Maine’s Bureau of Financial Institutions at the Department of Professional and Financial Regulation is warning of a scam involving fraudulent text messages. The messages appear to come from a consumer’s bank or credit union and indicate that there is a problem with the consumer’s account or debit card. The scammers urgently request account and other personal information in order to fix the non-existent problem.

Bureau of Financial Institutions Superintendent Lloyd LaFountain customers of several Maine banks and credit unions have received the text message. LaFountain says the message does not contain the name of any particular institution and appears randomly sent to cell phone numbers without targeting consumers at any particular institution.

He says banks and credit unions will not text, call, or email customers asking them to divulge account numbers, pins or social security numbers, Customers receiving unexpected calls, e-mails or text messages should call their bank or credit union directly and talk to an employee.

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If a consumer suspects he or she has received a scam text, the consumer should:

• Not return the text or call the number provided

• Never provide personal account information or other personal information in response to a text, call or e-mail. A bank or credit union does not request personal account information in such a manner.

The Bureau’s Consumer Outreach Specialist is available online or by phone to answer any consumer questions related to financial scams or accounts in general. The Bureau’s phone number is 207-624-8570.

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