Volunteer Federal

Volunteer Federal

Beware of Phishing & Pharming

You can avoid being “hooked” by phishing and pharming by staying on the lookout for fraudulent e-mails and imitation Web sites.

Phishing is the practice of sending an e-mail that appears to be from a financial institution, an online store, or another organization with the goal of persuading online banking users to share sensitive information.

Pharming redirects Internet users from a legitimate web site to a “spoofed” or imitation site. Computer users might think they are visiting a legitimate online shopping site, for example, but instead are taken to a different site with a similar name. This “pharming” site is used to steal information such as credit card numbers, account numbers, passwords or Social Security numbers.

Cyber-criminals use the personal information they gain from phishing and pharming to commit identity theft or fraud.

Over time, cyber-criminals have learned to create messages that can seem to genuinely come from the legitimate site. They may “borrow” a company logo, copy the format and colors used on its Web site, or imitate the language used in the organization’s real communications.

Five Rules for Online Safety
       1. Never click on e-mail links.
       2. Enter Web addresses in the browser bar instead of using e-mail links.
       3. Never share financial or personal information by e-mail.
       4. Tell Volunteer Federal about suspicious e-mails that contain our name or logo.
       5. Check accounts regularly to spot fraud or unauthorized account access.

If you receive a suspicious E-Mail claiming to be from Volunteer Federal please DO NOT OPEN the message but forward it to webmaster@volfed.com and delete it immediately. If you do accidentally give information, please call Volunteer Federal immediately. We can then inform you on how to protect your account.