are from your bank asking for personal information over the phone. However, criminals are now sending texts with links in them posing as stores like Wal-Mart. All it takes for them to have your personal information is selecting the link. If you get one of these texts, delete it immediately.

There will always be those that try to use technology to steal from others. However, acting slowly and taking a little extra time to examine an ad, email or text closely can prevent the unthinkable from happening.

If you ever receive a suspicious communication from someone claiming to be from Lincoln Savings Bank, please call us immediately to check. Your financial safety is of our utmost concern, and we will do everything we can to help keep your information private.