Fraud can happen to anyone—and it’s becoming more common.

We’ve heard from members recently of calls with individuals claiming to be from the credit union.

Scam attempts that play on your emotions and seek to gain your trust are becoming more frequent and more effective.

CGR will never contact you and ask for personal information by text, email, or an unsolicited phone call. This includes unsolicited calls that ask you to obtain or provide a password or challenge question answers.

How scammers may contact you

Their messages can sound urgent, seem familiar, often be poorly worded or contain other errors, and even use your personal information to convince you they’re legitimate.

Scammers can even pose as CGR—you may see “CGR Credit Union” appear as an email sender’s name, in the caller or text ID, and the telephone number displayed may be an actual CGR number.

Email

Watch for phony-looking addresses—even if the sender seems familiar. Never open links or attachments in emails you don’t fully trust. Report email scams that pretend to be CGR to msoq@cgrcu.org.

Text messages

Be suspicious of texts from outside your saved contacts. Don’t open any links or provide personal or account information.

Mobile apps/social media

It may seem like a real person in that chat window, but strange links or requests for money are signs it could be a scam.

Phone calls

Scammers can mimic local area codes to get you to answer. If you don’t recognize the number, think twice before picking up.

Here’s what you can do to stay protected.

• Never share your account passwords, PIN, one-time passcodes, Social Security numbers, or credit and debit card numbers.
• Remember that CGR will never ask for personal information by text, email, or unsolicited phone call
• If you question the legitimacy of a request, contact us directly at 478-745-0494 for help verifying.
• If you feel your CGR accounts have been compromised, report it to us immediately by calling 478-745-0494 or emailing us at msoq@cgrcu.org.