Privacy Statement > Email Phishing

Be on guard for e-mail "phishing" attempts.

Online fraud is on the rise, with the latest attacks taking the form of a practice known as "phishing."

In phishing, cyber-criminals send e-mails that seem to be from legitimate financial institutions or other companies, asking for confirmation of personal or account information. The e-mail may ask for a simple reply or provide a link to a legitimate-appearing Web site and may not include text.

Cyber-criminals use these techniques to get you to reveal confidential information so they can commit direct theft or steal your identity and commit other fraudulent activities.

How to protect yourself
Follow these tips to protect yourself from phishing attacks when reviewing unsolicited e-mail from unknown sources:

• Never respond to unsolicited e-mail from an unfamiliar source. This confirms an active address to the attacker and they will be back.
• Never click any link in an e-mail. This could either take you to a criminal site, download Spyware to be used in subsequent attempts to steal information or download a virus to your computer.
• Never open an attachment from an unfamiliar source. This could infect your computer with a virus or Spyware.
• When you receive a suspicious e-mail in your in-box, immediately delete it.
• If you did provide information, contact the legitimate company immediately to report the incident and follow any steps they recommend to remedy the situation.