Current Alerts

Updated May 13 Text Message Scam (Smishing) Asking to Unblock Account—April 13, 2013

WESTconsin Credit Union has become aware of a recent fraudulent text message scam that has targeted the area, as well as been confirmed by other financial institutions in the country.

Recipients are messaged to call a number listed with an 888 prefix to unblock your account while asking for personal information such as account, social security and driver’s license numbers. This is a scam!

Some WESTconsin members and nonmembers have received messages like this. If you receive text messages similar to this, do not call the number and give any of your account information.

If you have any questions or concerns, or believe that you may be the victim of such an attack, please call your local WESTconsin office or (800) 924-0022.

The 888 phone number is no longer valid and WESTconsin Credit Union member data has not been compromised. Systems such as online banking have extra security measures in place to further protect members from attacks such as this. We are also proactively employing additional account transaction safeguards.

REMEMBER: REPUTABLE ORGANIZATIONS LIKE WESTCONSIN CREDIT UNION, WILL NEVER CONTACT YOU BY PHONE OR EMAIL TO ASK YOU FOR YOUR PERSONAL OR FINANCIAL INFORMATION. If you ever receive a suspicious email, phone call or letter, please do not respond to it and contact the local authorities. If an item appears to come from WESTTconsin Credit Union, contact our Service Center at (800) 924-0022 to verify the validity of the inquiry.

Email Scam Referencing ACH File Activity—March 21, 2013

WESTconsin Credit Union has become aware of recent fraudulent email notifications from scammers requesting you to click on a link for details regarding ACH file ID activity. The message may include “ACH file ID” with numbers listed in the subject line of the email, as well as contain a table from “Data Processing Service” with what is meant to look like an ACH transaction summary and request to visit a link for details. This is a scam. If you receive email messages similar to this, do not click on any of the links and do not provide the sender with any of your account information. If you have concerns about your accounts, please call your local WESTconsin office or (800) 924-0022.

Phone Scam Claiming Debit or Credit Card Card Deactivation—February 13, 2013

We have been made aware of a recent phone scam that is targeting people with debit or credit cards. Some WESTconsin members have received phone calls stating that their debit or credit card has been deactivated and no longer in use along with instructions to call a number and enter card holder information to reactivate their card. This is a scam. If you receive this phone message, please ignore it. If you have concerns, please call your local WESTconsin office or (800) 924-0022.

Email Scam Referencing Verification of Email Address—October 23, 2012

WESTconsin Credit Union has become aware of recent fraudulent email notifications from scammers requesting you to verify adding a new email address to your westconsincu.org account. The message may also contain web links for you to click on to verify or cancel this process. This is a scam. If you receive email messages similar to this, do not click on any of the links and do not provide the sender with any of your account information. If you have concerns about your accounts, please call your local WESTconsin office or (800) 924-0022.

Phone Scam Claiming Debit Card or Credit Card Deactivation—July 25, 2012

We have been made aware of a recent phone scam that is targeting people with debit and credit cards. Some WESTconsin members have received phone and text messages stating that their debit card or credit card has been deactivated and no longer in use along with instructions to call a number and enter card holder information to reactivate their card. This is a scam. If you receive this phone message, please ignore it. If you have concerns, please call your local WESTconsin office or (800) 924-0022.

Beware of Malware with Popup Screen Asking for Social Security Number—April 18, 2012

If you receive a pop up screen asking you to enter your social security number after logging into WESTconsin Online banking, do not continue. Your computer may have a malware targeting users of the CashEdge Funds Transfer system.

Members should be advised that there is a malware scheme in progress that targets personal information such as social security numbers. The scam involves a request for information related to the Funds Transfer system in Online Banking (CashEdge), with a message that appears during the login process asking that members enter their information for verification purposes.

If you should see this message, do not continue and do not enter your personal information. The message and the accompanying request is not from either WESTconsin Credit Union or CashEdge. Rather, it is likely that malware was installed on your computer when you downloaded something from the internet.

Members who see this message are advised to run a malware remover program immediately. If you have any questions or concerns, or believe that you may be the victim of such an attack, please call your local WESTconsin office or (800) 924-0022.

ATM/Debit Card Email Scam—January 30, 2012

WESTconsin Credit Union has become aware of recent fraudulent email notifications from scammers regarding ATM/debit card transactions. The message may contain a web link for you to click on or a phone number for you to call. This is a scam. If you receive email messages similar to this, please do not provide the sender with any of your account information. If you have concerns about your accounts, please call your local WESTconsin office or (800) 924-0022. Click here  for an example of of these emails.

Telephone Phishing Scam - Blocked Credit/Debit Cards—December 19, 2011

There have been reports of calls received from, what appear to be, automated telephone calls telling them their credit/debit card(s) have been “blocked” etc. THIS IS A TELEPHONE PHISHING SCAM. PLEASE DO NOT PROVIDE ANY INFORMATION REGARDING YOUR CREDIT/DEBIT CARD OR ANY OTHER PERSONAL OR CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION REGARDING YOUR ACCOUNTS.

The automated message requests the call recipient to “Press 1” to reach our security department where they are to enter their 16 digit card number into their telephone key pad. Once this is entered, the scammers are then requesting the cards Personal Identification Number (PIN). The scam artists are attempting to obtain customer card numbers and PIN’s in order to gain access to customer accounts via ATM’s or Point of Sale Purchases. Again, please do not provide this information to anyone requesting this information via the telephone or by email.

If you received this phishing telephone call and did provide your credit/debit card account number and/or PIN to the caller or any other personal account information, please call your local WESTconsin office or (800) 924-0022.

Email Scam Referencing ACH Payments & Direct Deposits—November 25, 2011

WESTconsin Credit Union has become aware of recent fraudulent email notifications from scammers posing to be from NACHA in regard to problems with your ACH payments and/or Direct Deposits. The message may contain a web link for you to click on or a phone number for you to call. This is a scam. If you receive email messages similar to this, please do not provide the sender with any of your account information. If you have concerns about your accounts, please call your local WESTconsin office or (800) 924-0022. Below is an example of one of these emails:

Subject: ACH payment rejected The ACH transaction (ID: 16837110301045), recently sent from your bank account (by you or any other person), was canceled by the Electronic Payments Association. Rejected transfer Transaction ID: 16837110301045 Reason for rejection See details in the report below Transaction Report report_16837110301045.doc (Microsoft Word Document) About NACHA NACHA advocates the value of the ACH Network and the NACHA Operating Rules to support the ACH Network and preserve the positive attributes of private-sector rulemaking. Activities include the development and communication of messages that define and articulate the value of the ACH Network, ACH payments, and the NACHA Operating Rules through advocacy, education, and other outreach efforts. NACHA advocates the value of the ACH Network and the NACHA Operating Rules to support the ACH Network and preserve the positive attributes of private-sector rulemaking. Activities include the development and communication of messages that define and articulate the value of the ACH Network, ACH payments, and the NACHA Operating Rules through advocacy, education, and other outreach efforts. 13450 Sunrise Valley Drive, Suite 100 Herndon, VA 20171 2011 NACHA - The Electronic Payments Association

Debit Card Transactions Blocked—April 5, 2011

WESTconsin Credit Union has become aware of recent fraudulent activity involving WESTCheck Debit Cards in these states: New York, Maryland and Virginia. Therefore, in addition to the blocked countries as listed below, these three U.S. states have been blocked for transactions. If you are a WESTCheck Debit Card holder and are planning to travel to New York, Maryland or Virginia, please contact your local WESTconsin office, or call toll-free (800) 924-0022 so that we may assist you.

Due to an extreme increase in fraudulent activity, transactions using your WESTCheck Debit Card have been blocked in the following countries: India, Russia, Romania, Lithuania, Poland, Japan, Ukraine, China, Thailand, Estonia, Turkey and Bulgaria. Please contact us directly if you will be traveling or need to make a purchase at one of these locations so we can remove your debit card from the block. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact your local WESTconsin Credit Union office or call toll-free (800) 924-0022.

Phishing Attempt: E-mail Solicitation Using NCUA Address—November 16, 2010

National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) has released information pertaining to a recent phishing attempt to obtain member credit card account numbers, expiration dates and electronic signatures. In cases reported to NCUA, the perpetrator(s) sent fraudulent e-mails, representing to be from the NCUA, to credit union members and the general public. The emails state the NCUA will add $50.00 to the member’s account for taking part in a survey. The link embedded in the message directs members to a counterfeit version of NCUA’s website with an illicit survey that solicits credit card account numbers and confidential personal information.

NCUA will never ask credit union members or the general public for personal account or personally identifiable information as part of a survey. Any email that alleges to be from NCUA and asks for account information is fraudulent and should be treated as suspicious. NCUA has taken steps to shut this site down, but credit union members should remain alert to possible variations of this fraudulent email.

End users who clicked on any of the email links should consult with a computer security or anti-virus specialist to assess the need to re-install a clean image of the computer system. Credit union members are encouraged to take the following additional precautions:

• Scan affected computers using updated anti-virus software.

• Enable automatic updates for anti-virus software and computer operating systems.

• Install security patches for common software applications promptly.

• Be aware that phishing emails frequently have links to web pages that host malicious code and software.

• Do not open unsolicited or unexpected email attachments.

• Do not follow web links in unsolicited emails from apparent federal banking agencies, instead, bookmark or type the agency's web address.

Call the agency using a known and appropriate telephone number to verify the legitimacy of the message and attached file. Members affected by this scam, and variants of this scam, should be advised to forward the entire e-mail message to [email protected] Additionally, formal complaints concerning any suspected fraudulent e-mail can be filed with the Internet Fraud Complaint Center (IFCC) at www.ic3.gov. The IFCC is a partnership between the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the National White Collar Crime Center.

Phone Scam Claiming Debit Card Deactivation—June 1, 2010

We have been made aware of a recent phone scam that is targeting people with debit cards. Some WESTconsin members have received phone messages stating that their debit card has been deactivated and no longer in use along with instructions to call a number and enter card holder information to reactivate their card. This is a scam. If you receive this phone message, please ignore it. If you have concerns about your debit card, please call your local WESTconsin office or (800) 924-0022.

New Recruitment Scam Using Craigslist—January 11, 2010

WESTconsin Credit Union has been notified of advertisements posted on Craigslist as part of a nationwide member recruitment scam. The ads solicit current credit union members and offer $75.00 or more for their assistance with qualifying a new member. This scam is targeting credit unions and members across the country. This is a scam! If you have a question concerning your account, contact WESTconsin by calling (800) 924-0022 or using our Email Form.

The following are samples of Craigslist ads that are targeting credit union members for this recruitment scam:

If your a ABC Credit Union Member MAKE SOME EXTRA $$
This is NOT a scam! I am willing to call you and discuss extensively! I need a ABC Credit Union Member to sponsor me into the credit union. I am willing to pay $100 USD for this service. Please email me and we can discuss this in detail. This is a 1 day process and I want to become a member for investment account/interest rate purposes.

Need to find a XYZ Credit Union Member
I was just approved for a visa credit card with XYZ Federal Credit Union and they called me and said that they can not process the application if I do not know any existing member or if I am not employed at one of the list of companies they have. To become a member you have to know a member. So now my app is on hold until I can find someone who is already a member. If you know someone, please tell them to contact me. I am willing to pay $500. And all they ask for is the member’s name and member number. Thanks.

ABC and XYZ Members Needed!!!
If you are a ABC or XYZ Federal Credit Union member we will pay you $75.00 per member to sponsor other that would like to join the credit union but do not meet the membership requirements. Please email for details.