SERS Security Alerts

Many state employees have been targeted by emails that offer to provide one-on-one retirement planning. These emails imply affiliation with the State of Illinois or the State Retirement Systems, but a statement at the end of the email specifies that “representatives are independent and not state, federal, or district employees.”

Below is an email that has been reported to SERS by several state employees. The email includes the first name of the employee in the salutation and provides a link to schedule an appointment. Please note that various names are used in the closing. SRS does not contact members by email or otherwise to schedule a counseling appointment, unless you request by voicemail or email that we contact you. If you receive an email like the one below, please forward it to reportfraud@srs.illinois.gov.

SERS is actively working with authorities to end these misleading emails. To be safe, SERS recommends the following best practices:

• Never trust cold calls, text messages, or unexpected emails offering investment or financial services. Prior to selecting any investment, insurance, or financial advisor it is good to do your own research to determine if the firm or individual is reputable and is a good fit for you. Consider working with licensed and registered advisors or firms. When contacting an individual or firm, reach out to the individual or firm by searching for publicly available contact information online, rather than responding to an email.  
• Be wary of investors promising guaranteed investment returns or returns that appear too good to be true. Be especially suspect of red flags such as pressure to invest quickly or if the “advisor” states investment opportunity is limited and you must act now.
• Never make important investment or financial decisions over the phone or email. Stop and take time to think about your decisions before acting. It never hurts to discuss your interactions with a trusted friend, family member, or colleague before investing.
• Trust your gut. If the individual offering financial or investment services seems suspicious, or if it feels like a scam, there’s a good chance you’re right.
• Never provide your personal information to an individual that cold calls, emails, or texts you offering financial services, retirement or pension reviews, or any other investment opportunity. A common tactic used by scammers to collect your personal information is by requesting an online appointment by using a form or appointment booking request. In these requests, the scammer may ask for sensitive information such as your personal retirement savings, your current earnings, and possibly even your account information.
• Do not click on links within unsolicited emails or text messages for retirement planning or investment reviews. These links may be malicious and can potentially expose you to malware or other computer viruses.
• Consider where the email is originating from by reviewing the sender’s domain. Does the email domain appear to be mimicking or “spoofing” the State of Illinois or SERS? Valid emails from SERS will end with @srs.illinois.gov  

The State Employees’ Retirement System (SERS) has observed a nationwide scam whereby threat actors have utilized social engineering tactics to send unsolicited emails to employees offering free retirement or pension reviews. These groups have created several fraudulent domains coupled with keywords such as  “state pension”, “state employee”, “state retirement”, or “state benefits”, to send unsolicited and misleading emails to state employees in an attempt to appear legitimate while indirectly implying affiliation with the State of Illinois or SERS. It is important to note that these domains have no affiliation or relationship with the State of Illinois, SERS, or the State’s deferred compensation partner, Empower.

The “advisors” sending unsolicited emails to State employees for free pension or retirement reviews are not employees of the State of Illinois and will not be able to answer direct questions about your benefit eligibility, estimated benefit amount, or any other account information related to benefits provided by SERS. Rather, these advisors, who continue to bombard state employees with emails will attempt to sell life insurance or other annuity products which they may earn a high commission. State employees should also be on alert that these advisors may ask for personal and financial information in this scheme. The tactics utilized by these groups suggest that this is a scam, or at the very least deceptive, and unethical business practices.

Below is a listing of observed domains sending unsolicited emails to state employees. These emails should be considered untrusted and be reported to reportfraud@srs.illinois.gov. This listing is not exhaustive, as the scammers are using multiple domains and email addresses to evade blocking from email systems. If you would like more information on reporting fraud, see our Fraud Reporting Guidance webpage.

statepensionadvisors.com

pensionpathways.org

statepensions.org

statepensions.us

statebenefitsadvisor.org

planassistants.com

edueducators.com

affinityadvisorynetwork.com

federalpensionadvisors.com

publicemployeesretirementadvisors.com

stateretirement.org

pensionsupportservice.org

ergpensionreview.com

employeebenefitsgroup.net

stateretirementguides.org

pensionanswers.org

state-pension.org

stateemployee-benefits.org

stateretirementplan.org

statebenefits-guide.org

mypensionassistance.com

thebenefitsadvisor.com

stateretirementadvisor.org

govpensions.org

pensionadvisor.org

adv.planassistants.com

stateplanningadvisors.com

state-pensions.org

benefitsupportservice.com

statepensionadvisor.org

employeebenefits-guide.org

statepensions.org

employeepensionsupport.com

stateplanningadvice.com

employeebenefits-guide.org

staffbenefitsconsulting.com

adv.advisorconsultation.com

stateretirementschedule.com

benefitsgovsupport.com

govpensions.org

federalretirementconsultant.com

stategovemployees.com

pensionpros.org

publicserviceplanning.com

statepensionagents.com

stateemployeesupport.com

statepensionbenefitreview.com

staffbenefitslink.com

pensionsupport.org

ergadvisorhub.com

govpensionsystem.com

livepensionadvice.com