Be on notice that during these trying times, fraud is on the rise. Take every precaution to protect your online activity and view every email with a critical eye.
This week, District 5340's RYLA bank account was compromised. A very honest woman from Ohio received in the mail a typed-written check payable to her in the amount of $2,100 from the District's RYLA account. The check was signed by an approved District RYLA bank account signor. It was mailed in a very suspicious looking envelope from a signage company in Michigan. As soon as she got the check in the mail, she received a phone call from someone with a very heavy foreign accent, asking her to cash the check immediately. She got very suspicious. Had she not, she would have cashed it and she would have received another call telling her it was a mistake and that she would need to return the money, Fortunately for her, she made the call to our District Answer Connect Services.
District Governor (DG) Marta Knight called her back and got the story. She asked the woman if she would send her a copy of the check and the mailing envelope, which she did. She verified the District bank account and the check number did not coincide with the sequence of checks being used by RYLA. They also do not type out their checks. The check was an exact image of the RYLA checks, including the signature.
The District notified US Bank where the accounts are managed. The authorities were also notified in both locations. It appears this is a new type of fraud - get a check, copy it, change the check number and add a new payee to it, mail it out, have someone cash it and then call to ask them to return the funds.
The RYLA account has since been closed and a new one opened. If you have any outstanding checks, they will send a replacement from the new bank account.
The reason for this is to WARN you that there is a lot of fraud going on. Be careful with your club accounts. Balance them monthly and keep close tabs on your checkbooks.
Additionally, this week, DG Knight's email was also hacked. Many of you received emails from her asking you to collect on a deposit she made to you using OneDrive. If you received it, please delete it; the notice was fraudulent. Her email has been restored with a very secure password with the assistance from representatives of Yahoo. It is no longer compromised.