The University Police would like to let the campus community know that there is a report of a new fraudulent trend targeting members of the campus community.

A student reported receiving an email from a person claiming to be from Missouri S&T. The email advertised a sales representative opportunity to purchase office equipment. The sender of the email instructed the student to send their resume and then the student was hired, without an in-person interview. The student was sent a check to cash or deposit, instructed to use a portion of the check to purchase office supplies and send the employer the remaining funds.

The amount used to make the purchase was a very small percentage of the check value. The sender communicated through a Gmail address with the name of an S&T staff member. Fortunately, the student determined that the check was fictitious before it was deposited so there was no loss this time. However, there are victims of this type of scam who are not so lucky and who lose thousands of dollars.    

A few points to consider:

• A campus email or a university email will originate from an account either ending @mst.edu or @umsystem.edu. Sometimes, a campus official may also use a site such as Handshake. You won’t receive an employment email from campus via Gmail. 
• The university is not going to send an unsolicited email to an individual soliciting employment and then offer that employment without an application and the appropriate hiring process.
• The saying is true, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.   
• Additionally, remember that governmental agencies won’t call you and threaten you with arrest or any other sanction if you don’t pay a certain fine or send money. Additionally, no governmental agency is going to take a gift card redemption number as a payment for a debt. 

If in doubt about the integrity of an email or phone solicitation, please feel free to contact University Police or another area law enforcement agency. University Police are available 24/7 at 573-341-4300 or text your question to the University Police via the RAVE Guardian app.