Email scams account for 96 percent of all phishing attacks, making email the most popular tool for scammers. Often, the scammer will disguise the email to look and sound like it’s from your bank.

Watch for these red flags if you receive a suspicious email claiming to be from your bank:

1. Suspicious email address
2. Typos or unusual grammar
3. Urgent language
4. Hyperlinks—never click them
5. Attachments—never open them

Phishing text messages attempt to trick you into sharing personal information like
your password, PIN, or social security number to gain access to your bank account.
As long as you don’t respond to these messages and delete them instead, your information is safe. All you need to do is spot the signs of a scam before you click or reply.

Watch for these red flags if you receive a suspicious text claiming to be from your bank:

1. Unusual phone numbers—banks typically only text from a 4–5-digit number
2. Hyperlinks—your bank will never ask you to log into your account by texting a link
3. Odd grammar
4. Scare tactics and urgent language
5. Texts asking you to open a link

Scammers sometimes try to cheat you out of your money by impersonating your
bank over the phone. In some scams, they act friendly and helpful. In others, they’ll
threaten or scare you. Scammers will often ask for your personal information or get
you to send them money. Banks never will.

Stay safe with these tips if you receive a suspicious phone call claiming to be from your bank:

1. Watch out for a false sense of urgency
2. Never give sensitive information
3. Don’t rely on Caller ID

Scams using payment apps such as Cash App, PayPal, Venmo, or Zelle^®, are
growing more and more prevalent as those platforms become increasingly
popular. Once you’re hooked, it only takes seconds for a scammer to access
your hard-earned cash.

Stay safe with these tips when using payment apps:

1. Be wary of texts or calls about payment apps
2. Use payment apps to pay friends and family only
3. Raise the alarm on urgent payment requests
4. Avoid unusual payment methods