Phishing is an attempt, usually by email or website, to trick you into revealing personal or financial information by appearing from a legitimate source, such as A.S. Collections. This information could include your date of birth, login information, account details, credit card details, PIN codes, etc.
How can I Recognise Phishing?
You should always be wary of any telephone call or message that asks for your personal or financial information or statements that refer you to a web page asking for this information. Always ask yourself whether contact from a trustworthy organisation might be illegitimate.
How can I Stay Secure Online?
Be wary, A.S. Collections will never send unsolicited email messages asking our customers to update or verify their personal and security details. A.S. Collections will not telephone you to ask you to update or confirm your information. Be suspicious of generic greetings such as ‘Dear valued customer. A.S. Collections will always contact you by name and if you are ever in doubt, call 0151 329 0946.
Be alert to any warnings posted on A.S. Collections website. Think before you click. Cybercriminals can use links in emails posts, online advertisements, and tweets to direct you to a fake site, where they can steal your credentials. A.S. Collections do not market on social media. To help you be sure that you are connected to the A.S. Collections secure environment; check the following:
Is the address for the A.S. Collections website spelt correctly? Criminals often build websites under a slightly different name, like ascollect.co.uk instead of ascollections.co.uk.
Does the website address start with HTTPS://? The ‘s’ stands for secure, ensuring impersonation and scrambling is prevented and data is encrypted. If you only see ‘HTTP’, the internet connection is not secure.
Check that the security lock icon is visible on your screen. You should see this lock icon on every page from the moment you visit the site.
Ensure your device’s software is up-to-date and has security software installed and operating. In particular:
Make sure your device is well protected. Use up-to-date antivirus and anti-malware software together with a firewall.
Check for updates for your operating system and software regularly and install them as soon as possible.
Do not install any software (apps, virus scanner, internet browser or browser plug-ins) that comes from an unknown source.
make sure your wireless connection is secure
What Should I do When I Suspect a Phishing Scam?
Most importantly, never reply to suspicious contact with your personal or financial information.
Don’t fill out forms or sign-in screens that link from these messages.
Contact A.S. Collections using your usual contact person to report the phishing attempt.
Be careful not to use any suggestions in the suspicious email to contact A.S. Collections.
Please don’t respond to it, and don’t click any links in the email.
