College Students Being Targeted in Latest COVID-19 Scams.

Written by Kristen Schmutz

Belden Communications News

In a new blog posted on the Federal Trade Commission Site, Ari Lazarus warns college students of potential scams targeting them.

No one is new to the world of email scams, but for college students who are more than likely far away from campus due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, an email from their college or university might be something they are quick to acknowledge.

Lazarus warns students to thoroughly check the email out before opening the email, as it may be a phishing scam, to get the login information to the University website.

The best way to spot and avoid scams is to contact the sender directly. Look up their phone number or website and whatever you do, don’t click on a link. This ensures malware has not been downloaded to your device or you haven’t called a scammer.

Scammers go through great lengths to make phishing emails look legitimate, but bad grammar or spelling is a hint that the email might be a scam. Another hint, according to Lazarus, that an email isn’t from your school: they use the wrong department name. The example used in the blog is scammers using the “Financial Dept.” over the school's use of “Financial Aid Department”.

If you or a friend spot something that looks like a scam, report it immediately. Phishing scams can be reported to the Anti-Phishing Working Group, an organization that includes ISP’s, security vendors, financial institutions, and law enforcement agencies, at reportphishing@apwg.org.

Phishing scams can also be reported to the FTC at ftc.gov/complaint.