About Pretexting

Identity thieves need to get your personal information in order to open or hijack accounts in your name. Very often, this information is obtained through pretexting. Pretexting is the act of gathering personal information from consumers under the guise—or pretext—of an official inquiry from a bank or other financial institution. For example, you may receive a call from someone posing as an employee for a survey company. Some of the questions may ask for personal information. A pretexter may contact one of your creditors pretending to be you in an attempt to get account numbers or your Social Security number. E-mail and telephone “phishing” is another popular ploy with pretexters. They may actually pretend to be from your financial institution, claim that someone has tried to access your account, and ask you to confirm your personal information so that they can review the transaction with you. A good rule of thumb is to never reveal any personal information to anyone who has called or e-mailed you. Instead, if it is a call, ask them to send their request to you in writing through the mail. If it is a legitimate inquiry, there should be no problem. If it is an e-mail, contact your financial institution to verify its authenticity.