What is phishing?

Phishing is an attempt, via e-mail, text or phone, to steal personal identity data and financial account information for the purpose of committing fraud. The e-mail may ask the receiver to “update”, “validate” or “confirm” account information, including passwords or personal identification numbers (PINs). Some may threaten that an account will be closed or a card will be disabled. More recently, text messages claiming that the victim's card has been blocked or deactivated have been sent and they ask the victim to call a phone number. The e-mail addresses and phone numbers of the victims are not obtained from Sooper Credit Union itself but from external sources, or just randomly created.

Sooper Credit Union works diligently to close down each of the sources of these phishing e-mails and text messages as they are identified. Unfortunately, it may take from several hours to several days to identify the source and shut down the originator, who may then quickly move to another internet site and continue to operate.

How can I protect myself?

You can protect yourself by not responding to unsolicited e-mails, clicking on a link included in an e-mail, or calling the phone number(s) listed. Also, the latest version of the more common web browsers (such as Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox), have settings to warn users when a potential phishing site is visited.

Please be aware that Sooper Credit Union will never send an email, call you, or text you requesting your account number, PIN or credit card information. Never respond to a request for this information.

If you would like more information or to report that you have been a victim of a phishing scam, please call 303-427-5005 during our normal business hours, or you can send an e-mail to phishing@soopercu.org. We would also appreciate it if you forward any suspicious e-mails or text messages to phishing@soopercu.org.