What is a Scam?
A scam is a dishonest or fraudulent scheme designed with the intention of obtaining personal information or money from a victim. In recent years there has been an increse in scams targeting international students. Scams are often conducted by phone, email or social media by individuals claiming to represent law enforcement or government officials. Scammers often use threats and indimidation to scare a victim into revealing financial information or making payments to avoid future action including arrest or deportation. It is important to note that legitimate law enforcement or government officials do not use such tactics and would not demand immediate payment to resolve an issue. We do not want you to become the victim of a scam. It is important to recognize familar tactics used by the perpetrators of scams to protect yourself. If you suspect that you have been contacted by a scammer do not respond to their demands. For more information about common scams targeting students, please review this guide and if you need help or want to discuss any of these topics further we encourage you to speak with your ISS advisor.
Telephone Scams
Telephone scammers try to steal money or personal information from you. Scams may be calls from live callers, robocalls or text messages. Scams targeting international students have included threatening legal or immigration action unless the caller is paid a sum of money immediately. One tactic is to instruct the victim to purchase gift cards (such as iTunes gift cards) and to reveal the gift card numbers over the phone. NO government agency, IRS or reputable business will EVER ask for payment with gift cards. If you receive a telephone call from someone telling you to purchase gift cards, hang up. Review the following usa.gov webpage to learn how to protect yourself from telephone scams.
Online & Social Media Scams
Scammers target international students on social media such as Snapchat, Facebook and Twitter. The scammer may claim to be a goverment or school official and request payment online. Legitimate government officials will not ask you for payment on social media. Please protect yourself online. Do not post your personal information such as telephone number or address on social media.
Immigration Scams
U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) reports an increase in immigration
scams targeting international students. Students may be contacted by scammers claiming to be U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) representatives. These scammers may demand passport numbers or credit card information. USCIS would not ask for any form of payment over the phone. Please read
this message from DHS to protect yourself from immigration scams.
Financial & Tax Scams
Do not fall victim to scammers who call and say they are with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). There has been an increase in aggressive phone scams where people call and threaten you with police arrest or deportation if you don't pay them. For more information on tax scams, watch this
video and read this
IRS Tax Tip. Please also visit the
Avoid Tax Schemes section of the ISS website.