Cape Coral police warn of compromised bank accounts that start with a simple text

The Cape Coral Police Department is warning of a text message that looks like it’s from your bank. Cape PD has received several reports of banks accounts getting compromised from Suncoast Credit Union.

People who bank with Suncoast are discovering that crooks have gained access to their bank accounts. This is because the text messages coming from the see scammers look legitimate. Multiple people who received the scam messages say they look very similar to the messages they expect to see from Suncoast.

You get a message from your bank saying there’s a problem with your bank account. Except, there isn’t.

Rich Kolko is WINK News Safety and Security Specialist. “If your bank sends you a text message or an email saying we need you to do something, confirm and account, check a password, click here… don’t do it!” Kolko said.

Scammers are targeting people by pretending to be their bank. Cape Coral police said they’ve received numerous reports of Suncoast Credit Union accounts being compromised with money missing.

“The more specific they become, it can certainly raise the fear level in anybody receiving these scams,” said Kolko.

WINK News spoke with one woman who got a text on her phone. Although she said it looked convincing, she didn’t click on it.

Suncoast Credit Union has even created a webpage showing you what to look out for. They say when it comes to email and text, they will never ask for your account numbers, pins, CVV codes, or full social security numbers.

“They are going to continue forever. We have to learn how to live with them. And we hope that law enforcement can make a dent in them. They do a small bit. But you have to be your own first responder. You have to protect your money, protect your identity, protect your data,” Kolko said.

Another woman told us she became the victim of this scam but was able to close her account before her money was taken. She didn’t feel comfortable speaking on camera.

Kolko says if you aren’t careful. your money could end up gone for good. “You have to act slowly, act carefully, act meticulously. Make sure you’re not passing on any additional information,” he said.

Cape Coral police also told WINK News not to click on links in text messages. They say if you are alerted of a potential problem with your bank account, call your bank directly or go to your bank’s app.