Scam asks NCSU students for money to fix records ‘problem,’ police warn

North Carolina State University police warned Tuesday that someone is using the school’s phone number – 919-515-2011 – in an effort to get students to pay money to stay in good standing.

“Our Department has been made aware of individuals spoofing the main N.C. State University phone number” so it shows up as the caller’s number, police said.

The caller tells the student that there is some problem with their status with the university and that a fee is required to fix the problem, Maj. Ian Kendrick said.

In a Facebook post, police told the university community:

“1) Never give out personal info over the phone or email

2) Never give out bank/credit card info over the phone or email

3) No legitimate agency is going to demand payment by gift cards

“If you receive one of these calls, hang up, and call the agency back. If you have suffered monetary loss, and are located on campus, please call us at 919-515-3000. If you are off campus, please call your local police.”

Kendrick said that as far as campus police know, no one had succumbed to the scam as of Tuesday.

It is, however, “a huge inconvenience” to students, Kendrick said. He said police need to know about the calls because there may be details about a call that could help investigators.

NCSU is not alone with the headache, Kendrick said.

“This scam and varieties of it are going on all over the place” in U.S. universities, Kendrick said.

This story was originally published December 19, 2017 at 9:43 AM with the headline "Scam asks NCSU students for money to fix records ‘problem,’ police warn."