FINRA warns of a phone scam

A U.S. watchdog agency is warning consumers of a phone scam that involves sales that are merely a ruse for stealing personal information. "In this scam, fraudsters cold-call potential victims, posing as associates of a well-known brokerage firm," said the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, which is funded by the finance industry. The fraudsters "claim to offer information about certificates of deposit, citing yields well above the best rates in the market," FINRA said in a warning posted online Tuesday. The callers then say their supervisor will follow up with more information and sometimes send the victims applications, which are merely forms that they use to collect and steal personal information. "In a new twist to Internet 'phishing schemes,' which use spam email to lure you into revealing everything from Social Security numbers to financial account information, it appears that some fraudsters may be resorting to a time-tested method – the telephone call," FINRA said. The watchdog agency warned consumers not to give our personal information to anyone or any company that is not confirmed as legitimate.