Coronavirus (COVID-19) Updates

Beware of criminals pretending to be WHO

Criminals are disguising themselves as WHO to steal money or sensitive information.  If you are contacted by a person or organization that appears to be from WHO, verify their authenticity before responding.

The World Health Organization will:

• never ask for your username or password to access safety information
• never email attachments you didn’t ask for
• never ask you to visit a link outside of www.who.int
• never charge money to apply for a job, register for a conference, or reserve a hotel
• never conduct lotteries or offer prizes, grants, certificates or funding through email.

The only call for donations WHO has issued is the COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund, which is linked to below.  Any other appeal for funding or donations that appears to be from WHO is a scam.  

• COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund

Beware that criminals use email, websites, phone calls, text messages, and even fax messages for their scams.

You can verify if communication is legit by contacting WHO directly.

• Contact WHO

WHO is aware of suspicious email messages attempting to take advantage of the COVID-19 emergency. This fraudulent action is called phishing.

Phishing: malicious emails appearing to be from WHO

These “Phishing” emails appear to be from WHO, and will ask you to:

• give sensitive information, such as usernames or passwords
• click a malicious link
• open a malicious attachment.

Using this method, criminals can install malware or steal sensitive information.

How to prevent phishing:

1. Verify the sender by checking their email address.  
   
   Make sure the sender has an email address such as ‘person@who.int’ If there is anything other than ‘who.int’ after the ‘@’ symbol, this sender is not from WHO.  
   
   For example, WHO does not send email from addresses ending in ‘@who.com’ , ‘@who.org’ or ‘@who-safety.org’.
2. Check the link before you click.  
   
   Make sure the link starts with ‘https://www.who.int’.  Better still, navigate to the WHO website directly, by typing ‘https://www.who.int’ into your browser.
3. Be careful when providing personal information. 
   
   Always consider why someone wants your information and if it is appropriate. There is no reason someone would need your username & password to access public information.
4. Do not rush or feel under pressure. 
   
   Cybercriminals use emergencies such as 2019-nCov to get people to make decisions quickly. Always take time to think about a request for your personal information, and whether the request is appropriate.
5. If you gave sensitive information, don’t panic.  
   
   If you believe you have given data such as your username or passwords to cybercriminals, immediately change your credentials on each site where you have used them.

We shared earlier this week that an employee expressed concern about potential exposure to COVID-19. At that time we immediately shut down the branch as a precautionary measure. We know there have been many questions about this and we thank you for your patience and understanding as we waited on information. We were just made aware that the potential exposure was deemed negative. 

Deposits Are Safe in Federally Insured Credit Unions

ALEXANDRIA, Va. (March 19, 2020) – The National Credit Union Administration is reminding credit union members of the safety of their deposits in federally insured credit unions. The NCUA also reminds individuals to remain vigilant against COVID-19-related scams. 

Federally insured credit unions offer a safe place for credit union members to save money. All deposits at federally insured credit unions are protected by the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund, with deposits insured up to at least $250,000 per individual depositor. Credit union members have never lost a penny of insured savings at a federally insured credit union. Additional information on NCUA share insurance coverage for consumers is available at MyCreditUnion.gov.

Credit union members can calculate the amount of insured funds at a federally insured credit union using NCUA’s Share Insurance Estimator . The Estimator can be used for personal, business, or government accounts. Personal accounts include individual ownership, joint ownership, payable-on-death (accounts with named beneficiaries), living trusts, and IRAs. The Estimator also includes an extensive Glossary of Terms and Frequently Asked Questions .

For questions about the NCUA’s share insurance coverage, call 1.800.755.1030, option 1, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern, or send an email to DCAmail@ncua.gov. 

The NCUA is also reminding individuals to remain vigilant against scams related to the coronavirus. Cyber actors may send emails with malicious attachments or links to fraudulent websites to trick victims into revealing sensitive information or donating to fraudulent charities or causes. Exercise caution in handling any email with a COVID-19-related subject line, attachment, or hyperlink, and be wary of social media pleas, texts, or calls related to COVID-19. Visit NCUA’s Fraud Prevention Center  for more information about frauds and scams, including how to report a scam.

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NCUA is the independent federal agency created by the U.S. Congress to regulate, charter and supervise federal credit unions. With the backing of the full faith and credit of the United States, NCUA operates and manages the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund, insuring the deposits of account holders in all federal credit unions and the overwhelming majority of state-chartered credit unions. At MyCreditUnion.gov , NCUA also educates the public on consumer protection and financial literacy issues.

"Protecting credit unions and the consumers who own them through effective regulation"

Lansing Branch Availability Update:

Good News! The Lansing Branch has received a deep cleaning and sanitization. The Branch will be staffed and prepared to service the drive-thru and members by appointment ONLY on Wednesday, March 18, 2020.  Drive-thru will open at 8:00 AM and will remain available until 6:00 PM. 

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Lansing Branch Update:
Yesterday we were informed of an employee that may have been potentially exposed to the coronavirus. As soon as we were made aware, we took the extreme measures to close the Lansing Branch immediately for a deep cleaning and sanitization. We know that there are many questions surrounding this situation and appreciate your patience. We want to reiterate that none of the Lansing employees are ill, everything that has been done so far has been precautionary. 

The potential exposure would have been during regular hours of operation at our Lansing location, Friday, March 13, Saturday, March 14 and Monday, March 16 8:00 AM – 10:00 AM. Again, as soon as we were made aware we closed the branch immediately. Please remember, this was a potential exposure, if you have any concerns we encourage you to seek the advice of your primary physician.

The safety and well-being of our staff and membership continues to be a top priority. For your convenience, here is an additional helpful resource, https://www.michigan.gov/coronavirus.

The safety and well-being of our staff and communities is of paramount importance to us. In the interest of limiting the potential spread of the Coronavirus, we are taking aggressive measures to support social distancing efforts as set forth by our leading public health officials. Effective at 3:00 PM today, Monday, March 16, 2020, lobbies at all 13 PFCU locations will CLOSE. Essential in-person business can be done by appointment ONLY. You can make an appointment by calling our call center at 844.517.3611. If you do call to make an in-person appointment, please be sure to indicate your preferred location. While our lobbies will be closed to foot-traffic, our drive-thru, Interactive Teller Machines (ITMs) and ATMs will remain available. Starting today we will be extending the hours of availability for our drive-thru by one hour, making them available until 6:00 PM Monday through Friday and 1:00 PM on Saturday.

As a reminder, PFCU has a suite of online banking products that allow you to access your account from virtually anywhere at any time. We also have phone banking options as an alternative to in-person banking. Additionally, PFCU supports Mobile Wallet including Apple Pay, Samsung Pay and Google Pay.

If you have any questions regarding any of these services or need assistance getting set up, please reach out to us at 844.517.3611 and we will be happy to help.

We encourage everyone to visit the Michigan Department of Health & Human Services website for continued updates and valuable information, https://www.michigan.gov/mdhhs/

Thank you for your patience and understanding as we navigate this unprecedented situation.

PFCU ITM Hours of Operation 
Monday-Friday 8:00 AM - 8:00 PM
Saturday 8:00 AM - 1:00 PM

PFCU Drive-Thru Hours of Operation
Monday-Friday 8:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Saturday 8:00 AM - 1:00 PM

PFCU Contact Center Hours of Operation
Monday-Friday 8:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Saturday 8:00 AM - 1:00 PM

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We are taking precautionary measures due to an employee being potentially exposed for COVID-19. Effective Immediately, the Lansing location is CLOSED. The safety and well-being of our staff and communities is of paramount importance to us. We will continue to update you as the situation evolves. Unfortunately, our primary channel of communication to membership, our website, is currently experiencing technical issues that are preventing us from providing update via that channel. We are working diligently to provide you with the most updated information. Thank you for your patience and understanding

As developments of the current Coronavirus (COVID-19) situation continue to unfold, PFCU is focused on the safety and well-being of our members, employees and communities that we serve. We are closely monitoring the direction of our public health officials including the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and our local Michigan Department of Health & Human Services (MDHHS). With that in mind, we thought it important to share with you the precautionary measures that the Credit Union is implementing to do our part to support a safe and healthy environment for our members, employees and community at large.

All 13 of PFCU locations have increased sanitization efforts in high traffic areas of our physical branches. In addition, we have limited business travel for our employees, limited in-person meetings and encouraged our staff to execute best practices set forth by leading health organizations to prevent the spread of illness.  

We encourage everyone to visit the Michigan Department of Health & Human Services website for continued updates and valuable information, https://www.michigan.gov/mdhhs.

Be assured that PFCU is prepared through a variety of channels to give you access to your money without disruption. We encourage you to utilize our online banking products that allow you to conduct your banking from the convenience of your home; including mobile check deposit, bill-pay, transfer funds and much more. We also have phone banking options as an alternative to in-person banking. Additionally, PFCU supports Mobile Wallet including Apple Pay, Samsung Pay and Google Pay.

If you have any questions regarding any of these services or need assistance getting set up, please reach out to us at 844.517.3611 and we will be happy to help.

At this time we are not making any changes to hours of operation or availability of in-person services. We will continue to follow the situation and make adjustments as deemed necessary. Be assured that we will keep you updated and always make decisions with the health and safety of our membership and employees in mind.

Available remote products from PFCU:
Online banking: www.pfcu4me.com
Phone banking: 800-647-5829
Mobile App: Visit your devices app store and search “PFCU Mobile”

Sincerely,

Harvey Hoskins
President/CEO