CUNA
  • Advocacy
    • Priorities we’re fighting for
    • Actions you can take
  • News
  • Learn
  • Compliance
  • Shop
  • Topics
    • Compliance
    • Credit Union System
    • Directors
    • Human Resources
    • Leadership
    • Lending
    • Marketing
    • Operations
    • Policy & Issues
    • Sales & Service
    • Technology
  • Credit Union Magazine
    • Buyers' Guide
    • Digital Edition
    • Credit Union Hero
    • Credit Union Rock Star
    • Subscribe
    • Advertise
    • Contact
  • Advertise
  • Awards
    • Nominate Credit Union Hero
    • Nominate Credit Union Rock Star
  • Podcasts
  • Videos
  • Contact
Learn More about Member Value

News

Member Benefits
Learn more
Learn more about the benefits of membership.
Home » Combating phishing scams beyond the point of entry
Operations

Combating phishing scams beyond the point of entry

Criminals continue to explore alternative avenues to steal member information.

February 11, 2019
Chris Ryan
No Comments
Combatting phishing scams beyond the point of entry

As an industry, we’ve made significant strides to reduce fraud and minimize the financial impact to consumers and businesses. Despite our efforts, criminals have continued to explore alternative avenues, new and old, to steal member information and use it for nefarious purposes.

It’s a constant search for the vulnerabilities within every credit union’s defenses. With so many technological advancements, many criminals have identified humans as the weakest link.

No matter how informed we are or how cautious we tend to be, we are all susceptible to fraud attacks—specifically phishing scams. As many of these scams become more sophisticated, it becomes difficult for members to differentiate legitimate communications from fraudulent ones.

While many credit unions have taken steps to educate members and employees on the telltale signs and pitfalls of phishing scams, education isn’t enough. People tend to re-use the same usernames and passwords so they have fewer to remember.

This means the credentials needed to access a credit union account might be stolen from somewhere else. According to Experian’s 2019 Global Identity and Fraud Report, more than two in five consumers worldwide have already experienced a fraudulent event online during some point in their lives.

Consider a credit union member who belongs to any online group—like a community organization, charity group, athletic association, or the parent organization for their child’s school. Now consider the high likelihood that the member uses the same credentials for those online relationships that they use to access their credit union accounts.

The point is, a phishing attempt doesn’t have to impersonate the credit union to steal the account credentials. The member might be phished by a criminal impersonating any of those other entities.

Once the information is phished, the criminal only needs to know which credit union to access. This is where breached data and social media vulnerability come into play.

The “dark web” isn’t just a scary idea, it’s a real place where that information is for sale.

Credit unions cannot control a member who uses the same credentials with other online accounts, nor can they protect members everywhere they go. If credit unions rely solely on their members to protect their systems from phishing attacks, it may only be a matter of time before they are infiltrated.

It falls on credit unions to protect themselves, as well as their members’ information and accounts. And in fact, more businesses recognize this.

Our research also shows that nearly 75% of businesses globally reported an improvement in online security. A multi-layered approach that relies on data and intelligence to passively authenticate individuals and challenge them for additional verification when appropriate is the best way to minimize the fraud threat.

Advanced analytics enable machine learning with innovative data to detect anomalies that indicate fraudulent behavior. More secure verification processes that leverage physical and behavioral biometrics and document verification allow good members to continue online activity with little or no friction.

If an individual’s credentials are compromised, these barriers prevent the real damage that results from unauthorized access to a member’s account information.

Ultimately, it is important to educate members and employees on how to avoid falling victim to phishing scams. But credit unions need to take more aggressive action to protect their systems and members.

While a silver bullet for fraud detection does not exist, the data and technology are available to help credit unions make the right fraud decisions and protect members’ identities and accounts. We all need to stay ahead of the criminals, and the technologies that enable credit unions to do this are available.

CHRIS RYAN is Experian’s senior fraud solutions consultant.

KEYWORDS credit union fraud phishing
  • Related Articles

    Avoid phishing scams: 3 steps

    Beyond the numbers: The evolving role of the CFO

    Combat Social Engineering: Don’t Be the Weakest Link

Chris Ryan

Combating phishing scams beyond the point of entry

More from this author

Post a comment to this article

Report Abusive Comment

Subscriber Exclusives Break-through branding

Break-through branding: Build an emotional connection

When Elevations Credit Union expanded into two new counties, senior leadership set out to tell its story in a bold, fresh way.
How technology transforms marketing

How technology transforms marketing

Artificial intelligence improves member conversions, engagement, and retention.
Analytics drives journey toward data nirvana

Analytics drives journey toward 'data nirvana'

Data analytics can provide the 'oh wow' moment of discovering member behavior.
Subscribe Now

Trending

  • It's time to expand our cooperative principles

  • Settlement proposed in data breach lawsuit against Wendy’s

  • Serving the underserved and increasing diversity

Tweets by CUNA_News

Polls

Who should be the 2019 Credit Union Hero of the Year?

View Results
More

Champion of America’s Credit Unions

Credit Union National Association is the only national association that advocates on behalf of all of America’s credit unions. We work tirelessly to protect your best interests in Washington and all 50 states. We fuel your professional growth at every level and champion the credit union story at every turn.

More CUNA

  • About
  • Careers
  • Contact Us
  • Recommended Websites

Resources for

  • CUNA Board Members
  • Credit Union Advocates
  • Leagues
  • Press
  • Vendors