January 2026

A Strange Pairing – Fraud & Flan

By Suzi Hoge
Posted: 12/01/2025

On Thursday, October 16, Fight Fraud & Free Flan was presented as one of the Village Connections presentations at Washington Park. Evan Hitchcock from E-Central Credit Union gave an informative presentation about avoiding various frauds, especially related to banking. He described three types of fraud: identity theft, credit or debit card fraud, and online banking fraud.

There are ways to protect yourself online.  These include:  

Practice Password Safety – Create long, complex, unique passwords and change them regularly.

Be Cautious with Social Media – Check your privacy settings. Don’t share location and personal details. 

Be aware of scams, especially those that try to steal personal data – Be careful of emails; don’t click on questionable links.

Protect Your Devices – Install protection programs such as anti-virus and anti-spyware.  Update your devices and apps regularly. 

Suggestions for Banking Safety:

Make sure your username and password are unique and complex.

Change your username and password regularly. 

Make sure your bank has your current contact information – email, phone numbers, address.

Enable two-factor authentication.  For example, you go and sign in on your bank’s website.  After you put in your username and password the bank sends you a text (or emails or calls) with a code that you have to enter on the bank’s sign in page. When banking make sure you are using a secure network or mobile data--- not public Wi-Fi.

Be careful with ATM’s or card readers that may have been tampered with. A device to collect your banking information may be attached. 

Seven Common Scams were shared and described:

Imposter Scam – Someone pretends to be your bank, the IRS, Medicare, etc.  They are trying to get your personal information. Hang up, disconnect, delete.  If you have a question, call the Customer Service phone number on the back of your official cards.

Pay Yourself Scam – You get a fake bank alert and then a call.  Some money has been transferred.  You are asked to send money. Hang up, disconnect, delete.  

Grandparent Scam – An emergency phone call comes from one of your grandchildren – in jail, the hospital, another country and wants you to send $$$$. If you get one of these calls, hang up.  If you have any questions, contact your family members.  

Debt-Related Scam – The scammer promises to reduce or forgive debts for a large upfront fee. Once the fee is paid, nothing happens. Hang up, disconnect, delete

Government Impersonation Scam – Someone poses as a government official and uses threats to pressure you to give gift cards, wire transfers, or cryptocurrency. Hang up, disconnect, delete

Urgency Scam – Hurry up to get a deal or prize. You need to share information which is what they want. Hang up, disconnect, delete

Utility Scam - Threats are made to turn off service unless you pay immediately. Hang up, disconnect, delete

What To Do If You Are Scammed:

Act immediately to contact your bank.

Freeze or close compromised accounts.

Report any unauthorized charges.

Change your passwords and pins.

Monitor your accounts closely. You can set up transaction alerts with many banks so you are notified in the ways you select. For example, you will get a text whenever a transaction occurs. 

E-Central Credit Union has Fraud Protection Resources on their website - https://www.ecentralcu.org/promotions/account-protection 

Those who attended left with an array of helpful information - as well as delicious flan from La Cocina De Las Abuelas - a communal kitchen run by partners Pasadena/Altadena Coalition of Transformative Leaders (PACTL).