Why young adults can be targets for scams

Young adults may move frequently, whether to a college dorm or your first apartment. However, these moves may be accompanied by the possibility of a rental scam.

In one common scenario, scammers post fake rental properties on free sites. They may look like other rental posts, complete with real photos and descriptions. Once you express interest, you are pressured to make a deposit immediately, often via wire transfer. Once the money is sent, the scammer and your deposit disappear.

Here are some tips for avoiding rental scams:

• Avoid any listing that requires you to act immediately. If you cannot meet in person, see the apartment, or sign a lease before you pay, keep looking.
• Do not send a deposit via wire transfer, as wire transfer is an immediate form of payment. Once the scammer has obtained the funds, the wire transfer cannot be reversed.
• Be wary of poorly written correspondence or ads with misspellings, oddly written language, or unusual formatting.

Scammers can target young adults by claiming to offer scholarships, grants, and other financial aid packages. They may also conduct seminars and then request immediate payment in order to receive the supposed financial aid.

A scam may include a “money-back guarantee,” but the terms and conditions of the package make it almost impossible to receive a refund. Others provide nothing for your payment. Scammers may ask for checking account information, claiming it will confirm your eligibility, and then secretly debit the account. Some also ask your permission to charge a recurring fee, but even if you cancel the service, these charges continue.

To help avoid scholarship scams:

• Do not accept offers for “guaranteed” scholarships you did not apply for.
• Avoid services that claim you will be eligible only if you provide an upfront payment.

According to the Federal Trade Commission¹, teens and twenty-somethings are the most likely of any age group to experience and report a fraud, with roughly 44% of twenty-somethings reporting a financial loss due to fraud. Young adults are also active on social media and tend to share personal information, often on third-party websites or through quizzes that may capture and use this information to steal your identity. In addition, college students’ Social Security numbers and other identifiable information may be viewable on university transcripts, registration forms, or student ID cards, which could end up in the wrong hands.

Avoid identity theft scams by remembering these tips:

• Remember school mailboxes are not always secure, so have sensitive mail sent to a permanent address, such as a parent’s home or a post office box.
• Do not loan your credit or debit card to anyone, even a roommate or close friend.
• Store Social Security cards, financial documents, and unused credit cards in a secure location.
• Shred unwanted credit card offers and other sensitive paper documents before discarding.
• Switch to paperless options for financial statements.
• Review your credit report at least once a year to look for unauthorized accounts that are opened in your name.

If you believe your account has been compromised, contact your bank immediately.

Many college students reported being scammed after responding to job opportunities by email or social media according to the Federal Trade Commission. Scammers may claim to be recruiters for corporate companies. You are invited to apply for a job that offers short hours, remote work, and a nice salary. After the interview, there’s paperwork which requires your personal information which is way to steal your identify. The recruiter may even provide a check to buy supplies for the job and request you send back the leftover funds from your account known as a fake check scam. By the time you realize the check is fake and bounces from your account, you’ve already sent funds from your account.

To help avoid job scams:

• If the recruiter requests for upfront payment, bank account and other personal information, do not provide the information. Verify the job offer by contacting the company directly once you’ve confirm the number is authentic. Don’t call the phone number given by the recruiter.
• Check the recruiter’s email address and visit the company’s website. Corporate employees’ email should come from a company address not personal emails like @gmail.com. If the company’s website doesn’t have the job posted that’s a red flag.

If you believe you been a victim of a job scam, report to the FTC (https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/)

Today, online payments allow you to electronically send funds from your bank account directly to another person or organizations. When you’re sending money, online payments can be fast and simple with services such as Zelle, CashApp, and Venmo, or wire transfers. While these options are convenient, they are also attractive targets for online payment scams because the money is often impossible to retrieve.

Scammers may pose as the IRS, a utility company, tech support, a real estate company, or even a friend or relative who reaches out and “needs help.” The common thread in these scams is that they often demand immediate payment. By forcing you to act quickly, you are less likely to question the request.

When you receive an unexpected text, email, or voice message requesting a payment, do not reply, click links, or call phone numbers included in that communication. Instead, contact the person or organization directly using existing contact information to confirm the source of the request.

Some examples of online payment scams to avoid:

• Imposter scams involve a scammer who poses as someone you trust and demands a fast payment using Zelle^®, a wire transfer, a money transfer company, or cryptocurrency.
• Refund scams occur when a scammer acts as if they owe you money and pretend to send you a higher, incorrect “refund” amount. They then ask that you return the “overpayment” using a method such as Zelle^® or another payment method.
• Payment app scams involve a text or email that ask you to confirm a large, fake payment. If you reply to the message, the scammer may call you back and pretend to be a bank representative.

¹Source: Consumer Sentinel Network Data Book 2023.