University of Michigan Students Hit by Growing Wave of Clever Scams

According to campus security staff, criminals target U-M students through fake work offers, false rental ads, and counterfeit ticket sales. The tricks keep getting smarter.

"Scams sent via email, social media, and housing forums are becoming more common and sophisticated," said AnnMarie Vaquera, community outreach sergeant for the Division of Public Safety and Security, according to The Michigan Daily.

A student fell for a plant-care job trap when the trickster sent an inflated check. They asked for money back, then vanished when the check failed. Another close call happened when Cash App blocked a shady payment just in time.

Rental cons trick students using stolen pictures and fake ads. "A tenant will send some money to that person, then that person will then ghost them," said Gayle Rosen, a housing attorney with Student Legal Services.

The tricks now include video meetings to seem real. "We're seeing scammers jump on a Zoom with students and do a quick five-minute interview to make it more legitimate," Vaquera said.

Professor Fred Feinberg spotted fakes using his name and photo to push bogus jobs. "Several students had already gone out and purchased gift cards, which they were instructed to do by the people impersonating me," he said.

Sports ticket scams also hit hard. Bad actors ask to see student IDs as proof, then use those photos to trick more people. In one case, a stolen ID photo helped cheat a hundred other students.

Staff attorney K. Orlando Simón wants students to tell police about scams, even when catching the bad guys seems hard. Campus security checks each report but finds it tough when crooks work from other countries.

Students who think they've been tricked can call 734-763-1131 for help. The school's tech team warns about new scam attempts as they pop up.