The Pennsylvania Bankers Association said banks across the commonwealth are seeing an uptick in phishing scams targeting their customers via phone, email and text messages.

These phishing scams are communications designed to trick consumers into providing confidential information (like account numbers, passwords or PINS) either online or over the phone to someone impersonating a bank employee.

Victims of phishing scams can lose hundreds, even thousands of dollars.

Remember:

• Banks will never ask for your personal information via phone, text or email.

You may be asked to verify confidential information if you call your bank, but banks will never call you to ask for this information.

If you receive an incoming call from someone claiming to be your bank, the safest thing you can do is hang up and call your bank’s publicly listed customer service number.

• If you receive a suspicious email or text, do not download any attachments, click on any links or reply to the sender. Report the email or text by forwarding emails to the Anti-Phishing Working Group at reportphishing@apwg.org and text messages to SPAM (7726).

Finally, report the phishing attack to the FTC at ftc.gov/complaint.

• If you receive a suspicious phone call, hang up or end the call and do not respond to the caller’s requests.

• If you feel that you have been the victim of a scam and may have provided personal or important financial information, contact your bank immediately via their publicly listed customer service number. Often, this is found on the back of your bank card. Be sure to include any relevant details, such as whether the suspicious caller attempted to impersonate your bank and whether any personal or financial information was provided to the suspicious caller.

“PA Bankers and its member banks take consumers’ financial well-being seriously,” said Duncan Campbell, PA Bankers’ president and CEO.

“Banks are constantly working hard to protect their customers’ money through a variety of safeguards, but one of the most effective ways to prevent consumers from falling victim to phishing scams is through continued education.”

In October, the American Bankers Association launched its annual #BanksNeverAskThat campaign, which seeks to turn the table on fraudsters by empowering consumers to spot bogus bank phishing scams by using attention-grabbing humor and other engaging content.

Consumers are encouraged to visit banksneveraskthat.com for an interactive game, a quiz and tips to help them learn more about these scams.

“The easiest way to spot a phishing scam is to remember that ‘Banks Never Ask That.’ When something looks or sounds suspicious, it likely is,” said Campbell.

PA Bankers has been bringing banks and bankers together for more than 130 years to learn, grow, serve and engage with their peers, communities and lawmakers.

The association has built a strong reputation as a leading advocate for pro-banking policies at the state and federal levels, as well as for the delivery of quality education, products and services for banks of all sizes and their employees. Follow the Pennsylvania Bankers Association on Facebook and LinkedIn.