June 9, 2005 -

State Banking Commissioner John P. Burke advises Connecticut consumers to be suspicious of e-mails that ask you to provide your personal information, even if the e-mail appears to be from a genuine source.

"It has recently come to my attention that Connecticut residents have received e-mails that appear to be from People's Bank requesting personal financial information. These e-mails are in fact scams," stated Commissioner Burke. "I cannot stress enough that financial institutions would NEVER ask you to provide such personal information over the Internet."

These e-mails target clients of People's Bank, and state that for security purposes the profile these customers are using to access online banking has been locked. In order to unlock their profile, customers are asked to provide personal information, including ATM or Visa Check card numbers, Personal Identification Number (PIN), and Social Security Number.

These type of e-mails are known as 'phishing scams' because scam artists fish for confidential information. Victims are lured because the e-mails actually look like they are from legitimate sources. The e-mail address seems genuine, as well as the design and graphics.

"However, be skeptical of any unsolicited e-mail which asks you to provide your personal account information and contact your financial institution at once," recommended Commissioner Burke.

Individual complaints may be filed at the Internet Crime Complaint Center, at http://www.ic3.gov.  For more information on these and other types of Internet "phishing" scams please check out the Department of Banking's Web site.