Cybersecurity

At Core Bank, the safety and security of your assets are always our highest priority, so we provide you with the tools and resources you need to stay up to date in protecting your identity and assets.

Reporting Fraud & Identify Theft

Identify theft happens when someone uses someone else’s personal identifying information, like a credit card number, to commit fraud and other crimes. Being victim of identify theft or fraudulent activity is extremely unfortunate. However, there are measures you can take to prevent this form happening.

What are the first signs of identity theft?

It’s important to keep an eye on your accounts so you can catch any fraudulent activity as quickly as possible. The first signs of identify theft are:

• Unfamiliar bank statements
• Unauthorized activity on your credit or debit card
• Missing bills
• Calls from a debt collector

Can identity theft be prevented?

There are a few ways you can help protect yourself from identify theft. They include:

• Keep your Social Security card in a safe, private place. Only give out your Social Security Number when absolutely necessary.
• Don’t share personal information such as your bank account number if someone asks for it.
• Use the security features on your mobile phone
• Pay attention to your bank and credit card statements.

Learn more about preventing identify theft at USA.gov.

How can I report identify theft?

In the unfortunate event that you’ve been the victim of a scam, fraudulent activity, or identify theft, the links below will help you walk through the reporting process.

Nebraska.gov – Report Fraud

Federal Trade Commission (FTC) – Report Identity Theft

How long does it take to recover from identity theft?

You can recover from identify theft if it happens to you. On average, it takes six months and 100-200 hours of work. This resource will walk you through the steps you need to take to recover from identity theft.

Identify Theft Recovery Steps

If you have received a suspicious email or believe you are a victim of fraud or identity theft relating to any of your Core Bank accounts, please call us immediately at (402) 333-9100.

Online Fraud

Online fraud is an internet crime and typically involves situations such as counterfeit payments, financial fraud, identify theft, advertising scams, and more. Your security is a top priority at Core Bank, which is why we’ve provided some resources to help protect you from internet cybercrimes.

How do I know if I’m being scammed online?

There are a few places you may fall into internet scams. It’s important to recognize what they look like so you can avoid them. Here are a few examples of what an online scam may look like:

• Emails that don’t look quite right
  • Look for signs such as bad grammar, unfamiliar links or email address, etc. This may be a message saying you’ve won money or a prize, or a phishing scam.
• Unsecured websites
  • Websites that aren’t secure leave you vulnerable to to an online scam. Be sure to look for a lock icon or “https” in the address bar when doing anything sensitive online. Any personal information you share on an unsecured site can be stolen.
• Wire transfer requests
  • If you get a request for a wire money transfer, be weary. These requests are rarely legitimate and scammers may pose as a company, a family member, or close friend in order to get money quickly.

What do I do if I’ve been scammed online?

If you’ve unfortunately been scammed online, here is what you should do.

• Report your claim to the FTC
  • Submitting a report to the FTC involves answering questions about what happened so they can create a personal recovery plan for you. Start your report here: identitytheft.gov
• Call your bank and credit card companies
  • Let your bank and credit card provider know you need to immediately cancel your cards and receive new ones. Also, you’ll want to take time to change your passwords so the criminal can no longer access to your accounts.

How can I protect myself from online fraud?

Thankfully, there are many measures you can take to protect yourself from online scams and fraud. They include:

• Regularly change your passwords
• Only trust encrypted websites
• Don’t send emails that include your account numbers
• Confirm wire transactions verbally
• Don’t click links from unknown sources
• Use two-factor authentication when logging into online accounts

Here are more resources for online security:

U.S. Department of Homeland Security Cybersecurity Toolkit

Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Online Security Resources

Cryptocurrency Scams

Cryptocurrency, often referred to as “crypto”, is a type of digital currency usually purchased with a phone, computer, or cryptocurrency ATM. Bitcoin and Ether are well-known cryptocurrencies, but there are many different cryptocurrencies, and new ones keep being created. These scams have been increasing recently with scammers directing victims to withdraw cash or wire funds to complete payment transactions to purchase cryptocurrency, a digital currency that generally exists only electronically. It is important to be alert and know how to protect yourself. Read more about Cryptocurrency Scams in our blog.

User ID & Password Guidelines

For most online accounts, including Core Bank, you will be prompted to choose a user ID and password when you create an account. It’s important that you select a username and password that will help keep your personal information protected and prevent your accounts from getting hacked and your identity from being stolen.

What is recommended to use for a User ID and Password?

Core Bank recommends using a “strong” password with at least eight characters that includes a combination of mixed case letters, numbers, and special characters, and change your password frequently. Also, avoid using an automatic login feature that saves usernames and passwords and never share your user ID and password information with third-party providers.

General Guidelines

There are steps you can take regularly to protect yourself from identity theft and other fraudulent activity. These general guidelines will help keep you, your personal information, and your finances safe at Core Bank or wherever you manage your assets!

How can I keep my account secure?

To keep your bank account secure when using online banking, do not use public or other unsecured computers to log into Consumer eBanking and be sure to check the last login date/time each time you log in. Also, take time to review account balances and detail transactions regularly (preferably daily) to confirm payments and other transaction data. Immediately report any suspicious transactions to your financial institution.

Other Quick Tips:

• Whenever possible, use Bill Pay instead of checks to limit account number exposure and to obtain better electronic record keeping.
• Take advantage of and regularly view system alerts; examples include:
  • Balance alerts
  • Password change alerts
  • Transfer alerts
• Do not use account numbers, your social security number, or other account or personal information when creating account nicknames or other titles.

Use the historical reporting features of your online banking application on a regular basis to confirm payments and other transaction data.

• Never leave a computer unattended while using Consumer eBanking.
• Never conduct banking transactions while multiple browsers are open on your computer.

Tips for Avoiding Phishing, Spyware and Malware

Phishing is a type of attack used to steal data through emails, fake websites, session hijacking, and more.

How can I avoid phishing?

Here are a couple tips for avoiding phishing:

• Do not open e-mails from unknown sources. Be suspicious of e-mails purporting to be from a financial institution, government department, or other agency requesting account information, account verification, or banking access credentials such as usernames, passwords, PIN codes, and similar information. Opening file attachments or clicking on web links in suspicious e-mails could expose your system to malicious code that could hijack your computer.
• Never respond to a suspicious e-mail or click on any hyperlink embedded in a suspicious e-mail. Call the purported source if you are unsure who sent an e-mail.
• If an e-mail claiming to be from your financial organization seems suspicious, check with your financial organization.

Phishing may also happen over the phone. This is called voice phishing and involves a software used on a telephone system to gain access to private and personal and financial information.

How can I avoid voice phishing?

Here are some tips for protecting yourself from voice phishing:

• Do not pay fees for prizes or rewards offered by phone.
• The IRS will never ask you for debit or credit card numbers by phone or demand immediate payments using specific methods, such as prepaid gift cards, debit cards, or wire transfers. The IRS will generally contact you first via U.S. Mail.
• Do not send money or give out personal information (such as credit card numbers and expiration dates, bank account numbers, dates of birth, or Social Security numbers) in response to unsolicited phone calls from unfamiliar companies or unknown persons.
• Don’t trust caller ID. Phone numbers and caller identities can be faked. There have been reports of forged phone numbers from U-M, government offices, and other businesses and institutions.
• Add your phone number to the National Do Not Call Registry to reduce unwanted sales calls.

Spyware is a software used to obtain personal information through computer activities.

Malware is a broad term for any type of software used to damage a computer, server, or computer network. There are many types of malware, including spyware.

How can I avoid malware?

Here are some tips for avoiding malware and keeping your computer safe:

• Ensure computers are patched regularly, particularly operating systems, browsers, and key applications.
• Install a dedicated, actively managed firewall, especially if using a broadband or dedicated connection to the internet, such as DSL or cable. A firewall limits the potential for unauthorized access to your network and computers.
• Check your settings and select, at least, a medium level of security for your browsers.

How can I avoid spyware?

Here are some tips for preventing spyware:

• Install anti-virus and spyware detection software on all computer systems. Free software may not provide protection against the latest threats compared with an industry standard product.
• Update all of your computers regularly with the latest versions and patches of both anti-virus and anti-spyware software.

How can I protect my personal information while eBanking?

If you choose to eBank, there are some measures you should take to help protect your finances and personal information from fraud. Here are some general tips:

• Clear the browser cache before starting any Consumer eBanking session to eliminate copies of web pages that have been stored on the hard drive. How the cache is cleared depends on the browser and version you are using. This function is generally found in the browser’s preferences menu.
• Be advised that you will never be presented with a maintenance page after entering login credentials. Legitimate maintenance pages are displayed when first reaching the URL and before entering login credentials.
• Consumer eBanking does not use pop-up windows to display login messages or errors. They are displayed directly on the login screen.
• Consumer eBanking never displays pop-up messages indicating that you cannot use your current browser.
• Consumer eBanking error messages never include an amount of time to wait before trying to login again.
• Be advised that repeatedly being asked to enter your password/token code are signs of potentially harmful activity.

Learn more about tips to avoid prominent forms of fraud.

Corporate Account Takeover (CATO)

Corporate Account Takeover occurs when a criminal obtains electronic access to your bank account and conducts unauthorized transactions. The criminal obtains electronic access by stealing the confidential security credentials of your employees who are authorized to conduct electronic transactions (wire transfers, Automated Clearing House-ACH, and others) on your corporate bank account. Losses from this form of cyber-crime range from the tens of thousands to millions of dollars with the majority of these thefts not fully recovered. Corporate Account Takeovers have affected both large and small banks.

Learn More Here.