A U. of I. student reported that he received a text message from an unknown person purporting to be the student’s employer who instructed him to purchase $2,000 worth of gift cards at a local retailer and reply to the text message with the card information. The student complied. By the time the student recognized the scam, the gift cards had been redeemed by an unknown person.

A U. of I. student reported that he attempted to purchase graduation tickets from an unknown person whom the student met through social media. The student attempted five times to transfer $30 to the unknown person through a mobile banking app. Each time, the student received a text message stating that the transaction failed. The student then sent $29 through a different banking app, but never heard from the purported seller and never received the tickets. The student later learned that the phone number from which he was receiving the failed transaction messages is not owned by the banking app. [...]

The student received a call from someone claiming to be a representative of the Chinese Embassy in Chicago. The caller said the student’s passport was connected with international crime and threatened the student with deportation. The caller instructed the student to wire $90,000 to an unknown account to avoid criminal charges. The student complied.

A U. of I. student received a call from a person claiming to be a representative of the U.S. Postal Service who said the student’s identity had been stolen. The caller directed the student to purchase $2,000 in gift cards as payment for a new Social Security number. The student purchased the gift cards and transferred the card information to the caller.

A U. of I. student received a series of calls from people claiming to represent the Chinese Embassy in Chicago who said the student would be arrested if she did not pay a fine. The student provided her passport information and wired $23,000 to the scammer.