Dec. 24--While Franklin Bank did close and merge with Prosperity Bank recently, neither bank is "phishing" for account information via e-mail.

Officials are warning bank customers to be aware of the continued circulation of an e-mail bearing Franklin Bank's logo and informing the customer of the bank's closing.

"These e-mails are designed to look very official, but they're not," JPD Crime Prevention Officer Detective Tonya Sonntag said. "The best thing to remember is never give out any sensitive information unless you know absolutely for a fact who you are talking to."

The e-mail begins, "Dear Customer, on November 7, 2008, Franklin Bank, SSB, Houston, TX was closed by the Texas Department of Savings and Mortgage Lending. Subsequently, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) was named Receiver.

"No advance notice is given to the public when a financial institution is closed," the e-mail continues. "All deposit accounts have been transferred to Prosperity Bank, Houston, TX. For security please update information to avoid data loss during account transfer."

The e-mail includes a link to click to update account information and finishes by declaring "Franklin Bank is serious about safeguarding your personal information online."

Lana Cook, manager of the Franklin Bank in Jacksonville, said while the bank is changing hands, no data transfer is necessary.

"Everything here is still business as usual," Cook said. "We've not transferred anything and won't.

"Even if we did, we would never conduct that type of business through the Internet -- it would be done completely through the U.S. mail service. Besides, why would we need to ask you for your information. We already have it, if you've got an account with us."

The e-mail also contains an address for a corporate office -- 2601 North Lamar Boulevard, Suite 201, Austin, Texas 78705 -- and is copyrighted.

The address included is the actual address of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation's headquarters, but FDIC officials remind people the e-mail is a scam.

"It is important to note that neither the FDIC as receiver nor Prosperity Bank as the acquiring institution will e-mail customers of Franklin Bank asking them to validate their deposits or to request personal, confidential information, such as account numbers, Social Security Number, driver's license number, etc.," a release published at the FDIC's Web site states. "If customers receive e-mails asking for such personal information, they should consider them to be fraudulent in nature and should not respond."

FDIC spokesman David Barr said the FDIC never asks consumers for personal or account information via e-mail for any reason, not just regarding bank closings.

"Anyone receiving this e-mail, or any other, asking to verify or reverify account information or to reactive a suspended account can automatically delete it," he said. "It's a scam."

Customers who have questions regarding any e-mail from their bank can call the FDIC's hotline, 1-877-ASK-FDIC, or visit the FDIC's Web site at www.fdic.gov for information on the various phishing scams circulating.

The Federal Trade Commission suggests forwarding any unwanted or deceptive e-mail to uce@ftc.gov.

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