Safe and secure banking
Police Credit Union’s priority is keeping your money safe and secure.
We are committed to creating a secure banking environment for our Members and also denying funding to organised crime.
Read how we’re aiming to make banking safer for the whole community and the steps you can take to better protect your money…
Lost or stolen cards
Lost or stolen cards can be used by anyone with contactless payments to pay for small transactions which do not require a PIN.
WARNING: a lost or stolen card can also be used to complete transactions online. ALWAYS report a lost or stolen card as you soon as you notice it missing.
Report a lost or stolen card by calling us
During business hours: 1300 131 844
After hours: 1300 131 844 and press 2
Overseas: call the Visa Hotline on +61 2 8299 9101 wherever you are in the world, they process lost or stolen card reports 24 hours a day.
You will need to disclose:
- Your name as it is printed on the card
- Your 16-digit Visa account number or your Member number
How we protect you
Police Credit Union is committed to denying funding to organised crime.
Guardian Fraud Protection Service is our comprehensive suite of services aimed at keeping your transactions safe and secure including:
- Monitoring transaction activity.
- Assessing and taking protective action against high-risk or suspicious transactions.
- Researching Australian and international trends in fraud and scams.
- Proactively blocking fraudulent or high-risk transactions where possible.
- Actioning transaction disputes and recovering funds where possible.
We will hold some transactions for review, due to the increases in scam activity, access to accounts/devices being compromised or fraudulently accessed. This will allow you time to detect and question any suspicious transactions. We will sometimes contact you to confirm the purpose and validity of a transaction or a transfer limit increase.
Additional security questions
As additional security when increasing your daily limit or for certain transfers and withdrawals, our staff may ask you for supporting documents e.g. an invoice or contract, as well as ask questions such as:
- How did you became aware of the payee/seller?
- How do you know if the payee is legitimate?
- Have you physically seen the goods you are purchasing?
- Have you met the payee in person before (not just online)?
- The purpose of the transaction.
- Whether any pressure has been placed on the Member to transfer funds.
Police Credit Union wants to ensure that our Members do not lose money to scams or coercion. In the event of a scam, funds are difficult to recover, particularly if you are liable for the transaction.
Our Guardian Fraud Protection Service also gives you access to our Guardian Money Back Guarantee which sees us credit your account should you lose any money in a fraudulent transaction. The Guardian Money Back Guarantee applies if you have not directly contributed to the transactions yourself, didn’t participate in fraudulent transactions by providing details and disputed the transactions within a reasonable time frame.
Other security services:
One Time Passwords are randomly created passwords sent via SMS or email, protecting your funds and adding another layer of online security.
Online Banking Update – enhanced security protection. Due to increased malicious activity across the internet, Police Credit Union has introduced enhanced security protection on our Online Banking Login page.You may notice screens like the ones below, with the message ‘www.pcunet1.com.au, Checking if the site connection is secure’ and you may be asked occasionally to verify that you are human and not a machine. These enhanced security protections have been introduced to further protect Members’ accounts and should not be the cause for concern.
You may see the message below and be asked occasionally to verify that you are human and not a machine.
Visa Secure is a security feature across our Visa cards requesting additional security information before a transaction is approved.
High risk online merchants
Risky online merchants are multiplying at an alarming rate, outnumbering trustworthy merchants two-to-one.
These merchants saturate social media with their advertising to find vulnerable new customers every day. We use our extensive experience in flagging and reviewing merchant risks to increase your security when shopping online – saving you time, money, and disappointment.
We generally protect you from these risks by blocking high-risk merchants as we discover them. In this way you are better protected against:
- Unfulfilled orders (goods not received)
- Counterfeit brand goods
- Poor quality goods
- Ineffective or potentially dangerous health products
- Subscription traps where you are continually being charged/billed with a recurring payment, e.g. free trials that turn into regular debit payments.
This also saves you having to dispute transactions with the merchant, and with us.
Some examples of the highest risk merchants are:
- ‘IQ test’ or ‘brain training’ sites – especially if they offer prizes or membership rewards.
- Media sites (movies, music) that feature only old or obscure titles – especially if they offer a ‘free trial’.
- Sites featuring off-brand electronics – especially if they feature bulk discounts or membership programmes.
- Sites featuring bogus ‘health supplements’ – especially those based overseas.
Blocking these merchants helps to maximise protection for all our members. We apologise for any inconvenience caused to you – our intention is to inconvenience dishonest merchants.
Protect yourself
Protect your PIN
- Take care when entering your PIN, make sure that no one can see it, and if possible cover the keypad with your hand.
- Always memorise your PIN, NEVER write it down (even in your phone)!
- Keep your PIN a secret, even from friends and family. Even from the police. And remember, our staff will never ask for your PIN.
- Changing your PIN from time to time helps protect against fraud.
- Avoid using obvious numbers like digits from your phone number.
- Never choose a PIN based on your date of birth – you will be liable for any resulting fraud.
- Never enter login details in response to a link in an SMS or email. This is particularly important for Apple IDs and Google logins, as they can be used to transact on your card if you have a digital wallet set up.
We decline all mag-stripe and mag-stripe fallback transactions on our cards. This means our cards are protected against counterfeiting, but there is still a fraud risk if your card is lost or stolen.
Protect your accounts
All accounts are at the risk of scams and fraud even if they are not accessed regularly. If you do not require regular access to some accounts, consider these options to reduce your risk:
- Any account that is View Only for Online Banking is protected against fraud and scams.
- Any account that is No Access for Online Banking is not only protected against fraud and scams, but scammers won’t be able to see the funds at all.
These options can be handy for savings accounts (such as iSavings or Focus Saver accounts), since you can have full access to a transaction account while keeping larger balances protected.
You will still receive account updates in statements – and we can provide updates on request, complete one-off transactions on your behalf, or restore your access whenever you require.
Travelling overseas
Overseas travel presents a set of risks, mostly to cards. Here’s some things to keep in mind before heading off on your next trip:
- Please notify us of any travel plans, as this helps us to assess unusual activity on your account and reduces the likelihood of your card being restricted.
- In case of lost or stolen cards – or fraud on your card – have multiple backup options to access funds while overseas, and keep a note of our 24-hour card hotline number +61 8 8208 5761. Lost or stolen cards will still be at risk and must be reported or locked immediately.
- Remember you can always lock and unlock cards for security by using our Banking App.
- Check travel advisories for all your destinations, paying particular attention to banking risks.
We decline all mag-stripe and mag-stripe fallback transactions on our cards. This means our cards are protected against counterfeiting, but may result in some failed transactions at older ATMs which you may encounter overseas.
Make sure to contact us if you’re heading overseas, give us a call during business hours on 1300 131 844, chat to our branch staff or try sending us a Secure Message using your Inbox in Online Banking or our Banking App. We will reply during business hours.
Make a report
If you notice suspicious behaviour, unusual activity, a possible security threat on your account, or for any concerns, please notify us.
During business hours: 1300 131 844
After hours: 1300 131 844 and press 2
If you are overseas: +61 8 8208 5761
You can also email us at [email protected] or visit your local branch.
Need to dispute a transaction?
If you wish to dispute a transaction, you will need to complete a dispute form. This form can be returned at any branch or by post.
If you’re a genuine victim of fraud, you can get your money back with our Guardian Money Back Guarantee. The Guardian Money Back Guarantee applies if you have not directly contributed to the transactions yourself, didn’t participate in fraudulent transactions by providing details and disputed the transactions within a reasonable time frame.
Contact us and update your details
Have a query? Need to let us know your new details?
We are here to help with any of your queries. It’s also important for us to have your most up to date contact details. We have a range of security controls to monitor your transactions and protect you from fraud. If we detect any suspicious activity we may contact you to confirm the legitimacy of the transaction but we can only do this if we have your current details.
You can update your details in four simple steps:
- Log in to Online Banking
- Go to Settings and select Update Contact Details
- Click Get SMS and enter the One Time Password
- Choose to update your address details or contact details
Alternatively, you can try calling us:
During business hours: 1300 131 844
After hours: 1300 131 844 and press 2
If you are overseas: +61 8 8208 5761
You can also email us at [email protected] or visit your local branch.
Find out more
To find out more information about current scams, check out the government website, Scam Watch.
To help you spot, avoid and educate yourself on scams, read the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission’s guide The Little Book of Scams.
Learn more about how you can protect yourself from scams.