What is account takeover fraud?
An account takeover begins with a fraudster sending a text message to your mobile phone. They usually claim they’re from IncredibleBank's fraud department. They may ask you to confirm a suspicious payment that was sent from your account — this may not be true and could be part of the fraud.
If this is a fraud attack, the fraudster may follow up with a phone call and asks for your personal information to “cancel the payment.” NOTE: IncredibleBank will NEVER ask for your full social security number, your online banking password, or other personal information.
Once the fraudster has access to your online banking credentials, they'll begin making changes to your account - updating your personal identifying information, adding an authorized user, or changing the password. These changes not only allow them access to your accounts, but also locks you out of your own account - hence the term "account takeover."
The account takeover fraud often begins on a Friday after business hours and runs through the weekend. It also often happens over the holidays. Why? Because they're hoping you take the weekend or holiday off and won't notice something's wrong till it's too late.
How to protect your business from account takeover fraud
Be wary of texts, emails, or phone calls claiming to be your bank
Don't share your information
Don't rush
What to do if you've already provided your information
If you did mistakenly provide information to fraudsters, check your financial accounts for unusual activity, document it, and report it to your bank right away (in fact – report it to your bank even if you haven’t seen suspicious activity yet!). Your bank may also recommend additional steps to take to protect yourself.
If you provided your social security number, we recommend reaching out to the Social Security Administration and each of the three credit bureaus to place a credit freeze.
Learn more about protecting yourself from identity theft at our cybersecurity blog here.