University Police distributed an FBI bulletin on Thursday warning college students of reoccurring phone scam using the FBI’s phone number.
The scam targets millennials and college students alike using false claims ranging from “money owed for student loans to delinquent taxes and overdue parking tickets.” However, the FBI warns that all these claims are false.
The FBI has already received multiple calls from University of Utah students and parents complaining of the phone scam.
According to the bulletin, college students are receiving calls from someone who “claims to be representing the U.S. government and threatens to arrest them if they fail to pay thousands of dollars.” While similar scams have been reported at other universities, the bulletin specifically mentioned University of Utah students.
The FBI noted that they do not call private citizens requesting money. According to the bulletin, if citizens receive a suspicious call of any sort, they are advised to immediately disconnect and follow the instructions below rather than following the caller’s instructions:
- Notify your banking institutions.
- Contact the three major credit bureaus and request an alert be put on your file.
- Contact your local law enforcement agencies if you feel you are in immediate danger.
- File a complaint through the Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.ic3.gov.
