CUSTOMER NOTICE 

Salem Co-operative Bank participates in the FDIC Transaction Account Guaranty (TAG) Program.  The TAG Program provides for an unlimited FDIC guarantee for deposits in qualifying noninterest-bearing transaction accounts maintained at insured depository institutions.  Information about this program can be found at FDIC.gov.

Coverage under the Transaction Account Guarantee Program is in addition to, and separate from, the coverage available under the

FDIC’s general deposit insurance rules.

FOR YOUR PROTECTION...

The Bank will NOT contact you by phone, e-mail or website to request your social security number, account number, passwords or PINs.  However, if you call us, we might ask for some information to confirm your identity.

PHISHING

Phishing is one of the latest cons used by high-tech criminals to facilitate one of America 's leading forms of fraud - identity theft. Basically, the scam uses unsolicited email (spam) to bait consumers into disclosing sensitive personal information such as social security numbers, account and routing numbers, credit card numbers, personal identification numbers, passwords, and other private data. Contact the Bank immediately if you suspect that you have fallen victim to "phishing" by providing private financial information to these scammers. You should also contact the major credit bureaus and let them know that your personal financial information may have been compromised. The three major credit bureaus are: Equifax at 1-800-525-6285; Experian at 1-888-397-3742; and TransUnion at 1-800-680-7289. If you would like to receive our pamphlet on Phishing, please pick one up at the Bank or call us at 1-603-898-2153.

CHECK 21

The Check Clearing for the 21 st Century Act (Check 21) went into effect on October 28, 2004 . With 9/11, the Banking Industry found that checks stopped clearing when the New York Federal Reserve was unable to send or receive checks due to transportation problems at that time. It is part of our homeland security to be able to clear checks and continue business even if the planes, trains, and automobiles stop moving. This new law enables banks to process images of checks instead of the actual checks through the banking system without depending on traditional modes of transportation. What this means for you is that your check could clear in the time it takes to send a digital picture through the computer along a phone line. You will see a new item called a SUBSTITUTE CHECK , which is a printed copy of your check after it has been imaged. Check 21 gave legal status to this substitute check. If you would like to receive a copy of our disclosure that provides more details as well as telling you your rights regarding Substitute Checks, stop in at the Bank or call us at 603-898-2153.

Be prepared! Your checks will be clearing a lot faster than before! This means you should not count on any "float" time. You may see a check that you wrote clearing your account the next day, or even possibly, the SAME DAY!

The FACT ACT

Section 151 of the FACT ACT (Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions) states that it is mandatory for banks to provide information to consumers who allege ID theft after the consumer presents proper notification and their identification is verified.

Section 217 of the FACT ACT requires lenders to provide notice to consumers of any negative information reported to the credit reporting agencies. Negative information means information concerning a customer's delinquencies, late payments, insolvency, or any form of default. After this notice, the institution may submit additional negative information about the consumer to a nationwide consumer reporting agency without providing additional notice to the customer.