The new school year is an exciting time for students, faculty, and staff. It's also an exciting time for hackers, identity thieves, and other unscrupulous types who take advantage of people during this busy time of year. Whether you’re a parent of an elementary school student or headed to a college campus, it’s wise to heed this advice from UC Berkeley:
Watch out for typical beginning-of-the-year scams:
Emails supposedly containing “important information about your account,” or a “problem with your registration”
Scams designed to cheat students out of money, such as scholarship scams, fake “tuition payment processors”, textbook rental or book-buying scams, housing scams, tutoring scams, and work-from-home scams
“Tech support” scams where you get a call supposedly from “the Service Desk” or even “Microsoft” or “Apple” telling you there’s a problem with your computer
IRS impersonators demanding that students or their parents wire money immediately to pay a fake "federal student tax"
Messages asking for your login information, no matter how legitimate they may look. No one other than you needs to know your passwords
Fake friend requests on social media
Fake Box or Google Doc notices
How to stay safe:
The best way to avoid scams is to approach all unexpected messages, offers, and phone calls with healthy skepticism. Helpful habits include:
Always think twice before clicking on links or opening attachments, even if they look like they're from someone you know. If you’re not sure, contact the sender by a method you know is legitimate to confirm they sent it.
Don't give out your personal information. Remember, con artists know how to fake their identity.
Protect your passwords. Make them long and strong, never reveal them to anyone, and use different passwords for different accounts. Also, use multi-factor authentication (MFA) where possible.
(Source: Back-to-School Cybersecurity Tips | Information Security Office)
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