Stevens students received an email from the Stevens Police Department on September 5 warning students about a host of internet and phone scams. The email lists issues that the police department is particularly concerned about such as Venmo schemes, fake job offers, and sextortion, among many others. Included with each of these scams is a description of what the scheme may be, and links to online resources to review if a student feels they may have encountered one of these frauds. Students were also recommended to visit campus police if they felt that they were a target of a scam — Stevens Police Headquarters can be found in the Kiddie building.
This comes amid a general increase in both internet and in person scams on a national level. Close to home, Hoboken Police has been warning the Stevens community of a greater number of scams for the past several months. In December, Hoboken Police were investigating Venmo donation scams.
This popular scam occurs when bad actors asking for donations to charitable organizations say they only accept donations via Venmo or Zelle. Upon agreeing to donate, these individuals will ask you if they can take your phone to type in the banking info for their charity organization. However, once your phone is in their hands they send as much money as possible to a personal bank account. Concern over this issue culminated in the postage of a sign near Hoboken Station warning pedestrians not to give anyone their phone and beware of Venmo scams.
More recently, the police similarly warned residents about trespassing scams and utility worker deceptions. These scams are where thieves pose as utility workers—plumbers, electricians, etc.—in order to have residents let them into their homes. Upon the door unlocking these thieves may attack the resident and go on to steal valuables from the home. These scams are less of a concern for on-campus students but should be something off-campus students keep in mind in the future.
On a larger scale, over the past several years online “phishing” scams have become far more common, and have become substantially more sophisticated. Last year, over 6 months starting in May to October a study conducted by SlashNext, a security provider for messaging, found a 61% increase in Phishing attacks compared to the year before, and although no studies have yet been published for 2023, there is very little doubt that a similar increase has occurred this year. These attacks have become more sophisticated — scammers will often have access to both your email and phone number and will coordinate voice mails, text messages, and emails to lend credence to their hoax.
The general message from authority figures is clear: Students should be as careful as possible on the internet, trust no one they don’t know personally, and if they need help should not be afraid to reach out to the Stevens Police or other resources.
