Financial Aid Fraud Tests Your Scam Radar

It’s just about that time again where college-bound students are seeking big help so they can go to a college or university. And as we know, this is a very pricey endeavor. Where there is money involved, there are cybercriminals doing their best to get to it, including trying to defraud students applying for financial aid. There are few ways, however, that you can identify if someone is trying to take your money, rather than loan or give it to you in the form of grants or scholarships.

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If you didn’t apply for a scholarship, yet you get notification that you won, you can assume it’s not really financial aid. A dead giveaway is that they want you to pay a fee for it too.

Obviously, money doesn’t just fall from the sky, so if you get an offer that is too good to be true, it most likely is.

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There are people out there than can help you fill out the mounds of paperwork you will inevitably need to complete before applying for financial aid or scholarships. However, if they offer to do it all for you, give them a “Whatcha talkin’ ‘bout, Willis?” face. While it may be tempting to take them up on it, they also may be more interested in stealing all of the sensitive information. The documents ask for income, investment information, addresses, credit information, and of course social security numbers. All of this is primo PII that any cyber thief would be more than thrilled to have.

Consider doing it yourself. However, if you need help, be sure to research reputable companies before providing all of this information.

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Companies cannot guarantee that anyone will get a scholarship. If an individual or company makes that claim, consider them shady. And there is no need to pay for advice on getting financial aid. There are many free resources available to you.

The first place to ask about financial aid is with a school counselor or the college or university financial aid office. The Better Business Bureau, as well as the federal government (studentaid.gov) also have online resources available for financial aid assistance.