At least five credit unions in Northeast Ohio were affected by a local debit card fraud breach that began in April, reveals an analysis of police reports conducted by Cleveland-based newspaper The Plain Dealer.
The paper listed Cleveland-based, $311 million Century Federal Credit Union; Cleveland-based, $34 million First Class Credit Union (formerly Cleveland Postal Employees Credit Union); Cleveland-based, $180 million Firefighters Community Credit Union; Parma, Ohio-based, $100 million PSE Credit Union and Walton Hills, Ohio-based, $98 million Best Reward Credit Union as the CUs hit by the breach along with at least a dozen banks.
Phone calls from Credit Union Times to the reportedly affected credit unions were not immediately returned.
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The Cleveland Electronic Crimes Task Force, a division of the U.S. Secret Service, is investigating the debit card fraud case, said special agent in charge Smokey Everett. Everett confirmed a debit card fraud case but said he could provide no further comment since it is an ongoing case.
Victims filed dozens of reports at area police departments detailing fraudulent purchases at local retailers, which totaled as much as $4,000 on a single account, The Plain Dealer said. Criminals reportedly stole victims' account numbers and made purchases using fake debit cards and forged signatures.
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Natasha Chilingerian
Natasha Chilingerian has been immersed in the credit union industry for over a decade. She first joined CU Times in 2011 as a freelance writer, and following a two-year hiatus from 2013-2015, during which time she served as a communications specialist for Xceed Financial Credit Union (now Kinecta Federal Credit Union), she re-joined the CU Times team full-time as managing editor. She was promoted to executive editor in 2019. In the earlier days of her career, Chilingerian focused on news and lifestyle journalism, serving as a writer and editor for numerous regional publications in Oregon, Louisiana, South Carolina and the San Francisco Bay Area. In addition, she holds experience in marketing copywriting for companies in the finance and technology space. At CU Times, she covers People and Community news, cybersecurity, fintech partnerships, marketing, workplace culture, leadership, DEI, branch strategies, digital banking and more. She currently works remotely and splits her time between Southern California and Portland, Ore.
