FDIC-Insured - Backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. GovernmentLocked VISA Card Text Message Scam
Murphy-Wall State Bank & Trust Company has recently had several customers receive texts saying their Visa Cards have been temporarily locked. This is a SCAM with a generic message which is trying to get you to click on a link in order to unlock your card. This scam could also include your online banking access. Do not respond to the message or open any link. The phone number the text originates from may change. In addition, if you Google the 800 number you are asked to call, it shows the number as spam on several reverse directory sites.
- Why This Looks Valid
The text is coming from an address which makes it look like an alert and includes an ID number to make it look more valid. Many people have Visa credit cards and receive valid text notifications from the issuing bank, including lockout messages.
- Why This Is Fraud
You may not have signed up for text messaging notifications, in which case you would never receive a card lockout alert by text message. Valid credit card alerts will always come from the issuing bank of the credit card with the “From” number being 5 or 6 digits. A longer “From” number is likely not from any bank or credit card service.
- Additional Notes
A short way to refer to phishing messages sent by texting, also known as SMS, is a SMISH. Scams by text are very common – the FTC provides a great resource for more information on how to recognize them. A great way to quickly find out if this is a legitimate text is to search the phone number in Google – any valid alert would include a phone number that traces back to an official corporate website.^
When you receive a text message like this, the best thing to do is to ignore or delete it then the reach out to us at (877)358-6554 to report the suspicious message.
Murphy-Wall State Bank will never reach out to customers about their private banking information via text message.
^FRAUD: VISA Card temporarily locked (SMISHING). (2022, July 31).
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