Phishing

“Phishing” is the term for the Internet Scam that uses bogus emails to capture your personal information. In these scams, you may receive an email that looks like an official email from a financial institution or reputable company. [Click here] for samples of phishing and other fraudlent messages and scams.

In many cases, residents receiving the email are not members of these credit unions. Within the email, the scam artists will cite that a security breach occurred and you need to update your account information. They ask you to click on a link that will take you to a bogus site. This bogus site can easily fool you, as it may look exactly like the organization’s official web site. But, it is set up to collect your sensitive financial information. HawaiiUSA FCU and other financial institutions will never ask you for your sensitive financial information in this manner. The following are ways you can protect yourself from becoming a victim.

• Do not reply to or click on a link in an email stating your account will be shut down or access to the site will terminate unless you confirm your billing information. Instead, contact the company directly.
• Before submitting financial information through a Web site, make sure it is a secured site. A secured site will have a “locked padlock” on the browser’s status bar. In addition, look for “https://” at the beginning of the web address in your browser’s address window. Although the presence of these items do not guarantee the Web site is legitimate or secure, the absence of these items indicate the Web site is not secured.
• Make sure you install the latest security patch for your web browser.
• Review your credit union account and credit card statements regularly to ensure all transactions are legitimate.
• If you suspect your personal information has been stolen and you are a primary member of HawaiiUSA FCU, contact our Member Service Department at (808) 534.4300 (on Oahu) or (808) 379.1300 (neighbor island or mainland). Also, report it to all three major credit reporting agencies. Ask them to place a fraud alert and a victim’s statement in your file. Below are the phone numbers to the credit reporting agencies.

  Experion: (888) 397.3742
  Equifax: (800) 525.6285
  TransUnion: (800) 680.7289

• Report any suspicious activity to the FTC by sending the actual phishing email to reportphishing@antiphishing.com.

We at hawaiiUSA FCU care about you, Don't become a victim of identity theft!