Trusted Contact
Consider adding a Trusted Contact to protect your money. Assigning a trusted contact, a family member or close friend, can help you prevent fraud and scams without giving up control of your finances. Contact us for further information or complete the following form and deliver it to us. Trusted Contact Authorization Form
Protect Yourself from Money Mule Scams
BEWARE if people you’ve met over the phone or online ask you to accept money from strangers and send it to someone else. They could be recruiting you to help fund illegal activities. A Money Mule fraudster may ask you to move money, open a bank or cryptocurrency account or receive packages.
Love is Blind – Know the Risks – Beware of Online Romance Scams
You meet someone special on a dating website or app. Soon they want to email, call, or message you off the platform. They say it’s true love, BUT soon they will make up a story and ask you for money. Bottom line: NEVER SEND MONEY OR GIFTS TO A SWEETHEART YOU HAVEN’T MET IN PERSON! If you think it’s a scam, report it to the FTC at ReportFRaud.ftc.gov.
Five Ways to Help Protect Your Identity
As unique as we each are, we all look the same to identity thieves: like good Targets! To them, it’s all about our Social Security numbers, birth dates, account login credentials, and other personal information. DO NOT SHARE your Personal Identifying Information or your login credentials with ANYONE! Visit IdentityTheft.gov, the federal government’s one-stop resource to help you report and recover from identity theft.
FINANCIAL ELDER ABUSE and THE MOST COMMON SENIOR SCAMS
Seniors are especially vulnerable to financial theft or scams because most of them are on a fixed income. Elder theft can involve the theft of an older adult’s assets, funds, or income by a trusted person or family member. Scams can involve the transfer of money to a stranger or imposter for a promised benefit. In South Dakota, report Elder Abuse at 605.773.3656 or at the National Elder Fraud Hotline at 833-372-8311. Click here to view Elder Fraud Brochure.
Fraud Video by NCUA Office of Consumer Protection
This is a great video to learn about several different types of fraud.