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Y2K Fears Could Scare You Out of Your Savings

Beware:

Fears that banks won't be prepared to handle the Year 2000 computer bug have given new opportunities to con artists.

The illegitimate caller phones representing a securities company who is setting up a special bond fund to help consumers protect their money in case of bank failures due to the Y2K bug. Another variation, has the person calling on behalf of a bank. The bank is having difficultly meeting the Y2K requirements and are asking all of their customers to transfer their money into a "bond" account.

In either situation, the caller asks for your account number and verbal authorization to transfer funds from your account. You can be certain the money will be transferred into another account--the one belonging to the caller.

Be Wise:

Do your research before investing in any offer. Ask for a prospectus to review. If they cannot provide one, do not invest.

Ask for a Year 2000 readiness report from your bank or credit union. If you don't like what you hear consider doing business elsewhere.

No bank employee will ever call you and ask for your account information. The bank will already have this information in their files.

If you receive a suspicious call, check with your bank directly. Report any fraudulent activity immediately.

In general, be cautious of people offering a product or service guaranteed to fix or prevent Y2K problems.

Make sure there really is a problem. Make sure the fix is a valid remedy.