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Account Security
This Alert is being sent to customers
regarding a recent industry-wide increase in fraudulent
activity in brokerage accounts across the U.S. and Canada.
Please take certain actions to help protect against this
fraud, including notifying you, our brokerage customers.
AN INCREASE IN FRAUD
In recent weeks there has been an increase in the reported
cases of fraudulent trading activity in brokerage accounts,
with corresponding warnings from both the U.S. SEC and the
Canadian IDA. Typically the schemes involve "hijacking" a
valid customer account. A recent high profile case is detailed
here:
http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/afp/070312/technology/us_markets_it_crime_india
PHISHING AND MALWARE
Two common methods of identity theft involve "phishing" and
"malware." "Phishing" refers to e-mail campaigns that prompt a
user to visit a web site (typically designed to look like a
familiar and official web page) and enter their own personal
information under some
supposedly legitimate pretext. "Malware" or "spyware" involves
any malicious program that is loaded on a user's machine in
order to allow for an intruder to assume control of the
machine, or to log the user's activity so that all typed
username and
password combinations can be recorded and used illegitimately.
SOME STEPS YOU CAN TAKE
We strongly encourage you to be on the watch for fraud
attempts. Here are some steps you can take to minimize your
risks of being
targeted for account hijacking. (Some steps may be obvious,
but we include them anyway.)
AVOID PRIVATE BUSINESS ON PUBLIC
COMPUTERS, ESPECIALLY OVERSEAS
It may be tempting to check on your account from the free
computer in the hotel lobby, but that is exactly the kind of
machine that's
most likely to be infected by malware, some of which is
designed to record keystrokes to help people hack into
financial accounts.
USE COMMON SENSE PASSWORD SECURITY
Don't use an obvious password. Change you password
periodically. Don't keep your password in written form in a
place where others may access it. Don't store your password in
a file with the word "passwords" in its name. If you do store
your passwords in a file, encrypt the file.
BE SUSPICIOUS OF INCOMING PHONE
COMMUNICATIONS
When you call Wang, we often ask a variety of questions to
verify your identity, but that doesn't mean you should ever
share that
information with someone who calls you, claiming to be from
Wang. If you're ever unsure about who is calling, you can
always ask the person for his or her name, department, and
extension and call them back by calling the same number you
usually dial when calling Wang.
BE MORE SUSPICIOUS OF INCOMING E-MAIL
COMMUNICATIONS
If you receive an e-mail that links to site asking for your
user name and password, be very, very skeptical, even if the
site looks
familiar. You're better off typing in the URL of a site you
want yourself, rather than relying on the link provided in an
e-mail.
We hope this has been helpful. We take account security very
seriously, and we know our customers do as well.
We care about security and believe it should not be taken
lightly. All online traders at Wang
Investments are issued a 8-digit name and password.
We will then assign you a password to allow you to access your
account. We highly recommend that you periodically
change your personal password to insure your maximum security.
If you have problems logging into your online account or have
password or user ID problems, please contact a Wang
Investments professional at 800.353.9264
You can tell if you are visiting a secure area within a Web
site by looking at the symbol on the bottom of your browser
screen. If you are using Netscape Navigator or Internet
Explorer, you will see either a lock or a key. When the symbol
appears unbroken or the padlock is in the locked position,
your session connection is taking place via a secure server.
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