Protect Your Accounts

Be wary of suspicious e-mails known as Phishing.

Carefully review any e-mail requesting your account information and/or password. The fraudulent practice of making the e-mail appear to come from your bank, or another legitimate business, is called Phishing, with the intent to deceive you into submitting personal information, financial information, and/or password information. Do not respond. Bluff View Bank will never request your personal information via e-mail.

Do not give information out over the phone.

The bank will never call you for personal information.

Protect your passwords and user IDs.

Do not share your personal passwords or IDs with others and change them frequently. Never use your social security number as a User ID.

Report suspicious activity immediately.

Notify us promptly if you receive an e-mail or telephone communication from the bank requesting information about your accounts

Use secure websites for transactions and shopping.

Give your information only to well-known reputable businesses. You will usually see a lock symbol in the lower right-hand corner of your window, or the web address will begin with https:// with the “s” indicating “secured” encryption.

Be aware of purchase scams if you conduct business at Internet auction sites.

Protect yourself by doing business only at known sites that you select. Do not become a victim of special offers involving wires to foreign countries; in particular, Nigeria is a notorious source of internet fraud scams. If you make a sale, protect yourself by independently confirming the name, address, and phone number of the purchaser and having the bank inquire about the check before releasing any goods sold.

Avoid downloading programs from unknown sources.

Doing so could compromise your computer’s security.

Disconnect from the Internet when not in use.

Even if you have a firewall installed, which is recommended, it is wise to end a connection to avoid unwanted access to your computer data.