RICHMOND, Va. — It's back-to-school season, and parents and grandparents of college students need to take precautions against scholarship scams.
A new alert from AARP Virginia says scams offering scholarship money, financial aid or government grants are on the rise in the state and across the country. Martin Bailey, an anti-fraud representative from AARP Virginia, said one of the most common frauds is when a scammer offers a check for a scholarship, but then asks you to pay a fee.
"So the individual will cash, say, a $5,000 check and say, 'I have to give you back $1,000 for a processing fee.' So I'll write a certified check to you or a cashier's check, send it back to you. I'll keep $4,000,” Bailey said. “You'll never hear from the scammer again, but you will hear from the bank when the bank tells you that it was a fraudulent check."