Be Aware: Protect Yourself from Scams

WPI Campus Police, the Dean of Students Office, and International House have been made aware of recent scams targeting students through social media, phone calls, and email. Unfortunately, this has been a costly lesson for some of our students over the past month.  WPI Campus Police, The Dean of Students Office, and International House want you to be aware of the risks and have some sense of how you can avoid falling victim.  

To trick victims into paying them, scammers may:

• Prey on worries related to visas, taxes, and/or studying and working in the US. Often posing as government officials—either of the U.S. or other countries—they tell victims there is a problem with their paperwork and demand money to fix it.  
• Tell victims that a family member is ill or injured or has been arrested or detained, and demand money. 
• Tell victims there is a warrant issued for their arrest, and/or a deportation order, and demand money.
• Threaten to share compromising information about a victim to employers, family, or friends if they do not make payment.
• Insist on keeping you on the phone while you take out your money. This is to monitor your interactions with others, it is not a normal request and should immediately raise red flags. 
• Insist victims buy gift cards or electronic equipment, or pay money up front as a condition of a job offer or other situation. This is not a practice of a legitimate company or business.

To protect yourself:

• Never send money or give banking access to someone you do not personally know.
• Never give your personal identification information to someone you do not personally know.
• Never confirm your personal information for someone you do not personally know, even if they have your correct information.
• If someone threatens you by phone or email, call or walk into WPI Campus Police, the Dean of Students, or International House.

Ask for help. You are not alone. Dean of Students staff, International House staff, and WPI Campus Police are available to help determine if something is legitimate or suspicious.  Contact International House at 508-831-6030 or ih@wpi.edu, Dean of Students at 508-831-5201 or dean-of-students@wpi.edu, and Campus Police at 508-831-5555. 

Thank you,

Steve Marsh, Chief of WPI Campus Police                       

Emily Perlow, Dean of Students             

Colleen Callahan-Panday, Director of International Student Life