Your Security Is Very Important To Us.
At Donaldrufus Investment Bank, we’re committed to keeping your personal and financial information safe and protecting your security no matter how you choose banking with us. For us, “security” means safeguarding your personal and financial information, and working with you to prevent fraud, theft and other scams that could lead to losses for both you and your credit union.
Learn More About Data and information Security.
Common Security treats
Protection: What we are doing..
Protection: What you can do..
Report an incident
Have a privacy concern or complaint? Contact us with your questions, or call us at +1 646-513-2897 and ask to speak with the Privacy Office.
Common Security Treats
Fraud is a significant problem in the financial services industry, and Macfitzer takes fraud seriously by working hard to protect our members from financial crime.
Working together, Donaldrufus Investment Bank and its members do a great job of protecting you and your money, there are still a number of common threats and scams that all financial institutions need to deal with – and that every member should know about. In this section, we’ll give you an overview of the major common threats – what they are, how to deal with them, and easy steps you can take to minimize the risk to yourself and your credit union.
Online and mobile banking fraud
Stay safe when you’re banking online…or on the go.
We live in a digital world where more members than ever before are banking online or on their mobile phones.
Online and mobile banking make daily banking fast and convenient, and with the tools we’ve put in place to make your online banking experience secure and safe, the risk to you and your money is low. However, online and mobile banking is never 100 per cent safe. There are many fraudsters out there who’ve made it their business to fool you into sharing your financial information by using sophisticated tools that look real to most users.
fraudstars invade online privacy through:
- Phishing and fraudulent e-mailst
- Malware and viruses
- Mobile fraud
In all cases, signing up for online banking alerts is a good idea. Alerts are an online banking feature that automatically sends you an email and/or a text message to your mobile phone to alert you of certain changes to your account made through online banking. You can then let us know if we need to address it.
Working together, we’ll make sure anyone who wants to cheat you out of your money won’t stand a chance.
Identity theft
Identity theft (sometimes also known as identity fraud) is one of the fastest-growing crimes in World today. Identity theft is a form of stealing another person's personal information, and then assuming that person's identity to access resources or obtain credit and other benefits in the victim’s name.
Just as someone can steal your personal identity, your business's identity can be stolen. Once stolen, thieves can use your business name and financial information to open a bank account and run up expenses. Identity thieves can use your good name for all sorts of problematic activities, so it’s critical that you take the necessary steps to protect your personal information.
If you think somebody is trying to illegally obtain your personal or financial information or think you have been a victim of identity theft, contact our Member Services Centre at +1 646-513-2897 or (+44) 203-514-5513 immediately.
What we do to protect you
Donaldrufus Investment Bank has implemented a number of privacy practices and procedures to prevent unauthorized access, use or manipulation of your personal information, including:
- requiring all employees sign a confidentiality agreement
- implementing electronic security measures such as passwords, pass codes and, where necessary, encryption
- limiting physical access to confidential areas in our buildings
- requiring contractual agreements with our business partners that ensure confidentiality and
- automatic logoff of online banking after an extended period of inactivity.
Our online banking Personal Access features also help protect you by asking you to verify your identity so we can prevent criminals from using your identity or your personal financial information. The features also help ensure that you log in to our secure website and not a fake site.
Cheque fraud
Cheque fraud is a common form of financial crime. There are three main types:
- counterfeit: when fake cheques are used that are not written or authorized by legitimate account holders
- forgery: when stolen cheques are signed by someone other than the account holders
- fraudulent/altered: when cheques are issued by account holders, and then intercepted and altered to change the beneficiary or amount.
A typical cheque fraud scam is where someone sends you a cheque, asks you to deposit the money in your account and then requests you forward most of the funds by wire transfer or money order somewhere else. Examples of where this can occur include a job posting for an Internet collection agent, a lottery or inheritance notification, or overpayment for something you're selling where you’re asked to return the extra funds.
Cheque fraud is one of the riskiest types of fraud for members, as you will be held liable (under the terms of the Macfitzer Account Services Guide) for any credits deposited to your account from a fraudulent cheque.
What we do to protect you
Macfitzer has built our reputation on doing the right thing. The moment our members detect a cheque fraud (or any other type of fraud) may have occurred, they should report it to us immediately. If you’re not sure whether a cheque is valid or not, bring the cheque with you to the branch and let us know about your concerns, and we’ll check on the validity of the cheque for you. We have systems in place and work with the authorities to shut down fraud or a breach of security immediately.
We also use high quality Davis and Henderson cheques for Macfitzer members, which include special security features and meet all of Macfitzer 's strict security standards.
Other common scams
Thousands of Canadians are defrauded each year. Your risk of becoming a fraud victim is not linked to your age, race, income or geographic location. Scammers don’t care about any of that – they just want your money.
While there are some common sources of fraud that affect financial institutions, there are other forms of financial fraud or scams that members should also be aware of common Consumer scams include:
- Nigerian letter scams (where you get a letter from someone in Africa asking you to give or send money in return for a major payout)
- “You are a winner” and pay-to-play (where you receive an email or phone call telling you you’ve won a prize, or have to pay to enter into a contest)
- Pre-qualified loans and credit cards (where you’re told by mail or phone that you’ve prequalified for a credit card you haven’t applied for);
- Other con jobs (where you are persuaded to provide money for a false business or project)
Small business scams
Individuals aren’t the only ones targeted for scams. Small businesses are also targeted, often because owners may be inexperienced, the business has no legal staff or the business may need financial assistance.
Common business scams to avoid include:
- Advance fee loan scams (where loans are offered at very reasonable rates via newspaper ad, on the Internet or by email. The scammer may ask for up-front money for insurance purposes or to transfer loan funds)
- Work-at home scams (where you’re offered a job but are required to pay for the information or materials you need; rather than helping you make money, yours is stolen)
- Bills out of the blue (where your business receives a "last chance" invoice for a listing in a "business directory,” or you receive an invoice indicating that an urgent delivery of office supplies is awaiting confirmation of your address, asking you to pay immediately)
Protection: What we’re doing
Fraud is a significant problem and Macfitzer Bank takes fraud very seriously by working hard to protect our members from financial crime.
Donaldrufus Investment Bank has sophisticated monitoring and detection systems that help us to identify fraudulent transactions – sometimes even before the transaction is completed. We also train our employees, who are a critical first line of defence, to detect a wide range of fraud types and keep them informed of emerging fraud scams. And, we work with our industry partners (other financial institutions) and law enforcement to coordinate efforts to catch and deter financial criminals
Macfitzer maintains the quality of our security measures through ongoing assessment, research, testing and monitoring of fraud and potential fraud activities in our branches, and online.
We also train employees to be aware of technology-related threats and their responsibilities to protect and manage member information. And, we work with our industry partners (other financial institutions) and law enforcement to coordinate efforts to catch and deter financial criminals.
Our security program ensures all necessary physical, administrative and technical safeguards are in place to protect the confidentiality, integrity and availability of member information. Our program is regularly updated as technology changes and new risks are discovered. While fraudsters are always finding new ways to attack our systems, we’re continuously learning and adapting to those threats.
Monitoring and security systems
Macfitzer has sophisticated fraud monitoring and detection systems that run 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to detect suspicious activity and prevent fraud incidents from happening. These systems are continually adapted to ensure we are detecting the newest types of fraud attacks.
Members and Macfitzer Bank both have a role to play in preventing fraud. Macfitzer has invested heavily in these detection systems to help minimize the impact of fraud on our members. These systems are designed to identify patterns that indicate that it is a fraudster, not our member, who is making these transactions.
Investigation and blocking of accounts
When suspicious activity is detected, our analysts quickly investigate and, depending on the speed of the attack, they may contact members before taking action. Some kinds of fraud happen extremely quickly (e.g. debit card fraud) and in these cases, we will automatically take action on accounts by blocking cards and then following-up quickly with a phone call to each affected member to inform them of the incident.
When our detection system identifies fraud patterns, we risk-score the activity (higher risk score = more likely to be fraud). If the risk score is high, we will take immediate action to block that members account until they can change their passwords/protect themselves. If the risk score is a little lower, our fraud analysts will investigate the activity by looking through transactions and often contacting the member to determine whether there is fraud involved.
We have experienced fraud investigators, analysts and strategy experts all working together to help protect our members and their money from financial criminals.
When it comes to the protection your personal and financial information, Macfitzer relies on our members to play a critical role to play in preventing fraud. The good news is we’re in this together.
That’s why Donaldrufus Investment Bank has introduced a number of security technologies for debit and credit card use and online banking designed to minimize your risk of fraud, and make it easier – and more painless – for you to protect yourself.
What you can do to protect yourself
Security and fraud prevention is a partnership between Macfitzer Bank and our members – a two-way street. While we have put systems in place to keep your information and money safe, we can’t successfully stop fraud without your help. There are lots of simple things you can do to keep your money safe.
Donaldrufus Investment Bank works hard every day to protect members from financial crime, and we’re partners with our members in this effort. It’s important for you to be vigilant in monitoring your account. If you ever suspect your personal information may be compromised – or you think you may be a victim of fraud – it’s your responsibility to get in touch with us immediately at +1 646-513-2897 or (+44) 203-514-5513. Meanwhile, there are plenty of things you can do – today – to minimize any risk to you and your money. Members play an important role in preventing financial crime, and Macfitzer provides tools to help members protect themselves.
If you take the following advice, you can dramatically reduce your fraud and security risk. Find out how.
- Report suspicious activity
- Online prevention
- Protect your computer
- Protect your mobile phone
- Debit and credit card use
- Prevent identity theft
- Cheque fraud
Report an incident
Prevent yourself from being a victim of credit or debit card fraud by reporting a lost or stolen card immediately.
- Report a lost or stolen Macfitzer enviro™ Visa card at +1 646-513-2897
- Report a lost or stolen MemberCard (debit card) at +1 646-513-2897 or (+44) 203-514-5513 .
As always, if you have any other questions or concerns regarding security or fraud, talk to a Macfitzer staff member at +1 646-513-2897 or (+44) 203-514-5513.
