Information We Will Never Request from You

Here's an overview of our standards for authenticating our customers, and the types of information we may request from you.

We will never

• Call our clients and ask for their personal information. We already have your information on file. We only ask you for some pieces of your personal information to authenticate yourself when you call us—for example, your date of birth, the last four digits of your Social Security number, your mother's maiden name, etc.
• Ask you to send personal information by e-mail.

We will only

• Ask you for personal information when you initiate contact with us by phone or online.

For example:

• If you reset or create your password online, we will ask you to confirm your Social Security number.
• When you call the Merrill Lynch Call Center, you will be asked to verify your name, ZIP code and last four digits of your Social Security number.

If we are unable to authenticate your identity over the phone, we will contact your branch office or Financial Advisor.