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Use these tips to protect yourself from scammers trying to trick you into giving them your personal or financial information

Bad guys will use emails or text messages or make calls to you to try stealing your account numbers, passwords, social security numbers, or other personal information. With this info, they can work to get access to your email, your bank account or other personal or financial accounts, sell your information to other bad guys, or even steal your identity.

Did you know that if thieves gain access to your bank account, the FDIC does not cover identify theft or financial losses that may come with it? That's one key reason it's super important to protect your personal information as much as possible.

Unexpectedly downloading malware can be hard to detect and can allow bad guys to steal data, steal login information or passwords, delete your files, or allow them the ability to take control of your computer or other computers you may be in a network with.

Be Aware, Stay Informed

The tips here are only a few of the ways to help you recognize scam attempts. It’s important to stay vigilant to keep yourself out of harm's way – we highly suggest to keep yourself informed about new scenarios and techniques that bad guys use to try and steal your data, because there are many ways thieves can make your life miserable. Always better safe than sorry!

QCM encourages you to refer to this page to help keep yourself and your company’s data secure. We are here to support the success of your business, please reach out to us if you are in need of assistance.

Bad guys will send out emails that look very similar to official emails from companies you may have an account with and could even use that company’s logo! Recognizing these types of scam messages will require you to be more observant – keeping an eye out is the best way to stay safe.

Bad guys may even be able to find information about you online and use that information to reach out to you under false pretenses.

Look closely and check for signs of bad guy emails or texts as shown below, and DO NOT CLICK OR RESPOND, JUST DELETE:

Bad spelling or bad grammar
Emails or texts from names of people you know but the tone is not how the person you do know speaks or writes
Warnings, threats or urgent requests asking you to verify your information by asking you to provide personal information, a passcode, or payment information
You’re Approved! And then they ask you to wire money or purchase pre-paid debit cards
Notice saying your account is on hold or pending cancellation because of payment issues
Minimal or generic information in the body of the email asking you to click on an attachment to see your statement, your refund, something you won, or other items
Notice indicating suspicious activity or failed login attempts on one of your accounts, asking you to login to find out more
Asking you to click on any links on emails where you are not familiar with the source
Offers for free merchandise, credit cards, refunds, or offers too good to be true
Texts with messages prompting you to want to respond – don’t do it!

Using Threats to Send Money

Don’t believe anyone who you do not know that calls threatening to arrest you for unpaid debts. Even if they may have some of your personal information, consider that they could have found that off the internet, purchased it off the dark web, or obtained it from a data breach – they don’t have everything they need which is why they are 'phishing' for more info from you - hang up! Next, contact any REAL potential debtors or other sources to confirm any actions needed.

Someone You Know - Or is it?

The bad guys may try to pretend they are your friend, family member, or co-worker, and reach out to you disguising themselves as someone you know. They may relay a story using dire circumstances using emotions like fear or danger to get you to send money (popular scam played on senior citizens).

If the language the caller uses is not how your contact normally reaches out to you, or the voice is not familiar, or the tone is not typical, or the story questionable, we suggest you call your contact using the correct phone number you know to be theirs and verify if they are indeed the one who reached out to you. Outside of someone trying to scam you, there is a chance your contact may have been hacked and not be aware of any fraudulent actions or scammers using their information.

Consider not answering phone calls from numbers you do not recognize

If someone is legitimately looking to speak with you, they will likely leave a message or send a text. Once you answer, you have confirmed your phone number is valid. Scammers can then sell your number to marketing companies, or to the black web, and you may start to receive a lot of scam calls and robocalls. You may also expose yourself to hackers with more sophisticated attack methods that can take control of more sensitive accounts using just your phone number.

Just like with phone calls, sometimes the bad guys just want to confirm if your number is current and active – when you respond by answering your phone or responding to a text, you are confirming what they want to know. Don’t click on links or images from numbers you do not recognize or people you do not know, even if they use your name. If a message appears to be from someone you do know but the tone is off or there is a questionable link or image, verify the correct number and contact that person to confirm it was they who reached out to you and the message is legitimate.

Protect your computer by using security software and set it to update automatically
Protect your email by enabling Spam Filtering
Block email addresses or domains as needed
Protect your cell phone by setting your security software to update automatically
Backup your data regularly (email and phone)
Use a third party to help monitor your personal accounts
Keep a password list and update your passwords on a regular basis
Never use the same password on different accounts
Protect your accounts by requiring Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) which requires additional credentials for access**

**MFA makes it harder for bad guys to access your accounts, even if they do get access to your user name or password. You may need to use an additional pin, security question, password, text code, security key or authenticator app to use this method.

Freeze Your Credit

Consider freezing your credit with all three major credit agencies. They will ask you to create a pin number that you will need to provide any time you want to unlock your credit for services that require a credit check. Doing this will make it very difficult for someone to open a new account in your name. DO NOT SHARE your pin number with anyone.

Freeze Your Child’s Credit

Don’t let your child become a victim! Freezing your child’s credit will make it very difficult for anyone to open accounts using your child’s information.

If you received a notice from one of your accounts that your personal information was exposed from a data breach or an account that may have been hacked, you can register your information with the FTC to help from getting your identity stolen at https://www.identitytheft.gov/#/Info-Lost-or-Stolen

SOCIAL MEDIA

While many people enjoy using social media, this can also be a catalyst to disaster if too much information is shared or an account is hacked. If you are unsure whether something is not safe to share online, then don’t share it. Use MFA for access to your accounts whenever possible.

BE AWARE, STAY INFORMED

Recipient of multiple accolades throughout our history, most recently:

• SAP Utility of the Year Mid-Sized

Systems, Applications, & Products in Data Processing, Navajo Tribal Utility Authority (NTUA)

(QCM served as lead consultant on this project)

• BristolNet Innovation Partner of the Year

Bristol Global Mobility

• Minority Technology Firm of the Year

Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce

Experience & Expertise

QCM has been in business for more than 22+ years with over 350 years' of extensive technical expertise across our team of 30 employees. We have strong and established relationships with the best in technology partners, which we use to achieve the best fluency and results for our valued customers.

Value in Relationships

The QCM founding philosophy is: "IT projects should pay for themselves" - to achieve this, we work closely with and establish deep partnerships with each of our customers to fully understand their business needs. We then harness our solid vendor relationships to deliver projects with high potential to yield quick ROI and long-term competitive advantages, so our customers can achieve their goals and grow beyond.

When our Customers Succeed, We Succeed

QCM has retained many customers since the inception of our business in 2001 - now that's saying something. The value, ROI, technical expertise, and compelling advantages we provide are just some of the ways we save our customers money, and are the core of how we operate as a business - because when our customers succeed, we succeed.