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Educate Yourself on Current Scams

Know the Signs. Stay One Step Ahead. 

 

Scams are always changing, but knowing what to look for can help you protect your money and personal information. Countybank’s helpful tips highlight common scams, explain the warning signs, and share practical steps you can take to help keep your accounts secure. 

Take a few minutes to learn how to spot suspicious activity and make informed decisions. A little awareness today can help you stay one step ahead of scammers. 

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Scams

Scams are constantly evolving, and fraudsters may use phone calls, text messages, emails, social media, or online marketplaces to try to gain your trust or personal information. Common scams can involve impersonating a trusted organization, creating a false sense of urgency, requesting unusual forms of payment, or asking you to provide sensitive account or security information. Staying informed can help you recognize the warning signs. If something feels unusual or you’re being pressured to act quickly, pause and verify the request through a trusted source before responding, sending money, or sharing information. 

Number Spoofing

A phone call can appear to come from a legitimate number, including a Countybank phone number, even when the caller is not actually from Countybank. This is known as caller ID spoofing. A caller may even know some information about you or your account. That does not necessarily mean the call is legitimate. Never provide your card number, Social Security number, password, or security codes to an unexpected caller. Be especially cautious if someone sends you a link and asks you to click it or asks you to provide a code sent to your phone. 

Protect Yourself From Gift Card Scams

Scammers may contact you by phone, text, email, or social media and create a sense of urgency to convince you to purchase gift cards and share the card information.   

Protect yourself by watching for these red flags:  

  • Scammer pressures you to act quickly.  

  • Scammer tells you which gift card to purchase. 

  • Scammer asks you to provide the card number or PIN.  

A legitimate business or government agency will not ask you to pay them with a gift card.  

Learn more about avoiding and reporting gift card scams.  

Protect Yourself From General Lottery Scams

Lottery and prize scams typically involve someone contacting you unexpectedly and claiming you’ve won money, a sweepstakes, or another valuable prize, then asking you to pay a fee, provide financial information, or send money before you can receive your winnings.  

To protect yourself:  

  • Be cautious of unexpected prize notifications. 

  • Never pay to collect a prize. 

  • Avoid sharing personal or banking information with someone you don’t know or haven’t independently verified.  

If you believe you’ve fallen victim to a lottery or prize scam, stop communicating with the scammer, and contact your financial institution immediately if you sent money or shared account information.  

Lottery Scam Education 

Protect Yourself From Romance Scams

Romance scams occur when someone creates a fake identity or builds an online relationship to gain your trust and eventually asks for money or financial assistance. Requests may involve an emergency, travel expenses, medical bills, investments, or another urgent situation.  

Protect yourself by:  

  • Being cautious when communicating with people you’ve only met online. 

  • Take time to verify who they are. 

  • Never send money or share sensitive financial information because of pressure or an emotional request.   

If you believe you’ve been targeted by a romance scam, stop communicating with the individual, and contact your financial institution promptly if money or account information was involved.  

Protect Yourself From Reward Scams

Reward scams occur when someone contacts you claiming you’ve earned a reward, cash back, loyalty points, special offer, or other benefit and asks you to provide personal or financial information, click a link, make a payment, or take another action to claim it.  

To protect yourself:  

  • Be cautious of unexpected reward offers 

  • Avoid clicking unfamiliar links 

  • Verify the offer directly with the company through its official website, app, or a trusted phone number before providing any information.  

If you believe you’ve fallen victim to a reward scam, stop communicating with the scammer, change any passwords that may have been compromised, and contact your financial institution promptly if you shared account information or sent money.  

Protect Yourself From Phishing and Social Engineering

Phishing and social engineering scams are designed to trick you into sharing personal or financial information, clicking a harmful link, sending money, or giving someone access to an account. Scammers may contact you by email, text, phone, or social media and may impersonate a bank, business, government agency, coworker, friend, or other trusted source to make their request seem legitimate. To protect yourself, be cautious of unexpected messages, urgent requests, unfamiliar links or attachments, and anyone asking for passwords, account information, or security codes. When in doubt, pause and verify the request using contact information you already trust rather than information provided in the message. If you believe you’ve fallen victim to a phishing or social engineering scam, stop communicating with the scammer, change passwords that may have been compromised, contact your financial institution promptly if financial or account information was involved, and report the incident to the appropriate organization or authority. 

Learn more about phishing and social engineering.  

Protect Yourself From Gift Card Scams

sometimes in exchange for payment or as part of what appears to be a job, relationship, or business opportunity. To protect yourself, be cautious of anyone who asks you to use your personal bank account to move money, send funds to another person, or keep a portion of a transaction as payment, especially if you do not know the source of the money. If you believe you’ve been involved in a money mule scam, stop transferring money and communicating with the individual, contact your financial institution promptly to report what happened, and report the situation to law enforcement or the Federal Trade Commission. Acting quickly may help protect your accounts and prevent additional fraudulent transactions. 

Learn more about money mules.  

Important Reminders

Countybank fraud services will only ask about potential fraudulent activities. They will not ask customers for the following information:

  • Card number
  • Social security number
  • Password
  • Codes that have been texted to a mobile device

When in doubt, contact Countybank directly using one of the following phone numbers.

Countybank Customer Service

864-942-1524
800-726-8689

Additional Resources

Phishing Scams FAQs 

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How does phishing work?

The most common form of phishing is by email. Pretending to be from a legitimate retailer, bank, or government agency, the sender asks to "confirm" your personal information for some made-up reason. Typically, the email contains a link to a phony website that looks just like the real thing. You enter your personal information on the Web site — and send it into the hands of identity thieves. 

Phishers also use the phone to hunt for victims' personal information. Some pose as employers and call or send emails to people who have listed themselves on job search websites. 

Malicious Number Spoofing

Fraudulent phone calls can also come from what appear to be a legitimate phone numbers (i.e., caller ID shows an actual Countybank phone number, but the call is not from Countybank). In some cases the caller may already have the last 4 digits of your card number. Always keep the important reminders listed above in mind, and do not provide personal information such as your card number, social security number, password, or codes. Be wary if the caller texts you information and asks you to click on a link or provide a code.

How can you tell if the person or company who contacted you is legitimate or a con artist?

  • Be suspicious if someone contacts you unexpectedly and asks for your personal information. It's a warning sign that something is "phishy." Legitimate companies and agencies don't operate that way.
  • Don't click on links in emails that ask you to provide personal information. To check whether an email or call is really from the company or agency, contact it directly by phone or online. If you don't have the telephone number, get it from the phone book, directory assistance, or the Internet. Use a search engine to find the official website.
  • Job seekers should also verify the person's identity before providing personal information to someone claiming to be a prospective employer. 

What should you do if you got hooked by a phishing scam?

  • If you provided account numbers, PINs, or passwords to a phisher, notify the companies with which you have those accounts immediately.
  • Put a "fraud alert" on your files at the credit reporting bureaus. For information about how to do that and other advice for ID theft victims, contact the Federal Trade Commission's ID Theft Clearinghouse online or toll-free, (877) 438-4338. The TDD number is (202) 326-2502.
  • Even if you didn't get hooked, you should report phishing to the company or agency that was being impersonated to the National Consumers League's National Fraud Information Center at fraud.org or toll-free at (800) 876-7060. The TDD number is (202) 835-0778.
  • Remember, security tools such as PIN numbers and passwords help keep your transactions safe. Keep them private.

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