Safety & Security

SAFETY & SECURITY

Calls Targeting Members

Bellwether Community Credit Union is aware of a scam where fraudsters are calling members (with a local number displaying in caller ID) claiming they are from Bellwether concerning fraudulent charges to their debit card. The fraudsters are requesting a member to provide their debit card number, expiration date, and PIN, as well as their Online Banking username and password.

Regardless of where calls, emails or texts originate from, follow the steps below to protect yourself from potential scams.

• Never provide your Online Banking logon information to anyone. Once you provide this access, you may be liable for losses! Even a joint owner on your accounts should have their own logon.
• Never provide private information to any caller (your debit/credit card number, PINs, social security number, etc.) unless YOU initiated the call to a company well known to you.
• Never send money based on a phone, email or text request unless you can positively confirm this is someone well known to you in person.
• Never use *72 before dialing a phone number as this is a method of forwarding your actual phone number to the fraudster’s phone.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact our Member Contact Center at 1-866-996-9828.

Home Warranty Scam Letter Alert - July 2023

Recently, a Bellwether Community Credit Union member made us aware of receiving a letter in the mail urging them to call a number about a time-sensitive matter about their mortgage, citing a home warranty coverage about to expire. This letter claimed to be from the “Home Warranty Department.”

As typical with many scams, it gives a sense of urgency for you to call and give your personal information such as your credit card information for coverage. This scam is especially convincing because it is sent through the mail and cites Bellwether as the lender. We do not share any private and non-public information with non-affiliate third parties. However, some information about your mortgages, regardless of what lender, is public record.

We highly recommend researching any company you are unfamiliar with to find reviews and check with Better Business Bureau information about its legitimacy.

If you receive a letter about Home Warranty letter citing Bellwether as the lender, please disregard it and contact us at 866.996.9828. We always recommend shredding any mail that contains personal information for extra security.

Fraudsters can be very clever and try to get your personal and financial information any way they can. Please question any communication that looks suspicious and requires you to take action quickly.

Bellwether Community Credit Union is confident of our system's ability to protect all transactions, however, certain portions of our system are for the use of authorized users only. Please don’t share your log in information with anyone who is not a joint owner on your account. Use is restricted to authorized individuals. Actual or attempted unauthorized use of these restricted portions will result in criminal and/or civil prosecution.

At Bellwether Community Credit Union we take protecting your account information, your money and your personal information very seriously. While we are always on guard to protect your accounts, there are steps you can take on your own to also protect yourself. Following is an outline of the various types of situations that can put your information and your accounts in danger, along with helpful tips to protect yourself and keep your information safe. We’re here to help, so please feel free to call us with any questions or if you ever receive a suspicious email, phone call or text message. Bellwether Community Credit Union will never email, text, or call asking you for personal or account-related information. If you receive suspicious emails, phone calls, or text messages representing themselves as Bellwether, and asking you for personal information, please notify us by forwarding the suspicious email to spam@bccu.org, or call us toll-free at 1-866-996-9828.

Remember: Bellwether Community Credit Union never asks for your personal or account-related information such as account numbers, social security numbers, passwords or PINs over the telephone, in emails, or in text messages. If you receive a call, email or text message asking for this information, please let us know by calling 1-866-996-9828 or sending us an email at spam@bccu.org. Do not reply directly to the request.

GENERAL SAFETY TIPS

• Reconcile account statements promptly and report discrepancies or questionable transactions immediately. Store old statements in a secure place and make sure to shred any personal or account information before disposing of it. Better yet, sign up for eStatements through online banking.
• Report stolen or lost checks, debit/check cards and credit cards immediately. Store unused or canceled checks in a secure place and shred before disposing.
• Check your mail daily, and if you haven't received mail for a few days, you may be the victim of mail diversion fraud (when someone has changed your mailing address on accounts without your permission). Contact the post office and/or your financial companies to confirm your address and to find out why you haven't received mail.
• Clean out your wallet. Don’t use it to store receipts, unnecessary credit cards, important numbers like your social security number, usernames, passwords, or PINs.
• Destroy any pre-approved offers you receive in the mail if you will not be using them.
• Review your credit reports at least once a year. FREE reports are available once a year at www.AnnualCreditReport.com.
• When you receive a new Debit or Credit card, sign it and activate it immediately. If you do not want it, destroy it immediately by cutting it up or shredding it.
• Do not write your PIN on the related card or on any item you keep in the same place.
• Keep any duplicate cards you may have in a secure place.
• Do not lend your credit or debit cards to anyone.
• Be cautious, and confirm whom you are speaking to when giving your card numbers, or any information, over the phone.