Safeguarding your personal and financial information has become increasingly challenging, as the threat of fraud has never been greater. Personal computers, the Internet and e-mail can become dangerous weapons in the hands of someone looking to deceive you.
You can help prevent many types of fraud if you know what to look for. Below are some of the most common online threats.
What types of scams should I be aware of?
Among ways that scam artists obtain access to personal and/or financial information are:
· Phishing: These authentic-looking e-mail messages instruct the recipient to provide sensitive personal, financial or password information. The e-mail appears to have been sent by a reputable company from a legitimate e-mail address and includes logos and links to reputable businesses and government agencies.
· Social engineering (a term used in the information security industry): Criminals pretend to be, for example, from the security and fraud department of a major credit card company. They ask questions to verify personal information such as your home address, as well as the numbers on the back of your credit card, to verify you have the card.
· Bank scams: Perpetrators attempt to get you to log on to a fake Web site to capture your personal financial information. They send an e-mail to bank customers asking them to click on a fake bank Web site and supply their account name and password. These e-mails may contain logos and graphics that appear to be legitimate, but they often contain typos, e-mail addresses or URLs that have nothing to do with the company. An example of this is the 419, or advance-fee scam, run by Nigerian gangs who set up fake bank Web sites.
How can I protect myself from these scams?
Use extreme caution in providing personal information on Web sites or on unsolicited phone calls. Be cautious of unexpected e-mails linking to online forms that ask you to submit sensitive personal information. Legitimate Web sites hardly ever ask for this kind of information to confirm account renewal or other information. Scam artists take many precautions to make consumers believe their site is secure and legitimate.
If you receive an e-mail that warns you, with little or no notice, that an account of yours will be shut down unless you confirm your billing information, do not reply or click on the link in the e-mail. Instead, contact the company cited in the e-mail by a telephone number or Web site address you know to be genuine. (Note: Merrill Lynch will not ask a client to send sensitive personal information via non-secure e-mail.)
If someone calls about a potential attempt at credit card theft, hang up and call back, using the phone number on the back of your credit card. Do not share any personal information over the phone with an unsolicited caller.
What should I do if I believe I have become victim of one of these scams?
If you receive a scam e-mail that refers to another company, contact that company directly.
If you receive any scam e-mail that alleges to be from Merrill Lynch, please forward it to wfcs@exchange.ml.com. You may phone the Corporate Security Operations Center at any time: (212) 449-HELP (4357), 449-7505 or 449-7506. You may also report suspicious e-mail to Corporate Security, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. ET by phoning (212) 236-3740 or 236-3741 (U.S.). Please only report incidents specific to Merrill Lynch.
For other relevant information visit the U.S. Federal Trade Commission Web site, www.ftc.gov.