Counterfeit cashier's checks drawn on the Cambrian Branch (San Jose, California) of the Bank of the West, San Francisco, California, are reportedly in circulation

The Cambrian Branch (San Jose, California) of the Bank of the West, San Francisco, California, has contacted the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) to report that counterfeit checks bearing the institution's name are in circulation.

The counterfeit items display the routing number 121100782, which is assigned to Bank of the West, and are similar to authentic cashier's checks in style, font and format. Authentic checks are light gray; the counterfeit items are light blue and white. The counterfeit items display a telephone number that is not associated with the bank; authentic checks do not display a telephone number. A copy of a counterfeit item and an authentic cashier's check (VOID) are attached for your review.

Any information you have concerning this matter should be brought to the attention of:

Nori Fuller
Assistant Vice President and Senior Investigator
Corporate Security
Bank of the West
39533 Paseo Padre Parkway
Fremont, California 94538
Telephone: (510) 793-6046
Fax: (510) 651-6458
Nori.fuller@bankofthewest.com

Information about counterfeit items, cyber-fraud incidents and other fraudulent activity may be forwarded to the FDIC's Cyber-Fraud and Financial Crimes Section, 550 17th Street, N.W., Room F-4004, Washington, D.C. 20429, or transmitted electronically to alert@fdic.gov. Information related to federal deposit insurance or consumer issues should be submitted to the FDIC using an online form that can be accessed at http://www2.fdic.gov/starsmail/index.asp.

For your reference, FDIC Special Alerts may be accessed from the FDIC's Web site at www.fdic.gov/news/news/SpecialAlert/2005/index.html. To learn how to automatically receive FDIC Special Alerts through e-mail, please visit www.fdic.gov/about/subscriptions/index.html.

Christopher J. SpothActing Director
Division of Supervision and Consumer Protection