Information Security
🚨 Think you've been targeted by fraud? If you notice suspicious account activity, contact our Customer Care Center immediately.
Protecting your Identity
Happy State Bank, a division of Centennial Bank is serious about your account security and has recently enhanced our fraud protection methods to help prevent account loss. If your account has suspected fraud, we will use every method to notify you.
Please be aware our fraud department may contact you by text message, telephone call or email.
For additional protection, we request customers:
- Use a PIN on all debit card transactions at large retail merchants. If a PIN is not used the transaction may not be accepted.
- Monitor account activity. You can view account activities through online banking or by using the Happy State Bank Mobile Bank App.
- Enroll in SMS (text) Banking, and establish account alerts. To enroll log into Online Banking and select menu option “Services/Mobile Banking.”
Substantial measures are in place at Happy State Bank to protect your identity and your accounts against theft and fraud. For example, stringent bank privacy policies protect your personal and financial information. Password protection for online transactions helps assure online security. When using our online services, you develop a secret password that only you know. Encryption of online transactions with your bank converts your information into secure code, protecting you against hackers.
How serious is the Problem?
Thieves obtain personal information such as, social security numbers, driver’s license numbers, credit card numbers and even birth certificates and passports. Accounts are then opened in the victims’ name for credit cards and loans with the mail diverted to a different address. With this approach, it could take months or years to learn that you are a victim.
Keep up-to-date with the latest from Information Security.
Protect Yourself from Identity Theft
🔒 Protect Personal Information
- Do not give out financial information such as checking and credit card numbers, or your social security number, unless you know the person or organization.
- Notify your banker of suspicious phone inquiries such as those asking for account information to “verify your account” or “be awarded a prize.”
- Closely guard your ATM personal identification number and ATM receipts.
- Block your ATM transactions with your body. Keep the keyboard from view and prevent someone from learning your personal identification number (PIN).
- Commit all passwords and personal identification numbers to memory.
- Be creative when you select a password. Don’t be obvious.
📬 Protect Mail & Documents
- Report lost or stolen checks immediately.
- Shred any financial solicitations and bank statements before disposing of them.
- Put outgoing mail into a secure, official Postal Service collection box.
- Destroy pre-approved credit card offers before throwing them out.
- Account for all new checkbooks when you receive them in the mail.
- Keep new and cancelled checks in a safe place.
🚨 Monitor for Fraud
- If regular bills fail to reach you, call the company to find out why.
- If your bills include questionable items, don’t ignore them. Investigate immediately to head off any possible fraud.
- Stay a step ahead with the latest information and practical tips from the nation’s consumer protection agency. Click here to review the FTC’s Scam Alerts.
- Periodically contact the major credit reporting companies to review your file and make sure the information is correct.
Credit Reporting Resources
Equifax
Place a fraud report:
1-888-766-0008
Order a credit report:
1-800-685-1111
Experian
Place a fraud report:
1-888-397-3742
Order a credit report:
1-888-397-3742
TransUnion
Place a fraud report:
1-800-680-7289
Order a credit report:
1-800-888-4213
Free Credit Reports
📞 (877) 322-8228
Common IRS Fraud Attempts and How to Respond
If you receive a call from someone who (a) claims to be a member of the IRS or
(b) demands that you pay back taxes, do not provide personal or confidential information.
The first step of IRS correspondence is to mail the taxpayer, and the IRS will never email or call you to request personal information or immediate payment.
Check any suspicious tax claims by calling the IRS at 1-800-829-1040 to confirm any issues with your taxes.
If you suspect that a caller is impersonating the IRS, report the call to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) IRS Impersonation Scam Reporting.
Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACT Act)
The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACT Act) will help reduce identity theft according to Congress and the Federal Trade Commission.
One provision requires the three major credit-reporting agencies to provide consumers with a free copy of their own credit report.
The requirement took effect in December 2004.
National Fraud Alert System
Another provision to help prevent identity theft is the National Fraud Alert System.
Consumers who reasonably suspect they have been or may be victimized by identity theft, or who are military personnel on active duty away from home, can place an alert on their credit files.
The alert will put potential creditors on notice that they must proceed with caution when granting credit.
What to Do If You Are a Victim
Credit Bureau Contacts
Experian: 888-397-3742
TransUnion: 800-680-7289
Additional Reporting Resources
Call the Social Security Fraud Hotline: 800-269-0271
Contact the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) theft hotline:
877-438-4338, or visit them online here.
If your checks are used fraudulently, report to:
ChexSystems: 800-428-9623
Equifax: 800-437-5120
National Processing Company: 800-526-5380
SCAN: 800-526-5380
TeleCheck: 800-710-9898
Other Measures Are in Place to Help Consumers Recover Their Credit Reputation
- Credit reporting agencies must stop reporting allegedly fraudulent account information when a consumer establishes that he or she has been the victim of identity theft.
- Creditors or businesses must provide copies of business records or fraudulent accounts or transactions related to them.
- This information can assist victims in proving that they are, in fact, victims.
- Consumers will be allowed to report accounts affected by identity theft directly to creditors in addition to credit reporting agencies to prevent the spread of erroneous information.
If you have any questions or concerns about protecting your financial identity, come in and visit your banker.
Happy State Bank has a personal checking account that offers credit and identity protection, cash back rewards, and more! Read more about it here, and ask your banker to upgrade your account to Club Checking.