Identity Theft & Financial Scams

Protect Your Money and Personal Information

Your personal and financial information has value.

Identity theft occurs when someone uses your personal information without permission, often to access accounts, open new accounts, make purchases, or commit other forms of fraud.

Financial scams use deception to convince you to send money, share information, provide account access, or take another action that benefits the scammer.

Learning to recognize warning signs—and knowing what to do when something doesn't seem right—can help you protect yourself.

Know What Information to Protect

Be careful about sharing information that could be used to access your identity, money, or accounts.

This may include:

Social Security number
Birth date
Bank account information
Credit or debit card numbers
Account usernames and passwords
Verification or security codes
Student account information
Financial aid information
Copies or photos of identification documents

Not every request for personal information is suspicious. Colleges, employers, banks, government agencies, and other legitimate organizations may need certain information.

The important question is who is asking, why they need it, and whether you're using a trusted method to provide it.

Recognize Common Warning Signs

Scams can arrive by email, text message, phone call, social media, direct message, online advertisement, or even regular mail.

Be cautious when someone:

Creates an unusual sense of urgency
Pressures you to act immediately
Threatens consequences if you don't respond
Asks for passwords or verification codes
Requests payment through an unusual method
Promises money, prizes, scholarships, or jobs that seem too good to be true
Sends unexpected links or attachments
Asks you to deposit money and send part of it somewhere else
Contacts you unexpectedly and asks for personal or financial information

A message can look professional and still be fraudulent.

Verify Before You Act

Don't Rely on the Message That Contacted You

If you receive an unexpected request from a bank, college, employer, government agency, financial aid office, or another organization, verify it independently.

Instead of using the link, phone number, or contact information in the message:

Go directly to the organization's official website or app.
Find its official contact information.
Contact the organization and ask whether the request is legitimate.

This is especially important when a request involves money, account access, or sensitive personal information.

Watch for Student-Focused Scams

Students can be targeted because they're applying for college, looking for jobs, searching for housing, seeking scholarships, and managing financial accounts—sometimes for the first time.

Scholarship & Financial Aid Scams

Be cautious about organizations that guarantee you'll receive a scholarship, pressure you to pay for access to aid, or request sensitive information without a clear reason.

Research the organization before providing information or money.

Job Scams

Be cautious if a supposed employer sends you money before you've started working, asks you to purchase equipment using a check they provided, requests that you send money elsewhere, or asks for sensitive information before you've verified the employer and position.

Housing Scams

Before sending a deposit or signing an agreement, verify that the property, landlord, or rental company is legitimate.

Be especially careful if you're pressured to send money before seeing the property or reviewing the agreement.

Account & Payment Scams

A message may claim there's a problem with your bank account, student account, financial aid, package delivery, subscription, or payment.

Don't use the link in an unexpected message. Go directly to the account or organization's official website instead.

Protect Your Online Accounts

Strong account security makes it harder for someone else to access your information.

Use strong, unique passwords.
Don't reuse the same password across important accounts.
Use multifactor authentication when available.
Never share verification codes.
Keep devices and software updated.
Avoid logging into sensitive accounts on devices you don't trust.
Sign out of accounts on shared devices.
Be cautious about links and attachments in unexpected messages.

Your email account deserves particular attention because access to your email may allow someone to reset passwords for other accounts.

Monitor Your Financial Information

Don't wait until there's a major problem to look at your accounts.

Regularly review:

Bank accounts
Credit card transactions
Financial aid accounts
Student accounts
Credit reports

Watch for transactions, accounts, or changes you don't recognize.

Catching a problem early can make it easier to respond.

Protect Your Credit

Your credit reports can help you identify accounts or activity you don't recognize.

Review your reports periodically and make sure the information is accurate.

If you're concerned that someone may try to open accounts using your identity, learn about the fraud alerts and credit freezes available through the major credit reporting agencies.

Learn About Credit Reports & Credit Scores →

If You Think You've Been Scammed

Act Quickly

What you should do depends on what information or money may have been compromised.

You may need to:

Contact your bank or credit card company.
Change affected passwords.
Secure your email account.
Review recent transactions.
Contact the organization being impersonated.
Review your credit reports.
Report fraudulent accounts or transactions.
Consider a fraud alert or credit freeze.
Report the scam or identity theft to the appropriate authorities.

Keep records of suspicious messages, transactions, dates, account activity, and the steps you've taken.

Don't let embarrassment keep you from asking for help. Scams are intentionally designed to convince people to act before they recognize what's happening.

Slow Down. Verify. Protect.

When you're asked for money or personal information:

STOP
Don't let urgency pressure you into acting immediately.

VERIFY
Contact the person or organization independently.

PROTECT
Don't share sensitive information until you're confident the request is legitimate.

A few extra minutes of verification can prevent a much larger financial problem.

Learn More About Money Management →
Explore Credit Card Management →