Attention Students:
There have been reports of a new telephone scam targeting international students. Scammers are using a technique called “Caller ID spoofing” to display a misleading or inaccurate phone number on Caller ID. The scammer says he is an IRS official and requests personal information (such as Social Security number, passport number), and asks for payment to correct these records. The caller may also ask you to borrow money from your friends to make the payment or say that the police have a warrant for your arrest.
If you receive a call like this hang up immediately and contact UCA Center for Global Learning and Engagement or the UCA Police Department. You may also inform the caller that you need to speak to a DSO in Center for Global Learning and Engagement before you can take care of their claim. If the agency/official is valid, they should not discourage you from talking with a DSO.
The IRS never asks for any form of payment or personal information over the phone. Do not give payment or personal information over the phone to anyone who claims to be an IRS official. In general, we encourage you to protect your immigration documents and not to provide details about your personal information in any public area!
For more information on what you should do if you receive a message like this one, please go here.