Translation. Region: Russian Federal
Source: Novosibirsk State University – Novosibirsk State University –
What fraudulent schemes are used against NSU students?
1) Calls from fake “government” agencies with a stern warning or request to reissue documents, receive a parcel, or “save State Services from hacking.”
How to resist: do not answer calls from unknown numbers or calls in messengers with avatars that imitate the logos of government agencies. Remember that a government agency will NEVER call you on your personal number and ask you to hurry up with documents.
If you can log into your personal account on the State Services portal, then it is NOT hacked. And if a document change is really required, the notification will come in electronic and official format.
2) Fraud with dormitory rooms for locals and out-of-towners: scammers ask for an advance payment for a “dead soul,” for a family room, or to “definitely reserve a place in a new dormitory.”
How to resist: remember that dormitory places can only be obtained OFFICIALLY. The NSU Student Dormitory Administration never charges money for registering a student in a dormitory and, moreover, does not ask for any prepayments for “room reservations”.
— I would like to remind students and their parents that Novosibirsk State University has a set of internal regulations that are strictly observed. We accommodate out-of-town students in 100% of cases according to the standard check-in procedure, the same applies to married couples — separate family blocks are provided for them in the student campus. Payment for rent and utilities is made only according to the official agreement that the student concluded during check-in.
Booking rooms in advance and for large sums of money is illegal! No one provides such services either on behalf of the NSU Student Dormitory Administration or on behalf of the university. Moreover, we check the lists of students living in the dormitories every week to prevent violations of the internal regulations.
On my own behalf, I will say that for me the main identifier of fraud is any correspondence, call or other pressure in a messenger, because no official structure conducts correspondence in online services via the Internet. Any call made by phone should also be assessed critically, because technologies using artificial intelligence are now capable of much, – commented the head of the NSU Student Dormitory Department Sergey Aleksandrovich Gusev.
Remember the basic safety rules:
— If they call “from the accounting department” or the dean’s office, it’s better to approach them in person and find out what is really required of you.
— NEVER give your personal information to strangers: passport, SNILS (insurance certificate).
— Don’t fall for tricks and don’t let scammers hack your personal account on the “Gosuslugi” portal — ONLY scammers ask for a code to log in or change your password.
— Set a self-ban on loans in your personal account on “Gosuslugi”. It takes two minutes, and you have already blocked the scammers from taking out a microloan in your name if there is a leak of personal data.
— NEVER manually transfer money to strangers on demand.
— Fraudsters are excellent psychologists. Even if you think that you will not be able to say anything important, it is better to immediately stop the dialogue and write a statement to the police about malicious actions against you.
Don’t rely only on yourself.
During exam periods, the level of nervous tension increases tenfold, and scammers skillfully take advantage of your vulnerable state.
Every NSU student can seek psychological help from the Psychological Support Department, as well as from volunteers from the pre-psychological help club “You are not alone”.
Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.