As colleges welcome students back this month, a new report finds that scammers are preying on the younger generations more than ever before.
College students are now back in school for the fall semester.
And scam artists are also back at work, targeting them in search for a quick buck.
Talk with college students and almost everyone knows a relative who was scammed.
"My grandma got hit with a telemarketer a couple of times," one student told us.
"My great uncle almost fell for the Nigerian prince story," another student said.
It used to be that grandma and grandpa were prime targets for scammers, through their land lines or even the mail.
But now with social media and the desire to find things at a discount, young people are being targeted more and more.
A new study from Social Catfish, an anti-fraud site, finds that Gen-Zers - people under age 21 - are falling for more scams than some older generations.
These students are not surprised.
"I know I have had people try to get my card information and things like that," one student said.
"I think stuff like insurance and all," according to another student.
The scams luring the most young victims include:
- Fake job offers, requiring money for tests or background checks.
- Social influencer scams: phony Instagram or Tik Tok accounts, where the so-called celebrity asks for money.
- And online shopping scams: offering discount prom dresses or electronics that take money and don’t deliver.
"I was on a website, and put in my account information, and they took like 200 more out of my account than they were supposed to," one student said.
The report says younger people are more internet savvy.
But also more trusting than grandma of what their friends share on Instagram, Tik Tok, and Whatsapp.
Have teenagers?
Tell them to never trust anyone they meet on social media they have never met in person, so you don’t waste your money.
