Business Security Center
Protecting you, your business and your cash assets is a top priority at Hometown Bank, but we can't do it alone. Just as you lock your doors and windows at night, your business must be protected from cyber thieves attempting to exploit weaknesses in your processes.
IMPORTANT UPDATE ABOUT RECENT BUSINESS E-MAIL SCAMS
A new form of ‘Man-in-the-E-mail’ scam targeting businesses has been on the increase all over the U.S., including Wisconsin. This scam has been labelled "Business E-mail Compromise" or "BEC" by the FBI. Other known names for the scam include CEO Fraud, Spoofing the Boss and Spear Phishing. This scheme represents a new generation of cyber attacking that has been extremely successful as of late. By last count, the FBI estimates corporate losses have reached billions of dollars in the U.S. The scam involves the impersonation of senior company officials by using social engineering to coerce unsuspecting employees to transfer money or sensitive data as a legitimate business purpose. The scam begins through the use of a compromised or spoofed email account of a high-level executive (CEO, CFO, etc.), business partner, or trusted supplier requesting what appears to be a legitimate financial transaction. The email request, if not verified by the business, could result in a fraudulent transaction that the business unknowingly approves for processing by their bank. Once the transaction is completed, the funds are quickly moved to another account by the criminal, leaving the business with little to no chance of recovering the funds. Other uses for the highly effective scam have been to obtain sensitive data from the targeted company, such as employee W2 or healthcare information. Once the criminals obtain this sensitive data, employees will likely become victims of identity theft. As our valued business partners, we are asking you to become aware of such scams and to take time to learn the ways to mitigate the risks associated with them. The most important step is to implement an internal procedure to validate any financial or data transaction request no matter who it is received from within the company. The validation methods must not be via email. Instead, the validation should be in person or via a phone call to an already known and documented phone number of the requesting party. This is an important step that employees must take prior to submission of a wire or ACH transaction to a financial institution or before they send sensitive company information, even internally. To validate the request, the sending employee must confirm the transaction details including the receiving account number and dollar amount, as well as any other information deemed pertinent. Having this dual control step in place can go a long way toward saving a business from this type of scam. For more information about this scam and ways to protect your business, please visit the FBI/IC3 announcement page https://www.ic3.gov/media/2016/160614.aspx |
What Else Can Be Done?
The content below provide security measures we strongly encourage you to take to help protect your accounts from scams and other harmful attacks.
Harden your computer against cyberattacks
Electronics and computers not appropriately protected can become an open gateway for cyber criminals to perform malicious activity or access your systems, including your online accounts. Unfortunately, antivirus alone is not enough to protect you from malware that can give cyber criminals control of your computers. Below are basic tips to protect the computers at your business.
For more security tips to protect your computer, go through the Computer Protection Checklist. Computer Protection Checklist
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Make your business and computers less vulnerable to cyber thieves
Your business online banking account has built-in security options you can use to protect and monitor your online activity. Don’t wait until your business is a victim of cyber fraud before you protect yourself.
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How to identify common attacks by cyber criminals
No one ever believes they or their business will become a victim of cyber fraud, but if it does happen, responding to it quickly is of the utmost importance. Below are ways to help your employees identify when they may be the victim of cyber fraud, or when you should consider contacting us for assistance. Be sure that all employees participating in online banking are aware of these tips. Contact customer support if you experience any of the following scenarios:
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Learn about your liability in the event of a cyberattack
Hometown Bank provides online banking to its customers to add convenience for operating your business and to conduct financial transactions; however, we cannot assume liability for fraud on accounts as a result of malware and system vulnerabilities on our customers’ IT systems. Customers must take an active role to ensure adequate security controls are in place on their IT systems before accessing online banking to minimize risk. Business customers are contractually obligated to maintain the security of their computers and must monitor their accounts. This means that you will be responsible for any fraudulent financial activity on your account if your computers, emails, electronics or accounts are compromised. Business customers who use their IT systems to house proprietary, financial or personnel information should employ an information security professional periodically to conduct a thorough review of their systems and security controls. Please be aware that neither the FDIC nor Regulation E cover fraud losses for commercial customers. Hometown Bank recommends that all business owners discuss online fraud protection with their insurance carriers to ensure they are adequately protected in the event of a loss. As always, we have a dedicated treasury management staff well versed in payment fraud and what can be done to prevent it. Our team is available to you anytime for one-to-one consultations to help your business learn the risks and what can be done to safeguard your cash assets and sensitive data. |
To report lost or stolen debit cards
Contact us at 1-877-922-1790 during regular business hours. On weekends and holidays, call 1-800-554-8969. |
This security information page is being provided as a courtesy to our clients. By publishing this information, Hometown Bank makes no claim whatsoever that the information is inclusive of all risks or solutions related to all possibilities of fraud.