To notify us of online fraud, identity theft, or a scam involving your Washington Savings Bank account, please call our Lowell branch at (978) 458-7999 or our Dracut branch at (978) 275-6000.
View security updates from Washington Savings Bank.
Recent Alerts
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04/11/2022
It's Always Phishing Season For Scammers.
Be Aware Of Phishing Attacks.
Keep your accounts secure from phishing attacks and other types of fraud.
As the number of scams have been increasing, hackers are using alternative ways of obtaining your personal information. While scams can occur via email, hackers have been known to target victims through phone calls, text messages, social media accounts, and unsecured WiFi connections in public areas. Often, scammers will spoof legitimate phone numbers from your local area or use familiar email addresses to trick you into giving them your account information. If you offer your personal details in response, scammers can access and take control of your accounts.
You should always be skeptical of anyone contacting you directly, by phone or email, requesting personal information including your account information, online/mobile banking credentials, security questions, passwords or one time passcodes (OTP).
Additionally, you should never send money to a person you don't know. This includes sending money through Zelle® or using a 3rd party money transmittal service like Western Union® or Moneygram®.
Washington Savings Bank has many safeguards in place to protect our customers' personal information. For more information on how to protect yourself from a phishing scam, visit the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) website linked below.
How To Recognize And Avoid Phishing Scams
03/13/2020
The Department of Health and Human Services released an alert regarding a malicious website, pretending to be a live map for Coronavirus COVID-19 Global Cases by Johns Hopkins University, is circulating on the internet waiting for unwitting internet users to visit the website. Visiting the website infects the computer with an information stealing program which can ex-filtrate a variety of sensitive data. Furthermore, anyone searching the internet for a Coronavirus map could unwittingly navigate to this malicious website. Although the malicious website is blocked by our campus firewalls, home users will be at risk.
Washington Savings Bank would like to remind our community to remain vigilant for scams related to coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19). Cyber criminals may send phishing emails with malicious attachments or links to fraudulent websites to trick victims into revealing sensitive information or donating to fraudulent charities or causes. Exercise caution in handling any email with a COVID-19-related subject line, attachment or hyperlink, and be wary of social media pleas, texts or calls related to COVID-19.
We encourage individuals to remain vigilant and take the following precautions:
- Avoid clicking on links in unsolicited emails and be wary of email attachments
- Use trusted sources, such as legitimate, government websites, for up-to-date, fact-based information about COVID-19
- Do not reveal personal or financial information in email, and do not respond to email solicitations for this information
- Verify a charity’s authenticity before making donations. Review the Federal Trade Commission’s page on Charity Scams for more information
If you feel you have received a phishing email please report it to the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) at https://www.ic3.gov
02/21/2020
Some customers are reporting phone phishing scams from the bank "fraud department" that informs them there is a problem with their card and requests the full debit card number. As a reminder, these are phishing scams in which the fraudsters are trying to trick you into revealing your social security or debit card number. The bank will never ask your full social security or debit card number over the phone.
07/23/2019
Please be aware a gas station pump skimming device was found at the Mobil station at 785 Gorham Street in Lowell. The bank identified all customers that used this location since mid-June and replaced their cards. We recommend not using any gas pump that does not have security tape over the pump lock.
09/07/2017
Equifax Inc. (NYSE: EFX) today announced a cybersecurity incident potentially impacting approximately 143 million U.S. consumers. Criminals exploited a U.S. website application vulnerability to gain access to certain files. Based on the company’s investigation, the unauthorized access occurred from mid-May through July 2017. Company to Offer Free Identity Theft Protection and Credit File Monitoring to All U.S. Consumers.
The FTC also has some helpful tips on what to do if you’re a victim of this data breach.
08/01/2017
A data breach originated from Kmart locations between September 2016 - April 2017 and the bank has been forwarded a compromised card list from Mastercard®. Because of the severity of this incident and the fraud experience to date, the bank needed to take the unusual step of lowering affected cards to a daily card limit of $500. New debit cards have been ordered at no cost and will arrive within the next two weeks. If you are an affected customer, you will be notified by letter or email.
08/11/2016
A data breach originated from local area Wendy's® restaurant locations between January 2016 - June 2016 and the bank has been forwarded a compromised card list from MasterCard®. Because of the severity of this incident and the fraud experience to date, the bank needed to take the unusual step of lowering affected cards to a daily card limit of $100. New debit cards have been ordered at no cost and will arrive within the next two weeks. If you are an affected customer, you will be notified by letter.
Wendy's is offering free identity theft protection services to any affected customers. For full information or call a toll free number (866) 779-0485, 8:00 am to 5:30 pm CST.
03/16/2016
Some local area gas stations have found skimming devices inside their pumps. After experiencing some unauthorized card transactions, the bank is reissuing cards for all customers that have made debit card purchases at the affected gas stations within the past 45 days. The current cards have been disabled for swipe purchases, but PIN based purchases and ATM withdrawals are still active. Affected customers have been mailed a letter and informed replacement cards will arrive shortly.
02/06/2015
Anthem Inc., the parent company of many Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS) plans throughout the country, reports that about 80 million customer accounts may have been affected by a data breach. The BCBS Massachusetts plan is not indicated as part of the breach.
Washington Savings Bank has not received any notification that any of our customers were affected by the breach. If we do receive notification, customers will be promptly notified and cards and/or accounts will be replaced at no charge. As always, watch your account for unrecognized activity and notify the bank immediately should anything suspicious be identified. Our convenient and free Internet banking gives you real time access to your account activity. Customers are not responsible for unauthorized charges on their accounts.
Anthem has set up a special website related to the event.