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MCLEAN, Va.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Oct. 30, 2006–Ninety-three percent of Americans are well aware of the growing crime of identity theft. Yet despite free access to credit reports and numerous educational efforts, a new survey from leading financial services company Capital One (NYSE:COF) and national advocacy group Consumer Action finds that many consumers are still unaware of the financial damage that can result from the crime and the steps to take if they fall victim. The survey also suggests that older and younger generations are particularly vulnerable.

Among the survey’s key findings:

Forty-four percent of consumers do not realize that their personal information can be used to obtain a mortgage and 32 percent do not know that thieves can obtain a drivers license or photo ID card with such information.

Forty-one percent of older Americans (70+) do not realize that identity thieves can obtain a drivers license or ID card with their information, while 54 percent of younger Americans are unaware of this risk.

Thirty-two percent of Americans are putting themselves at risk for identity theft simply by carrying their Social Security Cards in their wallets or purses and 45 percent of those polled incorrectly think that a new Social Security Number (SSN) should be obtained if you are a victim.

“Identity theft and fraud are crimes that we can’t simply ignore. For victims, it can take a considerable amount of time and effort to clear up credit records and repair the financial damage caused by the crime,” said Diana Don, director of financial education at Capital One. “There are danger signs that we look out for as a financial institution, but it’s equally important that we help consumers minimize their risk by arming them with the right information.”

Because of the financial harm that can result from identity theft, Capital One uses numerous security and assistance measures, such as regular account monitoring, to ensure customers’ information is protected. In addition to those efforts, Capital One and Consumer Action, through their national MoneyWi$e financial literacy partnership, have developed a free, multilingual consumer guide called ID Theft/Account Fraud Prevention and Clean Up, available at www.money-wise.org.

“The MoneyWi$e guide on ID Theft/Account Fraud Prevention and Clean Up offers practical guidance on the simple steps you can take to help prevent identity theft, or, if you are a victim, to clear up the problems created by the crime and lessen its impact on your life,” said Ken McEldowney, executive director of Consumer Action.

Despite educational efforts, many consumers are still uninformed about the crime.

Despite numerous educational efforts from the government, consumer groups and the financial industry, the Capital One-Consumer Action survey finds that consumers still do not realize the financial harm that can result from identity theft. For example, 15 percent do not realize that their personal information can be used to open lines of credit for products such as credit cards, while 24 percent do not know that identity thieves can use their information to apply for a job. Consumers were equally unaware of the steps they should take if they are victims of identity theft. Forty-five percent of Americans report that a new SSN should be obtained while 35 percent report that a new SSN is not necessary. The remaining 20 percent were unsure.

According to the MoneyWi$e guide on ID Theft Prevention and Clean Up, a variety of personal information can be used to commit ID theft and account fraud, including a person’s name, SSN, birth date, mother’s maiden name, credit report, driver’s license, and credit card and bank account numbers. Although many victims of identity theft believe a new SSN will solve their problems, this is usually not possible since credit reporting bureaus may combine the records of your old and new SSN. The Capital One-Consumer Action guide suggests several core steps to help consumers’ spot potential signs of ID theft and account fraud:

Check your credit report. You can get one free copy of your credit report annually from the three national credit reporting bureaus. Go to the official Annual Credit Report site (www.annualcreditreport.com) to get your free reports. Review your reports for accounts you don’t recognize or information from companies you don’t do business with.

Monitor your mail for missed bills, credit card statements and other mail. A missing bill might mean that a crook has taken over your account and changed your billing address.

Investigate mysterious purchases, charges, bills or collection calls immediately. If you receive a credit card that you didn’t apply for or find a charge on your credit card bill that you don’t recognize, call the companies immediately to address the problem.

Question credit offers. If you know you have good credit but your application for a new credit card is denied, it could be a sign of ID theft. When you are denied credit, you can get a free copy of your credit report from the credit bureau used by the lender. Some generations appear more vulnerable to crime.

Surprisingly, the Capital One-Consumer Action survey on identity theft finds the youngest and oldest generations most vulnerable to the crime. Both generations tend to carry their Social Security Cards (43 percent of 70+ Americans do this while 44 percent of younger Americans ages 18-19 do), putting them at increased risk for the crime. The survey also suggests that older Americans may not realize the negative financial impact that can result from the crime - fifty-five percent do not realize that identity thieves can use stolen information to buy a home/obtain a mortgage.

Equally troubling is fact that younger Americans, ages 18-19, are misinformed about ID theft, considering that the crime may disrupt future attempts to obtain car loans, mortgages or apply for jobs. Fifty-two percent of this age group do not realize that their personal information can be used to rent an apartment and 75 percent do not realize it can be used to buy a home/obtain a mortgage.

MoneyWi$e program arms consumers with financial tools and information.

Education is the key to a healthy financial future. To help consumers protect against identity theft and improve their knowledge on other financial topics, Capital One and Consumer Action created the MoneyWi$e financial education program. MoneyWi$e combines free, multilingual financial education materials on a variety of financial topics with community training and seminars to give consumers at all income levels the information and the practical assistance they need to make smart financial choices. Consumers can obtain free brochures by visiting www.money-wise.org.

Survey Methodology

For the joint Capital One-Consumer Action study, Braun Research was engaged to conduct 1003 interviews with adults age 18 years of age or older across the United States. Surveys were conducted by telephone from August 29th through August 31st, 2006. The margin of error for the research project is plus or minus 3.1 percentage points. Interviews were monitored and verified at random. Sampling for this study was conducted using a national probability sample of all exchanges and area codes known in the continental United States. All interviews were conducted using a computer assisted telephone interviewing system. Statistical weights were designed from United States Census Bureau statistics.

About Capital One

Headquartered in McLean, Virginia, Capital One Financial Corporation (http://www.capitalone.com) is a financial holding company, with more than 342 locations in Texas and Louisiana. Its principal subsidiaries, Capital One Bank, Capital One, F.S.B., Capital One Auto Finance, Inc., and Capital One, N.A., offer a broad spectrum of financial products and services to consumers, small businesses and commercial clients. Capital One’s subsidiaries collectively had $48.2 billion in deposits and $112.2 billion in managed loans outstanding as of September 30, 2006. Capital One, a Fortune 500 company, trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “COF” and is included in the S&P 500 index.

About Consumer Action

Consumer Action is a national non-profit education and advocacy organization founded in San Francisco in 1971. Consumer Action serves consumers nationwide by advancing consumer rights, referring consumers to complaint-handling agencies and publishing multilingual educational materials. Consumer Action also advocates for consumers in the media and before lawmakers and annually conducts comparison surveys for consumers on credit cards, banking issues and telecommunications issues.

CONTACT: Capital One Financial Corporation
Diana Don, 703-720-2371
Diana.don@capitalone.com

SOURCE: Capital One Financial Corporation 

MCLEAN, Va., Jun 01, 2006 (BUSINESS WIRE) — As hurricane season approaches, Capital One Financial Corporation (NYSE:COF) today released disaster-planning guidelines and a checklist to help small businesses prepare for emergency situations.

The checklist provides details to help small businesses:

– Develop a continuity plan that addresses post-disaster recovery procedures;

– Consider alternative operational locations;

– Equip backup operations sites with critical equipment, data files and supplies;

– Safeguard property;

– Gather current contact information for employees, vendors and customers;

– Develop multiple and reliable communication methods to reach employees;

– Communicate details of the plan to employees;

– Let customers and vendors know the business’ plan and what to expect from the business;

– Develop a detailed action plan in the event of a mandatory evacuation; and

– Prepare for emergency cash management to handle cash flow.

“It is important that small business owners take the necessary precautions to allow business continuity in the event of an emergency situation,” said Dave Wasik, senior vice president of Small Business at Capital One. “Business owners should address chief concerns including meeting payroll obligations, paying bills, restoring critical technology and communicating with employees, customers and suppliers.”

The Capital One Small Business web site (www.capitalone.com/smallbusiness) also contains additional information and business tips to help them operate more effectively and efficiently. Direct deposit, online bill pay and corporate credit cards are just a few of the tools that businesses can explore.

Capital One also offers the following planning recommendations to help businesses plan and prepare for potential emergencies:

– Transport physical records when a business evacuates. Records should always be kept where they can be removed quickly and easily to a safe location.

– Conduct a disaster-plan-building exercise with key employees.

– Identify which aspects of operations can be suspended temporarily and which must be maintained. List the business tools they will need to perform operations essential to sustaining business during a disaster and the recovery period that follows.

– Review communications capabilities for maintaining contact with employees. E-mail and text messaging should play a large role in employee communications planning.

Editor’s Note: Checklist located at bottom of press release.

About Capital One

Headquartered in McLean, Virginia, Capital One Financial Corporation (www.capitalone.com) is a financial holding company, with more than 316 locations in Texas and Louisiana. Its principal subsidiaries, Capital One Bank, Capital One, F.S.B., Capital One Auto Finance, Inc., and Capital One, N.A., offer a broad spectrum of financial products and services to consumers, small businesses and commercial clients. Capital One’s subsidiaries collectively had $47.8 billion in deposits and $103.9 billion in managed loans outstanding as of March 31, 2006. Capital One, a Fortune 500 company, trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “COF” and is included in the S&P 500 index.

Capital One offers a range of products to meet small business needs, including small business credit cards, small business loans and lines of credit, and small business savings accounts. As the largest issuer of small business Visa credit cards, and the third largest lender of SBA loans, Capital One provides specialized support designed to make it easier for small business customers to manage their finances so that they can focus on what’s important to them. Capital One small business products are available via direct mail, capitalone.com, phone (877.561.9847) and fax.

                 BUSINESS DISASTER PLANNING CHECKLIST
                 ————————————

    Planning Before a Hurricane or Other Disaster Arrives is Key to
                          Business Survival.

    These guidelines help businesses develop a strategy to minimize
                         damage and lost time.

Develop a business continuity / disaster recovery plan.

–  Establish a disaster-recovery team of employees who know your
    business best, and assign responsibilities for specific tasks.

–  Identify your risks (kinds of disasters you’re most likely to
    experience).

–  Prioritize critical business functions and how quickly these must
    be recovered.

–  Establish a disaster-recovery location where employees may work
    off-site and access critical back-up systems, records and
    supplies.

–  Obtain temporary housing for key employees, their families and
    pets.

–  Update and test your plan at least annually.
Alternative operational locations. Determine which alternatives are
available:

–  A satellite or branch office of your business.

–  The office of a business partner or even an employee.

–  Home or hotel.
Backup site. Equip your backup operations site with critical
equipment, data files and supplies:

–  Power generators.

–  Computers and software.

–  Critical computer data files (payroll, accounts payable and
    receivable, customer orders, inventory).

–  Phones/radios/TVs.

–  Equipment and spare parts.

–  Vehicles, boats and spare parts.

–  Digital cameras.

–  Common supplies.

–  Supplies unique to your business (order forms, contracts, etc.).

–  Basic first aid/sanitary supplies, potable water and food.
Safeguard your property. Is your property prepared to survive a
hurricane or other disaster:

–  Your building?

–  Your equipment?

–  Your computer systems?

–  Your company vehicles?

–  Your company records?

–  Other company assets?
Contact information. Do you have current and multiple contact
information (e.g., home and cell phone numbers, personal email
addresses) for:

–  Employees?

–  Key customers?

–  Important vendors, suppliers, business partners?

–  Insurance companies?

–  Is contact information accessible electronically for fast access
    by all employees?
Communications. Do you have access to multiple and reliable methods of
communicating with your employees:

–  Emergency toll-free hotline?

–  Web site?

–  Cell phones?

–  Satellite phones?

–  Pagers?

–  BlackBerry(TM)?

–  Two-way radios?

–  Internet?

–  Email?
Employee preparation. Make sure your employees know:

–  Company emergency plan.

–  Where they should relocate to work.

–  How to use and have access to reliable methods of communication,
    such as satellite/cell phones, email, voice mail, Internet, text
    messages, BlackBerry(TM), PDAs.

–  How they will be notified to return to work.

–  Benefits of direct deposit of payroll and subscribe to direct
    deposit.

–  Emergency company housing options available for them and their
    family.
Customer preparation. Make sure your key customers know:

–  Your emergency contact information for sales and service support
    (publish on your Web site).

–  Your backup business or store locations (publish on your Web
    site).

–  What to expect from your company in the event of a prolonged
    disaster displacement.

–  Alternate methods for placing orders.

–  Alternate methods for sending invoice payments in the event of
    mail disruption.
Evacuation order. When a mandatory evacuation is issued, be prepared
to grab and leave with critical office records and equipment:

–  Company disaster-recovery plan and checklist.

–  Insurance policies and company contracts.

–  Company checks, plus a list of all bank accounts, credit cards,
    ATM cards.

–  Employee payroll and contact information.

–  Desktop/laptop computers.

–  Customer records, including orders in progress.

–  Photographs/digital images of your business property.

–  Post disaster contact info inside your business to alert emergency
    workers how to reach you.

–  Secure your building and property.
Cash management. Be prepared to meet emergency cash-flow needs:

–  Take your checkbook and credit cards in the event of an
    evacuation.

–  Keep enough cash on hand to handle immediate needs.

–  Use Internet banking services to monitor account activity, manage
    cash flow, initiate wires, pay bills.

–  Issue corporate cards to essential personnel to cover emergency
    business expenses.

–  Reduce dependency on paper checks and postal service to send and
    receive payments (consider using electronic payment and remote
    deposit banking services).
Post-disaster recovery procedures.

–  Consider how your post-disaster business may differ from today.

–  Plan whom you will want to contact and when.

–  Assign specific tasks to responsible employees.

–  Track progress and effectiveness.

–  Document lessons learned and best practices.

For more business continuity planning tips, visit the U.S. Department
of Homeland Security Web site at www.ready.gov/business.
SOURCE: Capital One Financial Corporation

Capital One Financial Corporation, McLean
Pam Girardo, 703-720-2351
pam.girardo@capitalone.com

Capital One announces final results of North Fork stockholders elections

MCLEAN, Va., Dec. 1 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Capital One Financial (NYSE: COF) today announced that it has completed its acquisition of North Fork Bancorporation, Inc. As a result of the $13.2 billion stock and cash transaction, Capital One is the 11th largest bank in the United States, based on deposits, and the third-largest retail depository institution in the metro New York region.

North Fork, headquartered in New York, provides a broad range of deposit and lending services for consumer, commercial, and small business customers.

“The combination of Capital One and North Fork brings together the strengths of national lending and local banking,” said Richard D. Fairbank, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Capital One. “I am particularly pleased to welcome John Kanas, along with North Fork’s experienced management team and talented associates, to Capital One. John and his team have a proven ability to compete and win in the New York banking market, and they have a great track record of serving their customers and communities. With our national lending businesses, our strong banking franchises in Louisiana and Texas, and our new partners at North Fork, we are well-positioned to win in each of our markets, and to deliver profitable growth and enduring shareholder value.”

Kanas will be the president of Capital One’s banking business and join Capital One’s Board of Directors. Kanas previously served as North Fork’s Chairman, President and CEO.

“This transaction is about maintaining the continuity of the great business model and customer relationships that North Fork has built,” said Kanas. “With Capital One, we are building an even stronger bank that will benefit our customers and our communities. Our customers will continue to enjoy the same personalized service and experienced local bankers they trust, along with a broader range of products and services to meet their financial needs.”

Capital One and North Fork announced their intention to merge in March 2006.

Final Merger Consideration

Based on final election results and applying the proration provisions set forth in the merger agreement, North Fork stockholders will receive the following merger consideration:

North Fork stockholders who made valid cash elections will receive $28.144 for each share covered by such election;

North Fork stockholders who made valid stock elections will receive 0.3692 of a share of Capital One common stock per share of North Fork common stock for which they made such an election; and

North Fork stockholders who did not make a valid election will receive 0.3692 of a share of Capital One common stock per share of North Fork common stock for approximately 4.6% of the shares for which they did not make an election and $28.144 per share in cash for the remaining shares of North Fork common stock for which they did not make an election.

Under the merger agreement, fractional shares of Capital One common stock will not be issued. Instead, North Fork stockholders will receive cash based on the average closing price of Capital One common stock of $76.238 for the five-day period ending November 30, 2006.

Of the 466,346,295 shares of North Fork common stock outstanding immediately prior to the closing of the merger, approximately:

125,478,630 shares, or 26.9%, elected to receive cash;

278,714,675 shares, or 59.8%, elected to receive Capital One common stock; and

62,152,990 shares, or 13.3%, did not make a valid election.

The total consideration paid by Capital One of approximately $13.2 billion was comprised of the following:

approximately $7.9 billion in value from 104.0 million shares of common stock valued for accounting purposes at $76.238 per share,

$5.2 billion in cash, and

the exchange of North Fork stock options for Capital One stock options fair valued for accounting purposes at approximately $0.1 billion. About Capital One

Headquartered in McLean, Virginia, Capital One Financial Corporation (www.capitalone.com) is a financial holding company, with more than 693 locations in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Texas and Louisiana that offer a broad spectrum of financial products and services to consumers, small businesses and commercial clients. As of September 30, 2006, Capital One Bank, Capital One, F.S.B., Capital One Auto Finance, Inc., and Capital One, N.A. collectively had $112.2 billion in managed loans and $47.6 billion in deposits. Its newly acquired subsidiary, North Fork Bank, had $40.9 billion in managed loans and $36.5 billion in deposits. Capital One, a Fortune 500 company, trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “COF” and is included in the S&P 100 index.

Forward-looking statements

The company cautions that statements in this press release regarding, among other things, the benefits of the business combination transaction involving Capital One and North Fork and the company’s plans, objectives, expectations and intentions are forward-looking statements and speak only as of the date of this report. Various factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated by these forward-looking statements, including: the risk that the company’s acquired businesses will not be integrated successfully and that the cost savings and other synergies from such acquisitions may not be fully realized; disruption from the North Fork transaction making it more difficult to maintain relationships with customers, employees or suppliers; continued intense competition from numerous providers of products and services which compete with the company’s businesses; changes in our aggregate accounts and balances, and the growth rate and composition thereof; the company’s ability to diversify its assets; general economic conditions affecting interest rates and consumer income, spending, and savings, which may affect consumer bankruptcies, defaults, and charge-offs and deposit activity; and the company’s ability to execute on its strategic and operational plans. A discussion of these and other factors can be found in Capital One’s annual report and other reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including, but not limited to, Capital One’s report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2005.

SOURCE Capital One Financial
CONTACT: Investor Relations: Mike Rowen, +1-703-720-2455, or Media
Relations: Tatiana Stead, +1-703-720-2352, or Julie Rakes, +1-804-284-5800,
all for Capital One Financial
Web site: http://www.capitalone.com
(COF)