If you’re a business owner, you may have already applied or are still planning to apply for a loan to assist your business by paying employees through the SBA’s (Small Business Administration) CARES Act Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) or Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) program. Both programs recently got billions of dollars in new funding. However, while you’re focused on getting a loan – scammers may be hoping to trick you into giving them sensitive business information, like your bank account numbers, employees’ Social Security Numbers, and your money.

Below are some guidelines to prevent you and your business from getting scammed as you apply for a small business loan.

Things to Do:

• Get information about SBA loans directly from the SBA’s website: sba.gov/coronavirus.
• Once on that page, go to Funding Options and follow the instructions.
• Find more information about the PPP and EIDL programs at the U.S. Treasury Department’s website.

 Things You Shouldn’t Do:

• Never pay for information. All the information from the SBA is free at sba.gov/coronavirus.
• Don’t pay in advance for a government business loan. You will never have to pay anything up front to get an SBA loan.
• Don’t give your information to anyone who calls, emails, or texts you. The SBA will not call unsolicited to find out information about you or your business, or to ask you to apply for a loan. The SBA will not send you emails or text messages asking for sensitive information. If you get an email or text like this, it’s a scam.
• Don’t apply for a loan without verifying the lender. Only SBA authorized lenders can provide PPP loans, and the other loans (bridge loans, debt relief loans) that may be available through SBA directly. To find an SBA authorized lender in your area, use this SBA tool.
• Don’t click on links or reply to emails or text messages from unknown senders. If you click on any links typically sent in these types of communications, you could download malware to your device or be connected to a scammer. Also be on alert for fraudulent calls. If you think your business has been contacted by a scammer, report it at ftc.gov/complaint

To inquire about applying for a PPP Loan for your small Monmouth or Ocean County NJ business, please email our Business Development Department at business@firstffcu.com. First Financial is an SBA approved lender.*

We are here to help our local small businesses during this difficult time!

*Please be advised that due to high volume in regard to requests with PPP Loans, our response time may be delayed. We will get to each inquiry in the order in which it was received.

Article Source: Rosario Mendez of Consumer.FTC.gov