Public warned about credit union phishing scam

ILCU working with credit unions to understand the extent to which members of the public are being targeted

The Irish League of Credit Unions headquarters on Mount Street in Dublin. Photograph: Frank Miller
The Irish League of Credit Unions headquarters on Mount Street in Dublin. Photograph: Frank Miller

Members of the public are being urged to exercise caution in relation to a phishing scam relating to calls and messages purporting to be from credit unions.

The Irish League of Credit Unions (ILCU) said the scam consists of a fraudster sending a text message and/or making a phone call claiming to be from a credit union and informing the recipient that their credit union account has been put on hold or locked.

Recipients are then asked to click a link to a cloned credit union website and enter their personal details to verify their account, or they are asked for their personal details over the phone.

The ILCU said it became aware of the phishing scam on Thursday and is currently working with credit unions to understand the extent to which members of the public are being targeted. The fraudsters are not claiming to be from any one particular credit union.

READ MORE

The ILCU said it wanted to emphasise that credit unions will never contact an individual member by phone, text, or email asking them to click a link to verify their account or give personal account details over the phone.

If a member of the public does receive such a call, text message, or email they are advised not to give any account details to the caller or to click on the link under any circumstances.

If a member of the public is in any doubt about any message that they receive in relation to their credit union account, they should contact their local credit union directly.

Colin Gleeson

Colin Gleeson

Colin Gleeson is an Irish Times reporter