Whenever a crisis hits, scammers will be there to take advantage of the confusion and chaos. Keep yourself, your family, and your customers safe with these tips to avoid being scammed during the COVID-19 pandemic:

• Do not share personal data. Your bank will never contact you and ask for confidential information such as your name, password, PIN, Social Security number, or other account information over the phone or in an email or text. However, if you are the one initiating a call, some information may be needed to authenticate your identity.
• Beware of scams that may seem legitimate to the current climate such as medical supply scams or fraudulent donation sites. Their intent is to convince you to share sensitive information such as usernames and passwords, make purchases or donations on spoof websites, or download malware onto your device by opening a malicious attachment. If you receive something suspicious, do not respond, do not click on any links, and do not open attachments.
• Beware of fake job ads or jobs asking you to pay for equipment training or supplies before starting the job. Employment scams are on the rise.
• Don’t answer calls you don’t recognize. More robocalls are happening to see who is home and answering their phone — scammers won’t leave a voicemail, and if they do, they typically sound robotic. Additionally, any call received communicating that your Social Security benefits will be suspended or reduced due to COVID-19 is a scam. Delete the number and do not engage in continued contact.

You can also find these tips, along with additional information about IRS stimulus payment scams, on the bank’s website in both English and Spanish.