{"id":6473,"date":"2025-07-30T11:44:40","date_gmt":"2025-07-30T16:44:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stpaulfcu.org\/?post_type=education&#038;p=6473"},"modified":"2025-07-30T11:44:40","modified_gmt":"2025-07-30T16:44:40","slug":"back-to-school-scams","status":"publish","type":"education","link":"https:\/\/stpaulfcu.org\/education\/back-to-school-scams\/","title":{"rendered":"Back to School Scams"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Whether you\u2019re a college student prepping for the fall semester, a high school student getting ready for a new school year or the parent of a student of any age, beware these trending back-to-school scams!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-the-student-tax-scam\">The Student Tax Scam<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>In this scam, a crook posing as the IRS calls a college-bound student claiming they didn\u2019t pay the student tax. If it is not paid up and pronto, the \u201cagent\u201d says, the student will not be allowed to attend school. They may even threaten imprisonment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Don\u2019t get scammed! First, know that the \u201cstudent tax\u201d doesn\u2019t exist. Second, the IRS will never initiate contact with a taxpayer through a phone call. Finally, the IRS will never demand payment through a prepaid debit card or wire transfer, which is a common scammer ploy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-scholarship-scams\">Scholarship Scams<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The scholarship scam cons students and parents into paying money for government student loans or financial aid, or by promising a scholarship in exchange for a fee. Follow these rules to stay safe:\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Never pay to apply for a government student loan or financial aid.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>There\u2019s no way to guarantee a scholarship or grant. If a company promises to get you approved for either one, it\u2019s a scam.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>There is generally no fee necessary to receive a scholarship.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-school-supply-giveaways-and-freebies\">School Supply Giveaways and Freebies<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Back-to-school shopping can cost a bundle. Messages promising a free back-to-school shopping spree can be welcomed, if they\u2019re legit. Unfortunately, they rarely are.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Back-to-school giveaway scams ask the victim to visit a website to provide their email address for claiming their prize. The victim is then rewarded with an endless stream of emails, texts, robocalls and more from the company that now has their information, with no giveaway in sight. In some cases, the scammer may demand a \u201cprocessing fee\u201d before the victim can claim their prize.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Protecting yourself from a giveaway scam is easy by remembering that, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Also, legitimate contests will rarely select a winner out of thin air; you\u2019ll have to enter it first by providing your email address. They are also not likely to make you give up lots of&nbsp;info before claiming your prize. Finally, there is generally no payment necessary for claiming an authentic prize.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Follow the tips outlined above this back-to-school season and stay safe!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At St. Paul Federal Credit Union, we want to keep you informed so you don\u2019t fall victim to scammers. <a href=\"https:\/\/stpaulfcu.org\/education\/category\/tips-resources\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Check our blogs<\/a> periodically to see what\u2019s new and learn how to protect your money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Whether you\u2019re a college student prepping for the fall semester, a high school student getting ready for a new school year or the parent of a student of any age, beware these trending back-to-school scams! The Student Tax Scam In this scam, a crook posing as the IRS calls a college-bound student claiming they didn\u2019t [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":6474,"template":"","education-category":[194],"class_list":["post-6473","education","type-education","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","education-category-tips-resources"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.3 (Yoast SEO v27.3) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Back to School Scams - St. Paul Federal Credit Union<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Whether you\u2019re a student prepping for a new semester or the parent of a student of any age, beware these trending back-to-school scams!\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/stpaulfcu.org\/education\/back-to-school-scams\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Back to School Scams\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Whether you\u2019re a student prepping for a new semester or the parent of a student of any age, beware these trending back-to-school scams!\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/stpaulfcu.org\/education\/back-to-school-scams\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"St. Paul Federal Credit Union\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/stpaulfcu.org\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/stpaulfcu.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Back-to-School.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1920\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1280\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@StPaulFCU\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/stpaulfcu.org\\\/education\\\/back-to-school-scams\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/stpaulfcu.org\\\/education\\\/back-to-school-scams\\\/\",\"name\":\"Back to School Scams - 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