The National Crime Prevention Council (NCPC) is teaming up with AT&T to help raise awareness about social engineering scams in a new public education campaign with the call to action – Don’t Take The Bait – Validate! The campaign aims to help empower consumers to outsmart fraudsters by protecting their PINs, passwords and personal information from incoming callers who may be trying to trick them.

Fraudsters use social engineering tactics to trick consumers into sharing confidential and personal information. They are skilled con artists who impersonate government, community, and business officials such as law enforcement, local charities, and service providers. Once fraudsters have someone’s personal information, they can use it to make unauthorized purchases, drain financial accounts or even steal someone’s identity.

The campaign includes video, social media, and other digital resources – and reminds everyone to validate a caller BEFORE sharing personal information.

Remember:

1. Be skeptical.
2. Verify the legitimacy of unsolicited calls BEFORE you share personal information. Hang up and contact the organization directly to address any request for personal information.
3. Remember not to engage, especially when you’re busy or distracted.

NCPC and AT&T want to remind consumers they have the power to stop social engineering fraud – by confirming the authenticity of an unsolicited caller BEFORE sharing personal information. To learn more, visit www.ncpc.org/fraud and www.att.com/cyberaware.