What do Yahoo, First American Corporation, Facebook, and Marriott International have in common? All are part of the top ten list - top ten biggest data breaches ever. In fact, in 2023 there were over 3,000 cybersecurity incidents with compromised data.¹

It seems each month we hear of another data breach resulting in personal and financial information being shared with hackers and fraudsters. All consumers should be aware of basic actions they can take to protect their identity:

• Protect documents with personal information and keep these records in a safe place. When disposing of confidential documents, it is recommended to use a shredder instead of throwing them away. If a shredder is not available, consumers should use a marker to block out account numbers.
• Consumers should ask questions before giving out their Social Security Number. Organizations that need this, like banks, the IRS, and their employer, won’t call, email, or text asking for it. When any other organization says they need their Social Security Number, consumers should ask why they need it, how will they protect it, and if they can use another identifier instead.
• Information should be protected from scammers online and on phones by using strong passwords. Adding multi-factor authentication for accounts is a great tool too and offers added security with the extra required credentials to log in. This makes it harder for scammers to log into accounts if they do get the username and password.
• Another effective resource is using a credit monitoring service or checking their credit report. Identity monitoring services are also helpful as they check databases to see what information is collected about consumers.

TCM Bank helps combat and prevent identity theft with these tactics for our mutual cardholders:

• We encourage cardholders to sign up for eStatements. These electronic statements can be accessed on MyCardStatement.com. Since there’s no paper trail, there is less of a chance for data to be compromised by dumpster divers. We also encourage cardholders to frequently review their transactions online via eStatements. This can help combat fraudulent transactions because it allows the cardholder to report suspicious charges promptly so the TCM fraud team can have optimal time to dispute transactions.
• When TCM calls a cardholder to verify if a charge is fraudulent, should the cardholder ever feel uncomfortable, they are encouraged to hang up and call the phone number on the back of their card to verify that TCM Bank is the entity calling. The Fraud department will leave a note on the cardholder’s account, so when they call Customer Service, the cardholder will get redirected to the Fraud team to finish the conversation. Also, TCM’s Fraud team will never ask for the cardholder’s credit card number; if your cardholder gets a call asking for their full credit card number, it is someone trying to gain access to their account.
• ID Navigator Powered by NortonLifeLock* is available to all Visa® TCM Bank cardholders. While no one can prevent all identity theft, this free service helps cardholders stay informed when their identity is threatened. ID Navigator Powered by NortonLifeLock helps provide users with tools to act quickly. This service can be activated at https://www.cardbenefitidprotect.com/.

Identity recovery can be a long, painful, and expensive process. Encouraging customers and cardholder to implement careful and proactive steps, like the ones mentioned above, can help prevent identify theft and the headache that comes with it. Every consumer should also have a plan in place in case the worst happens. Together we can help educate our cardholders so they can keep their information safe.

¹ https://www.statista.com/statistics/273550/data-breaches-recorded-in-the-united-states-by-number-of-breaches-and-records-exposed/

*No one can prevent all identity theft.