A friendly reminder: beware of phone and text scams

^{Please note: This is a routine reminder to our clients and does not indicate any suspicious activity on your account. As AI-driven scam tactics become more sophisticated, we want to make sure you have the latest information to help protect yourself.}

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is helping us in positive ways but, unfortunately, scammers are using AI in increasingly elaborate ways to gain access to people’s private information. Their tactics are becoming more convincing, which makes it especially important to stay alert.

One recent example is AI-generated voice cloning, where a scammer may sound like a family member, advisor or trusted organization. You might also receive a voicemail asking you to call a number to “verify” or “restore” account access.

To protect yourself, I want to share two important “red flags” to ensure you are aware:

• Extremely urgent requests. Scammers try to pressure you into acting quickly before you have time to verify the request.
• Unexpected calls, texts or links. You receive a call or text from someone pretending to be customer service or IT support. They ask you to provide your password, read back or approve a Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) code, download remote-access software or simply ask you to click a link they send you.

Protect Yourself

A financial institution or financial services organization should never call, text or email asking for your password or sensitive personal information. If you contact them directly, they likely will ask questions to verify your identity, but you should be the one initiating the conversation.

If you receive a call, text or any suspicious request asking you to verify personal information, provide passwords or click a link:

• Hang up or don’t respond.
• Do not click, install, or share anything.Do not call a number or click a link provided in a message. Use a trusted number or website you know is legitimate.
• Never share your password or read an MFA code to anyone over the phone.
• Never approve an MFA request you didn’t personally initiate.
• If the request involves money, credentials, or sensitive information, hang up and verify it through a separate, trusted channel before acting.

Our firm continues to use the latest security tools and stay informed about emerging scams to help safeguard your information.

As a final reminder, when in doubt, remember: Stop. Verify. Then Act. Stay safe and let us know if you have any questions.