Security Updates

First Entertainment is determined to provide you with the tools and information to keep your finances safe and secure. Below are security alerts relating to identity theft, Internet fraud, phone scams and new security features that have been implemented at your credit union.

REMEMBER: Whenever possible, insist that merchants check your I.D. and NEVER give out your personal account information over the phone or Internet.

Recent Alerts:
03/26/08 – Phony Tax Returns
11/19/07 – Phishing Scam II
07/11/07 – Grant Scam
07/10/07 – Phishing Scam I
05/01/07 – Mortgage Scam

While occasionally the credit union will contact our members by phone, we do not typically solicit business this way. If you are ever in doubt of a communication’s validity, contact us directly at 888.800.3328.

Additional Information
ID Theft Tutorial
Online Security
Phishing, Fraud & You

PHONY TAX RETURNS 03/26/08

NEW YORK (3/26/08)--One of the most serious problems facing taxpayers has nothing to do with calculations or complicated forms. An increasing number of complaints involves a form of identity theft, and it's throwing taxpayer victims for a loop (ABC News March 17).

Although the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) received 20,782 complaints about tax refund fraud in 2007, the IRS is sure those numbers significantly understate the size of the problem because it's difficult to track (The Wall Street Journal March 12).

This form of ID theft occurs when a scam artist files a phony tax return--in your name, with your Social Security number and other personal information--in an attempt to collect a fraudulent refund.

In one case reported by The Wall Street Journal (March 12), a woman was notified by her bank that she had been rejected for a refund anticipation loan--yet she hadn't applied for one and hadn't even filed her tax returns yet. Another woman was asked by H&R Block Inc. to bring in some paperwork that she'd accidentally taken with her from its office two days earlier. After informing the agent that she hadn't been to the office and hadn't filed her taxes, she discovered that a crook had filed a tax return in her name and already pocketed a $4,005 instant loan.

In other cases, phony returns have been filed using children's Social Security numbers.

Take precautions to guard against tax refund ID theft:
o Check out tax preparers. Make sure you hand over sensitive information only to people you trust after checking credentials carefully.
o Choose passwords carefully. Don't use your birthday--it's on your tax form and easily can be lifted by crooks--or the word "password." Make sure all forms you print are password-protected.
o Download forms with caution. If you download tax forms from the IRS website or tax documents from your employer, create a strong password--a combination of numbers, symbols, and upper and lower case letters.
o Use caution with photocopiers. Some copiers store images of copies in memory. If so, personal information that's been copied may be compromised.
o Ensure e-mails are encrypted. If you send tax documents to your accountant, make sure the information you send is scrambled--or encrypted--to prevent others from gaining access to sensitive information.
o Use a secure mailbox. Mail your tax return from a secure location like a post office or a U.S. Postal Service collection box.
o Beware fake calls. Phony calls or e-mails have one goal: to get you to hand over personal information or financial data. Remember that the IRS will never call you or send unsolicited e-mail asking for personal information.
o Check your child's credit report. Go to idtheftcenter.org and type "Letter Form 120" in the search box. Scroll down to Letter Form 120 Requesting a Child's Credit Report. If the child has no credit report, breathe a sigh of relief, because that means a crook hasn't set up fraudulent accounts in the child's name.

Members have notified us of a fraudulent phishing email coming from "Credit Union." It is dated 10/31/07 and the subject is “Identity Theft Protection Program.” Although the email is concerned with fraudulent emails you may be receiving and is positioning itself as a way for you to protect your account, it is a fraudulent email itself! Here are some "warning signs" of the letter that show it is not authentic:

o It does not specify which credit union. If First Entertainment, or any credit union, sends you an email, we would always identify that it is from us.
o It is written to: "Dear Credit Union customer,". As we all know, you are not a customer, but a "member" of this Credit Union.
o It states that your "card account" has been deactivated until you call a phone number to activate the "Identity Theft Protection Program." It also provides a website address to go to for more information.
Anyone receiving the phish message should not click on the link or call the phone number and answer ANY questions, but instead should delete the message. Should you ever get any email solicitations that you're unsure of, please check with us before responding.

According to the Better Business Bureau, law enforcement and other agencies, a new type of online scam for grant money has surfaced. This scam appears to be another version of an "overpayment scam".

Victims are solicited online regarding grants that may be available to them for education, debt relief, low income subsidy, or any other type of "financial aid". Responding victims apply for their grant and are sent printed information along with a check, typically for $4,975.00. They are then directed to a website for instructions. The site instructs the victim to purchase a specific variety of stored value credit card (GREENDOT Reloadable/MoneyPak*) and load it with the grant broker's "commission". They are promised a second, larger check after the stored value card number is e-mailed to the broker. Of course, the card is quickly liquidated and the original check is later returned as counterfeit, or account closed.

The websites reportedly used in the scam are: www.jqbank.com, www.grantchecks.com, www.beverlyhillsgrants.com, and www.grantoutlet.com. The scammers move their operation to a new website when they start attracting too much scrutiny.

* GREENDOT Reloadable/Money Pak stored value credit cards are legitimate cards but are being used as part of this scam.

The National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) has informed us of another e-mail phishing expedition that uses a survey and reward as a ploy to obtain recipients' personal financial data.

The e-mail message arrives from "survey@ncua.gov" with a subject line: "You have won a 25 USD Reward Survey." The term, "25 USD" is a tipoff that the sender isn't familiar with typical reference to U.S. dollars. Addressed to "customer," the message says NCUA has chosen the recipient to compete a survey about the recipient's credit union. "We want to know how you feel about the service levels as well as the products and services your credit union provides to you," it says. It offers "25$" as a reward, saying it will take 48 hours to process. The message instructs the recipient to click on a link to the survey. Once in the link, it asks for account number and other information.

Anyone receiving the phish message should not click on the link or answer questions, but instead should delete the message.

Members have reported receiving phone calls from mortgage brokers soliciting Real Estate loans, and falsely claiming that the member's information was sold to the mortgage broker by First Entertainment. In some cases, even going so far as to claim to be employees of First Entertainment. Mortgage brokers have access to public information from the credit bureaus, including any loan inquiries. Using public phone directories, they make unsolicited calls to members, offering loans or refinancing of existing mortgages.

Should you receive any such call, please be aware that First Entertainment does not sell any member information to any third party. Protecting our members’ information is one of our top priorities.

PHISHING SCAM II 11/19/07

* It does not specify which credit union. If First Entertainment, or any credit union, sends you an email, we would always identify that it is from us.
* It is written to: "Dear Credit Union customer,". As we all know, you are not a customer, but a "member" of this Credit Union.
* It states that your "card account" has been deactivated until you call a phone number to activate the "Identity Theft Protection Program." It also provides a website address to go to for more information.

Anyone receiving the phish message should not click on the link or call the phone number and answer ANY questions, but instead should delete the message. Should you ever get any email solicitations that you're unsure of, please check with us before responding.

GRANT SCAM 07/11/07

According to the Better Business Bureau, law enforcement and other agencies, a new type of online scam for grant money has surfaced. This scam appears to be another version of an "overpayment scam".

* GREENDOT Reloadable/Money Pak stored value credit cards are legitimate cards but are being used as part of this scam.

PHISHING SCAM I 07/10/07

The National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) has informed us of another e-mail phishing expedition that uses a survey and reward as a ploy to obtain recipients' personal financial data.

Anyone receiving the phish message should not click on the link or answer questions, but instead should delete the message.

MORTGAGE SCAM 05/01/07

Should you receive any such call, please be aware that First Entertainment does not sell any member information to any third party. Protecting our members’ information is one of our top priorities.