Online crime schemes steal millions of dollars each year from innocent victims. Recently, Mariner Finance became aware of a scheme that could potentially impact our customers and our business. Being informed can help you identify the scam and avoid the loss of your personal information.
Criminals sometimes invoke the name of the Federal Reserve Bank to deceive the public. Recently, online videos have surfaced that claim U.S. citizens may make payments using accounts held at the Federal Reserve Banks. According to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, These fictitious accounts have been most commonly styled as “secret accounts” and/or “Social Security trust accounts”. The videos offer bogus information on how individuals may use online portals, such as bill-pay websites, to initiate payments from the fictitious accounts using Federal Reserve Bank routing numbers.
Federal Reserve Banks provide banking services only to banks and governmental entities. Individuals DO NOT have accounts at the Federal Reserve. Any video, text, email, phone call, flyer, or website that describes how to pay bills using a Federal Reserve Bank routing number or using an account at the Federal Reserve Bank is a scam and should be reported to authorities.
Our employees have been instructed to pay special attention to transactions from customers asking to set up new routing numbers for their payments and will be diligent in reporting any fraudulent activity to the proper authorities. Our number one concern is the safety and security of our customers’ accounts. Working together, we can keep our assets safe and help authorities apprehend those perpetrating these crimes.
To learn more about this scam, visit www.newyorkfed.org/banking/frscams.html. If you would like to file a complaint about a suspected scam involving the Federal Reserve, contact the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at: www.ic3.gov.
If your information is compromised, take immediate action. See our blog post on steps to take if your identity is stolen.