Did You Know?
FDIC’s How Money Smart Are You?
Financial Education
FIB has partnered with the Michigan Chronicle to provide important information to improve your financial well-being. Learn more about Financially LIT with First Independence Bank.
FDIC Consumer Education
The FDIC offers an on-line tool to help educate consumers how to better protect their computers and themselves from identity theft, and steps to take if they have been victimized. The presentation: Don’t Be an On-Line Victim: How to Guard Against Internet Thieves and Electronic Scams is on the FDIC’s website.
Enrich – Financial Wellness for Employers, Advisors, Financial Institutions
Join Enrich, a personal financial program provided by First Independence Bank. Read More
Operation HOPE
First Independence Bank teams up with Operation HOPE to support clients in managing their financial health. Read More
Phishing Attempts and Internet Scams
Phishing is a social engineering technique often used by criminals to trick individuals into providing personal information such as: debit card numbers, account numbers, social security numbers, access ID’s and passwords. Phishing may be performed over the telephone, through email, or through redirection to a fraudulent website that appears to look just like the legitimate site. Some of these fraudulent websites and even compromised legitimate sites may be virus laden and can be used to download malicious software (also known as malware) to your computer. We have listed some tips below to help protect your personal information on the internet:
- Never share or give out your Access ID, User Name, Passwords, or Security Challenge Questions & Answers
- Monitor your account activity on a regular basis
- Do not use personal information as your Access ID, User Name & Password
- Create difficult passwords that include letters & numbers and upper & lowercase letters
- Change your password frequently
- Avoid using public computers to access your Internet Banking
- Always log-out of internet banking. Don’t just use the X to close out of the system
- Do not provide any personal information to websites that do not use encryption or other secure methods of protection
- Ensure your computer is equipped with up to date anti-virus, anti-spam and mal-ware software
- Do not allow your computer or web browser to save your login names or passwords
- If your computer is connecting directly to the internet you should use a personal firewall software or a hardware router/firewall to protect your PC
- Keep your computer updated with the latest updates and patches for your operating system
- If you have any questions about the legitimacy of an email, especially an email from this institution, call us at (313) 256-8400
Here are some additional tips for commercial customers:
- Perform your own annual internal risk assessment & evaluation on all online accounts
- Establish internal policies regarding employee internet usage
- Ensure all company computers are equipped with up to date anti-virus protection software
- Ensure you have procedures for terminating access for former employees
- Inform employees to never write down Internet Banking passwords and leave them out in the open
- Ensure dual control or other checks and balances over individual access to online transaction capabilities
Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) of 2006
The UIGEA is a law that prohibits any person engaged in the business of betting or wagering (as defined by the act) from knowingly accepting payments in connection with the participation of another person in unlawful Internet gambling. The Department of the Treasury, and the Federal Reserve Board have issued a joint final rule known as Regulation GG, to implement this Act. As defined in the regulation, unlawful Internet gambling means to “place, receive or otherwise knowingly transmit a bet or wager by any means which involves the use, at least in part, of the Internet where such a bet or wager is unlawful under any applicable Federal or State law in the State or Tribal lands in which the bet or wager is initiated, received, or otherwise made”. As a customer of First Independence Bank, these restricted transactions are prohibited from being processed through your account or banking relationship with us. If you do engage in an Internet gambling business and open a new account with us, we will ask that you provide evidence of your legal capacity to do so.
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