Security Center
As part of Monterey County Bank’s on-going efforts to protect and secure customer information, the following resources have been provided to help educate our customers on information security and identity theft prevention. We encourage you to take a moment to review these helpful guides to ensure you are taking proper steps to help protect your information and address identity theft or fraud.
Security Guides
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Release Date |
PDF Guide |
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11/2024 |
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07/2024 |
FTC: Fraud Activity Scam [PDF] |
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04/2024 |
FTC: Verification Codes [PDF] |
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01/2024 |
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01/2024 |
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11/2023 |
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10/2023 |
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09/2023 |
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05/2023 |
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03/2023 |
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01/2023 |
FTC: 4 Signs Its a Scam [PDF] |
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10/2022 |
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07/2022 |
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05/2022 |
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02/2022 |
FBI: Cybercriminals Tampering with QR Codes to Steal Victim Funds [PDF] |
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01/2022 |
Stop Think Connect: 5 Every Day Steps Towards Online Safety [PDF] |
Note: PDF documents will open in a new window.
FDIC Consumer News
FDIC Consumer News provides practical guidance on how to become a smarter, safer user of financial services. Issues and selected articles offer helpful hints, quick tips and common–sense strategies to protect and stretch your hard-earned dollars.
We encourage you to visit and/or subscribe to FDIC Consumer News to stay up-to-date on the latest information.
Visit and subscribe here:
Security Breaches: Protect Yourself From Fraud
Monterey County Bank has an established relationship with Visa and MasterCard to receive alerts for cards issued by Monterey County Bank that may have been compromised during a company or vendor security breach. We will make every effort to contact you if your card may have been impacted. As a security precaution, we may order you a new card and cancel the existing card to prevent unauthorized use. If you have been contacted by the bank and continue to notice suspicious activity on your account, please contact us as soon as possible for further action.
If you have not been contacted by your bank or card company, it is still strongly recommended that you take further action to protect yourself.
If you have provided personal information or used a credit and/or debit card at any location where a data security breach has been identified, we encourage you to take the following steps to help protect your accounts:
- Check and monitor your bank and credit card statements for evidence of unauthorized transactions.
- Contact your Bank or Credit Card Company if you identify suspicious activity.
- Review and monitor your consumer credit report regularly.
- Know that cardholders are not held responsible for fraudulent charges made by unauthorized parties if reported promptly to the card issuer.
Have you become a victim of Fraud or Identity Theft
If Your Credit, Debit, or ATM Card Information has been compromised:
- Report the incident to the card issuer as quickly as possible.
- Report using toll-free numbers and 24-hour service that many companies have established to deal with such emergencies.
- Request your card issuer close your compromised account number and reissue you a new card with a different number.
- Monitor your account activity and review account statements carefully after the information loss.
- If any unauthorized charges appear, call the card issuer immediately.
- Follow up with a hard copy letter describing each questionable charge.
If Your Bank Account Information has been compromised:
- Report the compromise of this information to your bank as quickly as possible.
- Request your bank close the compromised account and re-open a like account with a different number.
If Your Personal Identification Information has been compromised:
If you believe your personal information (such as your name, address, and Social Security number) has been used fraudulently, contact the three major credit reporting agencies and do the following:
- Request that the agencies place a fraud alert and a victim's statement in your file.
- Request a free copy of your credit report to check whether any accounts were opened without your consent.
- Request that the agencies remove inquires and/or fraudulent accounts stemming from the theft.
For more resources to help prevent or report Identify Theft, visit:
Credit Reporting Agencies
To Order a Credit Report or Report Fraud visit:
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To Order Your FREE Annual Credit Report, visit: |
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Security Statement
For information on the security features Monterey County Bank has implemented for your protection, please review our Security Statement.
Monterey County Bank takes your account security and privacy very seriously, and although the Bank does not routinely monitor customer accounts for unauthorized activities, we will promptly investigate any improper charges or breaches of your privacy which you bring to our attention, or which are referred to us by a governing agency.
As a reminder, no Bank employee or any company affiliated with the Bank will contact you via email or by phone requesting your Internet Banking log in information. If you are contacted or received communication from anyone requesting that information, please do not release any personal identifying information and contact the Bank immediately.
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact one of our local branches to speak with a bank representative.
