With the holiday season upon us, you may be busy finding just the right gift for a friend or loved one or finalizing travel arrangements to visit family. Or, maybe you’re preparing your home to enjoy the festivities. No matter how you plan to enjoy the holidays, it’s crucial to stay on top of your finances, because, unfortunately, fraudulent activity increases during this time of year as well.
As a customer of Quail Creek Bank, you trust us to keep your financial information safe and secure – and we take that responsibility seriously. Here are 10 ways you can help us protect your financial information against fraud this holiday season:
- Review your account frequently, and let us know immediately if you find any unauthorized transactions.
- Set up account alerts using online or mobile banking to let you know when your account balance falls below a specific limit or when a transaction clears your account. That way, you can report anything unexpected to us as soon as possible.
- Verify and update your contact information with Quail Creek Bank, and be sure to let us know if you plan to travel internationally.
- Shop only on secure websites – you can typically determine if a site is safe if it has “https” in its address and an icon of a locked padlock on the left side of its URL. And never shop online using public Wi-Fi.
- Use credit cards over debits cards when you shop (online or in stores) as credit cards provide more protection against fraudulent activity.
- Don’t provide account or other personal information through text, emails, or phone calls you don’t initiate, and don’t open emails from anyone you don’t know (even if it seems like a lovely holiday greeting card). NOTE: If you receive a text or email claiming to be Quail Creek Bank, asking for you to update your account information, DO NOT respond to that text or email. Instead, contact us immediately.
- Carry a limited number of credit cards with you and never keep your passport, birth certificate, or Social Security card in your wallet (unless you’re required to do so).
- Don’t overshare on social websites – remember, what you post or tweet is not only seen by your friends or followers, but also by fraudsters.
- Deposit your outgoing mail in secure post office collection boxes or at your local post office rather than in your mailbox. If you travel over the holidays, put a hold on your mail delivery through the U.S. Postal Service.
- Tear, cut or shred any personal information (financial statements, expired credit cards, pre-approved credit offers, physician statements, insurance forms, receipts, and more) before throwing it away.
We hope you have a safe and secure holiday season. But more than that, we hope you will take a few moments to follow these guidelines to help keep your financial information safe and secure. If you have any other questions about Quail Creek Bank’s fraud security guidelines, or if you need to report an unauthorized transaction, contact us at 405-755-1000.
