How to help college students protect their identity and finances

If you have a college student who’s starting a new school year, the Better Business Bureau advises that now is a good time to talk about taking care of their money and personal information while they’re on campus.

College is the first time many young adults are out on their own and spending their own money. New students often have clean credit records and may be navigating big financial decisions like loans, scholarships or budgeting for the first time – making them a target for scammers and identity thieves.

Though younger people are perceived as tech-savvy, they may also be financially inexperienced, and fraud can happen to anyone. BBB’s 2024 Scam Tracker Risk Report found that young adults ages 18-24 show similar levels of susceptibility to scams and fraud as other age groups. Young adults also reported a higher median dollar loss to scams ($150) than for all ages ($130).

“Scammers won’t just go after a student’s money. Sometimes, their goal is to exploit a young person’s clean credit record,” said Michelle L. Corey, BBB St. Louis president and CEO. “Prevention is the best defense, and BBB recommends students learn good habits for monitoring their finances, spotting the signs of fraud and shopping safely.”

How can college students avoid identity theft and fraud?

Send sensitive mail to a secure address. School mailboxes are not always secure. Have important documents sent to a parent’s home or a post office box.

Lock up important info. Store documents like your Social Security card, passport and bank statements somewhere safe. Shred any paper documents that have sensitive financial information.

Keep your cards safe. Don’t lend your credit or debit card to anyone, not even a friend. Keep your cards out of sight and beware of “shoulder surfers” when you’re entering your PIN.

Protect your devices. Make sure your phone, laptop or tablet has up-to-date antivirus and anti-spyware software. Keep up with updates to your operating system or browser software to help protect your devices from new scam tactics. Use strong passwords for online accounts and don’t share them with anyone.

Check accounts and credit for suspicious activity. The sooner you identify any potential fraud, the more likely you’ll be able to recover your money or personal information – so check your financial accounts frequently. You can check your credit report once a year for free at annualcreditreport.com.

Job hunt safely. BBB reports showed that employment scams were the riskiest scam for people ages 18-24 in 2024. Be wary if someone offers you a job out of the blue; research companies before applying and never pay someone for a job.

What are some ways for college students to make safe financial decisions?

Check out companies with BBB when shopping online. Online shopping scams are one of the most common ways that people lose money or personal information. Search the company or website at BBB.org to make sure it’s legitimate and read reviews. Look for secure websites with a padlock icon and “https://” in the URL.

Be careful with social media ads. Pretty much anyone can post an official-looking social media ad, including scammers or untrustworthy companies. To avoid lookalikes, it’s safer to go directly to a company’s website instead of clicking the ad. If a deal on a viral item seems too good to be true, it probably is – that’s a common way scammers reel people in.

Know which ways are safe to pay. It’s a good idea to pay businesses with a credit card whenever possible and keep your receipts. That way, you can dispute a charge if something goes wrong. Be cautious if someone asks you to pay for something with a payment app, prepaid gift card or wire transfer. 

What can students do if something goes wrong?

Think you’ve been scammed? BBB can help. If you’re a college student out on your own, it can be overwhelming to know what to do if you lose money or information to someone. BBB’s Scam Survival Toolkit can walk students through a personalized recovery plan.