Photo by Kayleigh Colley
Scams are nothing new—if you’ve been online, or have a phone, you’ve been subject to scam calls or messages, and United Southern Bank is putting out the word about some scams that have been going around locally involving banking.
Even if you don’t have an account at United Southern Bank, that doesn’t mean you’ve missed out on the scams, with the most common being text ‘phishing’ scams, spoofed numbers and bad actors pretending to be your hometown banker. USB Information Security Officer Jill Burkeen and Electronic Banking Manager Amy Jones appeared on WHOP Friday morning and urged people to not fall for the fear tactics.
Jones says it’s not just USB being targeted, and these scammers are trying to take advantage of the trust you have for your bank.
She says never click a link that’s sent to you in a text message by a number you don’t know and can’t verify, and certainly never give out personal or financial information over the phone. Burkeen says the perpetrators are trying to scare you into taking action before you think things through.
Jones says, when in doubt, give them a shout—if something feels even a little bit off, hang up the phone or get out of the fraudulent website, and call your bank directly.
You can contact United Southern Bank, which serves Christian and Todd counties, at 270-885-0056 if you feel like you’ve been the target of a scam involving your bank account. United Southern says they will never call and ask you for any personal information, your PIN number or any online banking credentials.
Scams and scammers are always upping their game and getting more and more legitimate looking, so make sure you’re staying vigilant and not falling for their tricks.