Last week the SEC warned investors and broker-dealers and investment adviser firms of impostors posing as SEC employees and examiners seeking to obtain confidential information. Firms should be mindful not to disclose confidential information, including confidential customer information, to persons without verifying their status and a valid, lawful need for the information.
According to the SEC's press release, firms should:
Always verify the identity of someone claiming to be from the SEC. Ask for the caller's name, the SEC office in which they work, and their telephone number. Then verify the caller's identity by calling the SEC's personnel locator at 202-551-6000 and asking to speak directly to that SEC staff member.
If contacted by someone unfamiliar to you claiming to be an SEC employee, please report it to the SEC by calling 800-732-0330 or e-mailing: help@sec.gov. If a caller claiming to be an SEC examiner is found not to be a member of the SEC's staff, please report the incident to the SEC's Examination Hotline at (202) 551-EXAM.
Most importantly, if the caller is suspicious and can't be verified, do not share any information. Similarly, if the caller resists providing proof of identity, or efforts to reach the caller through a published SEC telephone number are unsuccessful, do not give the caller any information.
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