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More than 100 UTEP students file reports with FBI on loan scam [1]
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Date: 2025-02-24
Alejandra Velez is among the many University of Texas at El Paso students who somehow did not receive their federal loans since August. UTEP claims that the students were victims of phishing schemes that redirected their funds into scammers’ accounts, but some students blame the institution’s lax security.
Velez, 42, is in her second semester as an online student in pursuit of a master’s in education with a concentration in linguistic diversity and educational equity. She said this was the second time she planned to use direct deposit to receive her loan funds. The first time worked fine.
The student, who lives in Austin with her husband and daughter, checked her account Jan. 21 and expected to find $5,672. That money was supposed to help with rent, food and other household needs. Instead, she discovered that the money was not there. She also found that she could not log on to her UTEP account.
Her efforts to find out what happened and to get help only led to confusion and irritation. She said that during a Zoom call with Gerard Cochrane, UTEP associate vice president for information security, he told her that the university was aware of technical problems since last summer. Cochrane did not respond to questions about the call with Velez and the vulnerabilities that were discussed.
Bottom line: Velez said she wants her money, but she also wants UTEP to take ownership of the problem.
UTEP student Alejandra Velez is pursuing a master’s in education with a concentration in linguistic diversity and educational equity
“I have a job and when I mess up my boss is going to call me out,” said Velez, a special education teacher at a public elementary school. “I cannot believe that nobody is being called out for this. Somebody could have done something and they didn’t. The university was responsible for keeping our information safe and our funds safe. They should be accountable and take responsibility for their actions.”
For its part, the university in a late January statement said that it was not at fault and added that the problem was created by students who responded to a phishing attack. These are cybercrimes where bad actors use emails, texts or other message systems to trick people into providing sensitive personal information that could lead to identity theft, financial fraud or account takeovers.
UTEP in the statement said that it was proactive in identifying other students affected by this cybercrime, but did not provide the number of students who contacted the institution with similar concerns. The FBI El Paso Field Office reported that more than 100 UTEP student victims have requested help since August 2024 because of this situation.
According to the university, cybercriminals were able to get account login credentials from students and use that information to change bank account deposit information so the money went into the crooks’ bank accounts.
UTEP stated that it is working to help students who were victims of the attack, but Velez said that the university needs to do a better job.
The student said that she sought help throughout the university from the Technology Support Help Desk to UTEP Police to the Office of Student Financial Aid and President Heather Wilson. Nothing helped to her satisfaction. To the contrary, she said the institution puts the onus on students to include those who have said they did not respond to any phishing efforts.
“There is no support whatsoever from the university,” she said. On Facebook, she asked other student victims of this cyberattack to stand together and demand accountability. “(UTEP is) not taking any responsibility.”
Velez, a native of Mexico City, did acknowledge that UTEP Police suggested she file a report with the FBI, which she did.
Jeanette Harper, special agent and public affairs officer with the FBI El Paso Field Office, said that the investigation is ongoing and involves multiple agencies.
She said that student victims often had an automatic response to scam emails that involved canceled classes and funding issues.
Harper’s advice to students was to react slowly to suspect emails with “urgent” requests. She suggested users hover their cursor over the email address to see its destination, which could be a malicious website. Additionally, she recommended students always log into the verified website and never a link in a text message or email. Lastly, she advised users to never provide information to people that contact you unexpectedly.
“If anything has to do with financial aid or funding, contact the office or your loan provider,” Harper said. “Never trust information in an email or unexpected phone call.” For its part, UTEP provides helpful anti-phishing tips through its Information Security Office.
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[1] Url:
https://elpasomatters.org/2025/02/24/utep-student-loan-phishing-scam-fbi-investigation/
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