August 11, 2004

State Banking Commissioner John P. Burke wishes to reinforce that online institutions such as Paypal and Ebay DO NOT request their customers provide to them their Password, Personal Identification Number (PIN) or other sensitive information over the Internet once they have become members of the group. The Department of Banking has recently become aware of e-mails requesting that customers provide this information over the Internet. These e-mails state that your account will be terminated if you do not provide your information to the online provider again.

This email was not sent by the online company and is a fraudulent attempt to obtain personal information from consumers. Financial institutions and consumers should NOT access the link provided within the body of the email and should NOT under any circumstances provide any personal information through this media.

If you are the recipient of such e-mail, do not provide your information to the requester. Please notify the online provider at once and the institution will work with the Connecticut Department of Banking to investigate these matters.