Fraud Awareness
 Online Security

VENTURE BANK PRIVACY STATEMENT

Introduction

At Venture Bank, our mission is to respond to the financial needs of businesses and individuals with service beyond expectations.

At Venture Bank, the basis of each customer relationship, many of which span generations, is trust. As financial services professionals entrusted with sensitive financial information, we respect the privacy of our customers and are committed to treating customer information responsibly. Our customer information privacy principles serve as standards for all Venture Bank employees in their collection, use, retention, and security of individual customer information.

At Venture Bank, we believe the confidentiality and protection of customer information is one of our fundamental responsibilities. And while information is critical to providing quality service, we recognize that one of our most important assets is our customers' trust. Thus, the safekeeping of customer information is a priority for Venture Bank.

Incorporated into this document is Venture Bank’s Customer Information Privacy Disclosure, which details our privacy practices as they relate to our customers.

Responsibility

The bank’s Risk Management Officer will serve as the primary contact for privacy issues. The Information Security Officer is responsible for information security as it relates to technology.

Collection, Use, and Retention of Customer Information

For purposes of implementing the privacy provisions of Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, all information collected from customers will be considered nonpublic, personal information. We will review information collected about customers, determine how it is used, whether service will be provided to the customer, and how information will be destroyed. We will ask vendors how customer information is being used and ensure that vendors comply with our privacy standards.

We will not collect, use or retain information about customers when we do not have a good reason for doing so. Each department will be responsible for reviewing its collection of customer information and determine how it is used.

Customer information is only kept as long as it is useful to the administration of a customer’s relationship or the specific provision of a particular product and service, or as required by law.

Categories of Information We Collect

Venture Bank collects nonpublic personal information about customers from the following sources:

• Information we receive from you on applications or other forms
• Information about your transactions with us or third-party verification systems
• Information we receive from a consumer-reporting agency

We collect and retain information about customers only for specific bank business purposes -- and we will tell them why we are collecting and retaining it upon request. We use information to protect and administer customer records, accounts, and funds; to comply with certain laws and regulations; to help us design or improve our products and services; and to understand customer’s financial needs so that we can provide quality products and superior service. We will use this information only in accordance with the principles set out in this statement.

Categories of Information We Disclose

We do not reveal specific information about customer accounts or other personally identifiable data to parties outside our affiliated companies for their independent use unless: 1) the customer requests or authorizes it; 2) the information is provided to help complete a transaction initiated by the customer; 3) the information is provided to a reputable credit bureau or similar information reporting agency; or 4) the disclosure otherwise is lawfully permitted or required.

It is our policy not to provide account or personal information to companies not affiliated with Venture Bank for the purpose of independent telemarketing or direct mail marketing of any non-financial products or services of those companies.

Confidentiality and Security

Venture Bank has established procedures to ensure that customer financial information is accurate, current and complete, in keeping with reasonable commercial standards. We also pledge to respond to requests to correct inaccurate information in a timely manner.

At Venture Bank, employee access to personally identifiable customer information is limited to those with a business reason to know such information. Employees are educated on the importance of maintaining the confidentiality of customer information and on these privacy principles at the onset of employment as well as annually. Because of the importance of these issues, all Venture Bank employees are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of customer information and employees who violate these privacy principles will be subject to disciplinary measures.

Venture Bank employees a wide range of methods to insure customer security, including:

• Physical security of our facilities and information stored in those facilities
• Frequent shredding of unneeded documents and periodic destruction of obsolete and dated records
• Secured data processing systems that employ advanced security hardware and software to protect information
• Encryption of data
• Use of passwords by both employees and customers to access banking information and frequent changing of those passwords
• Backup systems to insure the security of data even in the case of a disaster

Customer Information Privacy Disclosure

Venture Bank will provide disclosures to all new customers regarding our privacy policies and practices. In addition, we will provide an annual disclosure to all Venture Bank customers. The Board of Directors will approve the Bank’s Policy and Disclosure documents annually. (See the disclosure in Appendix A)

Implementation of New Products and Vendors

At times the Bank will expand its product and services offered. It is the Bank’s policy to include the Risk Management Officer in these discussions to ensure due diligence over the proposed vendor is adequate and customer information is secured at all times. In addition, new products may require the implementation of additional privacy notices, which will be coordinated by the Risk Management Officer.

Former Customers

Venture Bank will only disclose non-public personal information about former customers as required by law.

Maintaining Customer Privacy in Third-Party Relationships

When the Bank conducts business with third parties, we require our vendors and suppliers to maintain similar standards of conduct regarding the privacy of personally identifiable customer information provided to them. All contracts must contain provisions requiring the vendor to adopt security standards in accordance with GLBA provisions. A separate vendor management policy has been adopted by the Board of Directors.

Maintenance of Accurate Information

We continually strive to maintain complete and accurate information about our customers and their accounts. Numbers are provided on customer statements as well as the privacy disclosures both local and toll free that the customer may call to alert the Bank to errors.

Audit Procedures

An independent audit will be performed on the Bank’s privacy program in accordance with the approved internal audit plan. Results of the audit will be presented to the audit committee. Management will provide responses to the audit which will be reviewed and approved by the audit committee.

Training

All personnel will receive a copy of this policy at the onset of employment as well as on an annual basis. Additionally, e-learning courses are available to each employee.

For a print version of Venture Bank's Customer Privacy Disclosure, click here.

Click Here for additional online security information.

FRAUD AWARENESS INFORMATION

The lesson is simple: don’t talk – or type – to strangers. Specifically, beware of giving any personally identifying information to anyone who calls you on the phone or sends you an e-mail. Such sensitive information would include your bank account and Social Security numbers, and all credit card and banking passwords and PINs.

E-mail fraud is on the rise. One fraudulent scheme, known as “Phishing,” involves the use of seemingly legitimate e-mail messages and web sites designed to deceive you by looking like legitimate businesses. In a typical phishing scheme, the fraudulent message will request that you “update” or “validate” sensitive information. You may be requested to "protect your account", "re-activate your account", "prevent your account from becoming locked", etc. When responding to such a request, you may be directed to a fraudulent web site that looks very similar to a legitimate one.

For more information about “phishing,”, visit the Washington State Attorney General's Consumer Protection web page at www.atg.wa.gov/ConsumerIssues/ID-Privacy/Phishing.aspx.

To report a “phishing” incident to the Federal Trade commission, go to the FTC Consumer Alert web page at www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/alerts/phishingalrt.htm.

Remember, Venture Bank’s web page should NEVER be accessed from a link provided by a third party, such as e-mail. It should be accessed ONLY by typing the web site name into the web browser or by using a “book mark” already keyed to www.venture-bank.com.

Venture Bank will NEVER phone you or send an e-mail requesting confidential information. If you receive such a request, contact us immediately at 1-888-373-BANK (1-888-373-2265).

PAST FRAUD EVENTS

FDIC Phishing Scam - 03/14/08
Venture Bank Phishing Scam - June 2007

When you contact Venture Bank via Internet e-mail, please do NOT send confidential information such as your social security numbers, account numbers, and other account or private information. Unlike Venture Bank's forms, Internet e-mail does not use SSL encryption and is not secure!