Aware and Share: A Visual Guide to Phishing Scams Targeting International Students

1. SMiShing Scam:

SMiShing or SMS Phishing primarily occurs through text messages/SMS and is one of the more popular attack methods against International students.

Scammers often pretend to be credible entities like government agencies, banks, or official corporations to trick students into sharing private information like credit card numbers, passwords, and verification codes.

These scams also tend to include deceptive links which the scammer will try to urge the student to click on. When clicked, these links can lead to harmful consequences like setting up unauthorized charges, losing sensitive data, or installing malware on your device.

Here is a mockup of a SMiShing scam where the scammer uses urgent language and deceptive links to make the International student believe that they are at risk of losing their visa status and get them to click. This is a common fear tactic that students must look out for.

2. Nigerian 419 Scam:

The Nigerian 419 scam promises the user a generous reward (typically, money or expensive goods) which they can receive after making a “small” deposit upfront.

After paying this amount, the scammer disappears along with the promised reward. To gain the student’s trust, the scammer often pretends to be an official organization or a wealthy individual such as a foreign investor or a member of royalty.

While the promise of a financial reward can seem attractive to International students migrating from varied socioeconomic backgrounds, it is important to be skeptical of rewards that sound too good to be true and to avoid giving these scammers any money or personal information, especially when the tone seems urgent or overly generous [5].

Here is a mockup of a Nigerian 419 scam where the scammer pretends to be from the “North Carolina Fraud Detection Department” (this does not exist!), offering the student an overly generous reward of 6 million dollars for a 1500 dollar deposit. If the student has experienced a scam in the past, this “compensation” might seem tempting, but it is crucial to be suspicious and seek advice from trusted individuals/departments around you to avoid such scams.

3. Google Docs Scam:

Last year, the IT Services department at Miami University spread awareness about scammers who were using Google Docs and QR codes to offer fake “departmental rewards” to students on campus [6].

When students clicked on the Google document shared with them, scammers would then collect their sensitive information. Considering how many International students (often Graduate/Masters students) tend to take up research and teaching assistantship positions at universities, this type of phishing scam should be considered a security risk.

Students must make note of indicators like the sender being “outside your organization” or different names being used for the sender and the person sharing the file with you.

Here is a mockup of a Google Docs scam where the scammer pretends to be within the student’s organization by offering them a fake research opportunity. Look out for signs like the name of the sender (Clara Knightly) being different from the person who shared the file with you (John Lowly). Another crucial detail here is the warning from Google that the sender is outside your organization.

4. Social Media Scam:

According to the Homeland Security site, scammers may also target International students through social media platforms [7]. One tactic they use is pretending to be an official account representing the student’s university/institution to trick them into paying fees or additional money.

Formal and urgent language is often used to encourage students to take immediate action and pay up to avoid affecting their visa or student status. It is important for users to remember that universities typically never contact students on social media so this in itself is a major warning sign.

Here is a mockup of a phishing scam where the scammer is pretending to message the student from UNC Charlotte’s official Instagram account to ask for 1200 dollars in fees. Pay close attention to the threatening tone in the message below which is meant to be a fear tactic to encourage a quick response from the student. The fact that the sender is delivering an external message as seen in the warning below should also be flagged.

5. Gift Card Scam:

Gift card scams have also been a popular phishing method targeting International students. Scammers will use urgency, emotional deceit, incentives like cash rewards, or overpayments for a transaction to push you to buy a gift card from a local store as soon as possible [8][9].

Once the gift card has been procured, they will then ask for the PIN and card number which can allow them to steal your money. Make sure to stay alert for unexpected messages, urgency, or fake links.

Here is a mockup of a gift card scam sent to a student through SMS. The scammer overpaid for a transaction and is asking the student to buy a gift card, even going as far as sharing a specific store location to buy one. The friendly tone and urgency are meant to emotionally deceive the student into purchasing the card quickly. The unknown number here is also a potential indicator of phishing.