First Community Bank appreciates your trust and takes care to provide a secure environment for you to conduct business. Still, protecting the confidentiality and integrity of your information properly remains a shared responsibility. The points below outline our efforts and provide steps you can take to protect yourself.

First Community Bank Security

• Technical Safeguards. First Community Bank utilizes a variety of technical measures, such as anti-virus software and firewalls, to protect our environment and your transactions and information.
• More than just Technology. We also recognize the importance of strong processes, employee awareness, and training.
• Continuous Improvement. We constantly monitor our processes and technologies to safeguard your information.

Security Hints for You

• Protect personal information. Never share user IDs, passwords, or other sensitive information. Change your password regularly.
• Anti-virus. To reduce the risk of lost information or damage due to computer viruses, make sure your computer has anti-virus software installed. Updates should be made periodically to provide protection against new viruses.
• Personal Firewalls. With the increasing popularity of DSL and high-speed cable modems, users should take care as the connection to the internet may be active anytime your computer is on. Personal firewalls can prevent unauthorized users and networks from accessing your computer.
• Updated Browser. Keep your browser current for optimal transaction security.

If you suspect potential fraudulent activity, or information has been lost or stolen, you can contact First Community Bank at:

First Community Bank 600 S W Railroad Ave Hammond, LA 70403 (985) 429-9899 - Main Number (888) 780-9901 - Toll Free Number (985) 524-9236 - Main Fax Number

Mandeville Office 4892 Hwy 22 Mandeville, LA 70471 (985) 246-1000 - Main Number (888) 780-9901 - Toll Free Number (985) 246-2000 - Main Fax Number

First Community Bank takes care to protect the privacy and security of your information, accounts and transactions. However security is stronger when all parties are careful and the best line of defense begins with you. First Community Bank suggests all customers take the following steps to protect yourself against identity theft and account fraud.

Preventing Identity Theft

• Protect your Social Security Number. Limit its use as identification; and never preprint your driver's license or Social Security number on your checks.
• Shred unnecessary financial documents, including old bank statements, invoices, and unwanted pre-approved credit offers.
• If regular bills or statements stop reaching you, take action. Call the company's customer service number. Someone may have filed a false change-of-address notice to divert your mail.
• Don't ignore suspicious charges. If doubtful or unauthorized charges appear on your bills or statements, call immediately to resolve the discrepancy.

Preventing Account Fraud

• Protect personal and financial information. Never give account numbers, social security numbers, or other sensitive information to strangers.
• Question suspicious phone inquiries. Don't give out financial information on the phone unless you initiated the call and know the other party. Notify us immediately if you've received suspicious calls claiming to come from First Community Bank. Be especially wary of those requesting account information to "award a prize" or "verify a statement".
• Take care in sharing financial information. Do not give out information unless you know the other party.
• Protect your ATM, telephone, and online banking information. Avoid using easily guessed passwords or PINs. Do not share such information with anyone or write them down.
• Report lost or stolen checks immediately.
• Periodically check your credit rating. Contact the major credit bureaus to ensure the accuracy and identify potential fraudulent activity. They can be contacted at the numbers below.
  • Trans Union: 1-800-680-7289
  • Equifax: 1-800-525-6285
  • Experian: 1-888-397-3742
     
• If you suspect potential fraudulent activity, or information has been lost or stolen, you can contact First Community Bank at:
   
  

  First Community Bank 600 S W Railroad Ave Hammond, LA 70403 (985) 429-9899 - Main Number (888) 780-9901 - Toll Free Number (985) 524-9236 - Main Fax Number

  Mandeville Office 4892 Hwy 22 Mandeville, LA 70471 (985) 246-1000 - Main Number (888) 780-9901 - Toll Free Number (985) 246-2000 - Main Fax Number

Important Information about “Phishing”

1. Phishing is the practice of deceiving unsuspecting customers into providing personal financial information such as account numbers, passwords, Social Security numbers and the like that are then used to commit fraud and/or steal from the customer's accounts or credit cards.
2. SPAM e-mails that appear to come from a reputable company or government agency create a sense of urgency to lure customers into providing this information which may be used to steal the customer's identity.
3. Customers are advised to never give out confidential financial information in response to an unsolicited e-mail. Remember, First Community Bank does not request confidential financial information via e-mail.
4. Customers should be cautious about e-mailing personal or financial information since e-mail IS NOT a secure communication channel.

Important Information about "Pharming"

Pharming is a relatively new term to describe the practice of web-site redirection. Fraudsters can hijack, or steal, a company's web site name, or redirect unknowing users to phony web sites where they collect confidential data. Several industries have been attacked using pharming techniques. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation issued guidance to financial institutions related to protecting and securing web site domain names as one method to prevent pharming attacks.

Is First Community Bank's online banking site a secure site?

First Community Bank's online banking site uses High Encryption Secure Socket Layer (SSL) technology for all online banking sessions. This means that all communication between your Web browser and First Community Bank's online banking site is encrypted and cannot be viewed during transmission.

What you need to know about Fraudulent Web Sites

Of growing concern today is the use of Fraudulent Web Sites by criminals to gain access to confidential and personal information that can be used for identity theft and fraud. Criminals create a web site under a name that is very similar to a reputable business. The intent is to convince Internet users that the fraudulent web site is valid, and get the user to provide confidential information such as a social security number, account numbers, User IDs and passwords, which in turn are used to steal identity or commit other fraudulent activities. Be aware of whom you are dealing with and to whom you are providing sensitive and personal information on a web site. If you feel that a web site is questionable DO NOT provide any sensitive or confidential information until you are satisfied that the web site belongs to the entity with which you wish to do business. Finally protect yourself by never sharing your User ID or password with anyone.

Phony Web Sites

Fraudulent Web sites often look like that of a legitimate trusted company, but are actually set up in an attempt to steal your personal information. A common technique to lure customers to a fraudulent site is through “spam” email.

Avoiding phony Web sites

With the following precautions, you can help protect your First Community Bank accounts and personal information from fraudulent Web sites:

1. Avoid clicking on links provided in an email. Instead, open a new browser window and type the Web site's address (URL) directly into the address bar of your browser.
2. Save or “bookmark” frequently visited and trusted Web sites to your list of favorites, then access those sites through your saved links.
3. Inspect a URL carefully for the presence of an “@” symbol, for example billing@fcb-la.com. This is a common sign of fraudulent Web sites. Even if the URL contains the phrase “FirstCommunity” it does not ensure that First Community Bank controls the Web site.
4. Be very suspicious of Web sites that display an IP Address, or numerical address (e.g. 161.134.2.1), in your Web browser's address bar instead of a domain name (e.g. fcb-la.com).

The FDIC has created a webpage [ http://www.fdic.gov/consumers/consumer/alerts/theft.html ] to inform consumers of information the FDIC has made available on identity theft. Despite the efforts of law enforcement, Identity theft is becoming more sophisticated and the number of new victims is growing. In general, consumers are protected against liability for unauthorized accounts or transactions under federal and state law and by financial industry practices. However, innocent victims of Identity theft sometimes do suffer losses. And if the crime is not detected early, people may face months or years cleaning up the damage to their reputation and credit rating, and sometimes they lose out on loans, jobs and other opportunities in the meantime. The evolution of Identity theft includes the spread of fraudulent "phishing" e-mails. These are unsolicited e-mails purportedly from a legitimate source - perhaps your bank, utility company, well-known merchants, your Internet service provider or even a trusted government agency such as the FDIC - attempting to trick you into divulging personal information.

Avoid email fraud

With a few simple steps, you can help protect your First Community Bank accounts and personal information from fraudulent activity:

1. If you don't recognize the sender delete any email without opening it.
2. Be suspicious of any email that asks for personal information, requests your authentication, or indicates a problem with your First Community Bank accounts. If you receive an email like this, do not reply by email. Instead, contact your First community Banker to verify the legitimacy of the email. First Community Bank does not request personal information from customers via email or pop-up windows.
3. First Community Bank does not send email attachments , therefore if you receive an e-mail with an attachment - that appears to be from First Community Bank it is not actually from the Bank. Do not open the attachment.
4. Only provide your personal information if you initiated the sign on process to your account at fcb-la.com.
5. Use virus protection software and keep the virus signatures current.
6. Keep your computer operating system and Web browser up-to-date.

Question : Why should I close all open browsers after logging off of First Community Bank's online banking site?

Answer: Some Web browsers temporarily store secure pages in your computer's memory. To prevent this from happening you must close all of your open browsers after you have logged off of online banking.

Question : What can I do to help protect my account information?

Answer: There are a number of things you can do:

1. When requested, choose a Password that is easy for you to remember, but would be difficult for others to guess. [i.e., between 6 and 8 characters one of which is a number]
2. Never give your Password to anyone.
3. Change your Password regularly.
4. Use caution when using consolidation sites or services which offer the ability to collect all of your personal information on one site.
5. Never provide your Username to a site or service provider that you do not recognize and fully trust.

We appreciate your business and care for your safety.