TD Bank’s customer service was supposed to be 24/7.
When she reread the email, she noticed some of the links were broken, and she got worried.
She’d shared some personal information when she called.
Was she being targeted by abanking scam?
After all, a legitimate email raised a bunch of red flags.
Read more:Is That Text Message From Your Bank Legit?
Here are four common reasons you’ll hear from it.
To verify your identity
When you open an account, your bank will verify your identity.
They’ll only request this via mail to your physical address or within the bank’s secure message center.
Your bank may also verify your identity when you take certain actions.
If you spot something suspicious, ping the bank using official avenues (more on that below).
Depending on the preferences you selected, this may be by email, text or push notification.
Take a moment to review your account configs and see how these messages will arrive.
Then, log into your account to verify that your balance is actually low.
You also may be able to log into your online account and chat with a representative.
This is my go-to option for communicating with one of my banks, Chase.
Should you automatically respond to a message from your bank?
While it’s important to take communication from your bank seriously, don’t feel pressured to respond immediately.
Scammers often create a sense of urgency to make you act before you think twice.
Is the sender’s address odd?
Are they asking you to share your PIN or other sensitive information?
Reviewthese common red flagsfrom the American Bankers Association to know what to avoid.
There’s one method, however, that I’m not as confident about: voice authentication.
Banks like Wells Fargo use voice verification services to grant some account holders access to their details.
Burton is similarly skeptical.
I see what AI can do.
you might send a six-digit code to my text every time or a link to my email.
People are getting very crafty and very clever."
With something as important as your money, it’s always smart to be cautious.
