Scammers may be looking to take advantage of students this back-to-school season

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

As students get their class schedules and buy school supplies to prepare for the fall semester, scammers are also gearing up to take advantage of people. 

The Better Business Bureau is warning students of some particular scams this back-to-school season, and Nick Knoth of the BBB said there are ways to keep yourself safe. 

“First and foremost, if it’s too good to be true, it is,” Knoth said. 

Rental Scams

Incoming students looking for a place to live should be wary of rental listings. Knoth said rental scams typically occur on social media or online sites like Craiglist. He said people will take photos of an apartment and list it at a good price, without actually having the property. 

“What they’re looking for in that opportunity is to trick you into giving them a deposit, a down payment on that property, which is something that legitimate enterprises do. But in reality, that property doesn’t exist,” Knoth said. “The moment you give them that down payment, you’re out of luck and they’re gone.” 

To avoid falling victim to this scam, Knoth recommends seeing the property in-person and meeting with the landlord. The BBB also recommends apartment hunters search online for similar properties, because if the same ad is listed in other cities, it should be a red flag.  

Knoth said he has seen the rental scams happen in Mid-Missouri. 

“(They) are extra prevalent here in Mid-Missouri, thanks to all of our universities and colleges,” Knoth said. “A lot of students are coming and going constantly, but also on a predictable calendar. So, scammers know that August, May, certain times of the year are a great time to start posting those fake listings and they have a higher likelihood of success in scamming people.” 

Credit Card Scams

Another common scam this time of year is credit card scams. The BBB said scammers typically reach out via phone call, text or email and claim to be from a bank or credit card company. They offer better rates and say they need to update account information, such as a credit card number. This also sometimes comes with an upfront charge. Then, people steal money and commit identity theft. 

Apprisen is a nonprofit agency that helps people with personal finances. Senior manager of strategy and development, Lisa Piercefield, said if these deals sound too good to be true, they likely are. 

“Why would someone be wanting to give you $1,000 of credit when you have really poor credit or no credit? Why would they want to be giving you a free $1,000 vacation for no reason at all?” Piercefield said. 

Piercefield said one way to verify if the offer is legitimate is to visit the company’s website. She said phishing scams will often look like official websites, but something will be off, such as a misspelling in the company name. 

The BBB also recommends to not trust caller ID or unfamiliar texts, think of how those companies typically contact customers and check with the bank’s customer service representative before sharing any personal information. 

“I know it’s tempting to want to click on them and check it out, but it’s your best bet just to leave those alone,” Peircefield said. “If you do believe that it is a legitimate offer, then before you go clicking on anything, you certainly can do your own homework. Google is great for lots of things.” 

If someone does fall victim to a credit card scam, Piercefield said the first thing to do is reach out to the companies where the fraud occurred and let them know fraudulent activity is taking place. If someone doesn’t know where the fraud is occurring, she said to contact one of the three major credit bureaus and obtain a copy of credit bureau reports to show any new cards or accounts opened. 

Next, Piercefield said to report the fraud to the Federal Trade Commission, and the organization will help people with a recovery plan. Through the FTC, people are able to notify credit bureaus and request to have a fraud alert or a freeze placed on the report. She also mentions to always notify local law enforcement. 

She said the timeframe varies when recovering from credit card fraud, but typically people can have fraud taken care of within 90 days to six months. 

Financial Aid Scams

In financial aid scams, the BBB said scammers will typically pose as a financial aid representative for an official organization and claim students have won a scholarship—that they didn’t apply for—and ask for a processing fee. 

In another instance, scammers try to pressure students to apply for a guaranteed scholarship, but they must pay a fee to apply. In both scenarios, scholarship money is never sent. 

“A big red flag should be that you’re not going to win something you didn’t apply for,” Knoth said. “Then, there’s also the fact that if it is a real financial aid opportunity, they are not going to ask you for money.” 

The BBB notes it is generally free to apply for scholarships. To avoid these scams, the BBB said people should be aware of unsolicited offers, don’t be rushed into paying and ask questions to the company and a financial aid office. 

“If you’ve received something that’s unsolicited—a scholarship or some type of aid that you didn’t apply for, that you’ve never heard of—it is most likely a scam,” Knoth said. 

He recommends anyone who falls victim to a scam to report it to the BBB and local law enforcement.