GREENFIELD — Is Grandmother’s old savings passbook just a charming relic? Or is it fodder for identity thieves in these modern times of high-technology fraud?
Recently, Greenfield Savings Bank “struck gold” in a search for antique memorabilia connected to the bank’s history: The find was an old Greenfield Saving Bank embossed leather-like passbook and another savings book from the now-defunct Crocker Institution for Savings. And all anyone had to do was log on to eBay to find and buy them.
“This is a prime example of why people should be shredding old documents,” says Karen Cartier, the bank’s identity theft and fraud prevention officer. “Identity theft is not a victimless crime,” she said. “It puts a face to a crime and it can affect anybody. Your identity can be sold online.”
The Crocker Savings passbook belonged to Emma and John Chappell of Turners Falls, and the other passbook belonged to their son, Arthur Chappell, who was a fireman during the late 1940s and ’50s.
“My uncle lived in my grandmother’s old house, and when he passed away, I had an auctioneer go through everything,” said Louis Chappell of Greenfield. When Chappell got a call from bank publicist Paul Benjamin, saying he’d bought bank books that once belonged to Louis’s late grandparents and uncle, “I didn’t believe a word he was saying,” Chappell said. “I was quite surprised.” Chappell said he isn’t sure if the passbooks were among the items the auctioneer took after his uncle’s death, or if an antiques dealer who had gone through the house earlier, when Arthur Chappell was still alive, took the passbooks along with some other collectibles.
“They were beautiful books,” Chappell added.
The old bankbooks will be framed behind glass and displayed in the lobby, and there is no evidence that information from either account was used fraudulently.
Ironically, the cover of the old Crocker book says: “Take Care of this Book. If you lose or mislay it, give immediate notice to the Treasurer; should it fall into improper hands you may be defrauded.”
When someone dies, says Cartier, “people clean out their houses; they don’t go through everything. There are financial documents that should be shredded. People hold onto things way too long.”
This is why Greenfield Savings Bank hosts periodic “shred fests,” where the public can bring up to three shopping bags each of old documents that contain anything that may be used to steal your identity, including: account statements, credit applications, receipts, old resumes, used airline tickets; utility bills, ATM receipts, cancelled checks or employee pay stubs. As the bank points out, it’s not illegal for someone to go through your trash, once it’s out on the curb. Cartier says even partial information may be used to create a synthetic identity. For instance, partial identities can be used to acquire user-status on someone else’s credit card. “That is very prevalent right now,” she said.
She said someone with poor or no credit can piggy-back onto someone’s good credit, as a secondary card user, building up their own credit rating under their own or a fictitious name. “Then they go out and get good (credit) cards, based on your good credit — and then they cash them out.”
Social networking sites like Facebook often contain some identity information, such as complete birth dates, and names of family members. Cartier advises people to be careful what they share online. She also recommends not posting vacation photos while still on vacation — so those who see your posts don’t know when you’re away from home.
“If you’re going to keep old documents with Social Security numbers, lock them up. If someone breaks into your home, they’re going to steal whatever they can,” said Cartier. “And if financial documents are easy to take, they will do so.”
Another good reason for locking up birth and marriage certificates, divorce decrees, social security cards, college transcripts, diplomas, military records, life insurance policies, wills, trusts, warranties and real estate documents is to ensure they won’t be within easy reach of anyone who might have access to your house.
“Card skimmers” can be inserted over ATM card readers to create an illegal copy of your credit or debit card, enabling credit thieves to charge items to your card over the telephone or internet. Also, keypad overlays can be placed on top of factory-installed keypads, to record the pin number when a victim is withdrawing money from an ATM or using a debit card at the gas pump. Those who “skim” information can also place a hidden camera somewhere on the ATM to see you enter the pin number — because they need both the card and pin number. That’s why the security tip on many ATMs now tell you to cover your hand while entering your pin number.
“Most information is stolen outside the banks,” Cartier said. “It is merchant processing that is usually the culprit. Or skimmers. We have a daily program on checking our ATMs, and four investigators. We have an incident response team and we’ve been extremely successful in stopping fraud.”
She said pin numbers should be memorized and never written down — especially not on the card itself. Cartier said she has seen it written on customers’ cards.
When going into a ATM, Cartier recommends another card to open the door on an ATM; then use your bank card for the transaction only. “Use a spent gift card — with no personal information whatsoever on it — that will let you get into the door. Then use your debit card for your transaction.” She said the inconsistent information given by both cards would be a safeguard.
She said the trend of emails scams from “a Nigerian prince” or “an earl in England” are fading, but a lot of today’s internet scams “look very plausible.”
“They are getting more and more sophisticated,” she said, “and people are falling for them.”
Customers are generally protected from unauthorized transactions on lost or stolen debit cards, but they should immediately notify the bank as soon as the cards go missing. “Fraud is measured in minutes, not days,” said Cartier. “Statistics show identity thieves can steal your identity faster that a car thief can steal your car.”
If you think your accounts are in danger, the bank can lock down your accounts to prevent all further unauthorized transactions. “We have a lot of information to help customers put freeze messages on their consumer credit reports,” she said.
“We do a lot of community outreach — especially to senior citizens on fraud scams and financial exploitation,” Cartier said.
If you believe someone is using your personal information to open new accounts, buy things or get a tax refund, the Federal Trade Commission recommends taking the following steps: Call the companies where the fraud occurred, explain that someone stole your identity, and ask them to close or freeze the accounts. Then, no one can add new charges unless you agree. Change your logins, passwords and PINs for your accounts.
The second step is to place a fraud alert and get your credit report. For a free credit report go online to:
annualcreditreport.com
or call 1-877-322-8228.
Review your reports and note any account or transaction you don’t recognize. This will help you report the theft to the FTC and the police.