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FIU

Spoofed faculty job-offer check scam

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FIU Police issued a timely warning after students were victimized by spoofed faculty job-offer emails that instructed recipients to deposit fraudulent checks and buy gift cards.

Alerts
1
Response
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Killed
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Injured
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Institution
Florida International University
Public R1 · FL
All FIU cases →
~56,000 studentsFIU Alert
Official alert policy
Read when and how FIU says it will use FIU Alert: summarized, quoted, and analyzed.
Documented Timeline

Alert Sequence

1 message in sequence · 1 verified verbatim

Confirmed wording is transcribed character-for-character from a primary source. Use Verify this quote under each message to open that source in a new tab and compare the text yourself.

INITIAL ALERTEmail
Verified verbatim2664 chars
TIMELY WARNING - June 23, 2025 The Florida International University Police Department (FIUPD) and the FIU Division of Information Technology (DoIT) have received several reports of students that have been victimized by responding to fraudulent and fictitious employment opportunities emailed to them from what appears to be an FIU faculty email address. The victims will respond to the offer, and indicate they are interested in the position. They will receive an email response that appears to be from an FIU faculty member; however, the email address is replicated to appear to come from FIU, through a process called SPOOFING. The email will give the victim the job description, duration of the job and offers a convenient fully remote position. The victim will be instructed to perform the following actions: • The victim will receive an electronic check and be instructed to deposit the check into his or her personal bank account. The funds are immediately deposited into the victim's bank account for use. The victim is then instructed to purchase gift cards and provide them with the secure digits on the card in order to extract the funds for their personal use. • The victim will then be notified by their bank that the check(s) they deposited are fraudulent. The victim’s attempts to contact the subject will be unsuccessful, and the victim will lose the money they sent to the scammer. Important information on how to Avoid Falling Victim: • Be cautious if someone you don’t know asks you for personal information. • Be cautious if someone you don’t know asks you to deposit a check. • Never wire or send money to strangers based on a check you’ve received. • Verify the legitimacy of any job offers. When verifying, do not reply to the email you received, start a new one. • Remember that legitimate jobs don’t require upfront payments. • Remember that if something looks too good to be true it probably isn’t. If you think you are the victim of a fraud: • Contact FIU PD immediately at 305-348-2626 or your local jurisdiction. • Contact your bank immediately. If you receive a suspicious text message, email, or notice any suspicious activity: * Do NOT engage * If you see a Phish Alert button you can click on that to notify DoIT * Email abuse@fiu.edu In compliance with federal Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act of 1998, we are issuing this “Timely Warning Notice” to report an incident that may pose a serious or continuing threat to the campus community.
Verify this quote
FIUPD Timely Warning PDF June 23, 2025police.fiu.edufind archived copies
Dual pdftotext-layout + pypdf wrap-normalized byte-agreement 2026-08-30. Stored layout-preserving body. Address/phone letterhead omitted. Official curly apostrophes and curly quotes preserved.
Distinct incident from 2026-04-10-florida-international-university-whatsapp-bomb-threat: employment-scam timely warning, not the WhatsApp bomb-threat case.
Message elements

How the first alert is built

To check this alert, SuperGrok Heavy 4.5 (an AI) read it in full 25 separate times, independently. Each read decided whether the message answers each of the six questions and gave a short reason. A final reviewer then weighed all 25 and wrote the plain-English verdict you see when you open a row. The score (for example 22/25) is how many reads agreed; the 25 individual reads are tucked underneath if you want to check them.

TIMELY WARNING - June 23, 2025 The Florida International University Police Department (FIUPD) and the FIU Division of Information Technology (DoIT) have received several reports of students that have been victimized by responding to fraudulent and fictitious employment opportunities emailed to them from what appears to be an FIU faculty email address. The victims will respond to the offer, and indicate they are interested in the position. They will receive an email response that appears to be from an FIU faculty member; however, the email address is replicated to appear to come from FIU, through a process called SPOOFING. The email will give the victim the job description, duration of the job and offers a convenient fully remote position. The victim will be instructed to perform the following actions: • The victim will receive an electronic check and be instructed to deposit the check into his or her personal bank account. The funds are immediately deposited into the victim's bank account for use. The victim is then instructed to purchase gift cards and provide them with the secure digits on the card in order to extract the funds for their personal use. • The victim will then be notified by their bank that the check(s) they deposited are fraudulent. The victim’s attempts to contact the subject will be unsuccessful, and the victim will lose the money they sent to the scammer. Important information on how to Avoid Falling Victim: • Be cautious if someone you don’t know asks you for personal information. • Be cautious if someone you don’t know asks you to deposit a check. • Never wire or send money to strangers based on a check you’ve received. • Verify the legitimacy of any job offers. When verifying, do not reply to the email you received, start a new one. • Remember that legitimate jobs don’t require upfront payments. • Remember that if something looks too good to be true it probably isn’t. If you think you are the victim of a fraud: • Contact FIU PD immediately at 305-348-2626 or your local jurisdiction. • Contact your bank immediately. If you receive a suspicious text message, email, or notice any suspicious activity: * Do NOT engage * If you see a Phish Alert button you can click on that to notify DoIT * Email abuse@fiu.edu In compliance with federal Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act of 1998, we are issuing this “Timely Warning Notice” to report an incident that may pose a serious or continuing threat to the campus community.

  • Sourcepresent25/25

    Final assessment

    All 25 passes found FIUPD / FIU Division of Information Technology as the named issuer (25/25).

    Who is sending the alert and who is responding. People act faster on a message from a clearly identifiable, credible sender, such as a named department, the police, or a branded alert system, than on an anonymous notice. A branded signature counts.

    See all 25 individual reads
    1. present: FIUPD and FIU Division of Information Technology identify the sender.
    2. present: The Florida International University Police Department is named.
    3. present: Source is FIUPD plus DoIT.
    4. present: A named university police department is the issuer.
    5. present: FIU Alert-style timely warning names FIUPD.
    6. present: Who sent it: FIUPD.
    7. present: The University Police Department is the source.
    8. present: Source present.
    9. present: The alerting agency is FIUPD.
    10. present: Named campus police.
    11. present: The product is an FIU timely warning.
    12. present: Source: FIUPD.
    13. present: FIU is identifiable as sender via FIUPD.
    14. present: A university police name is source.
    15. present: The department satisfies source.
    16. present: The notice is from FIUPD.
    17. present: Institutional source is present.
    18. present: The university police are named.
    19. present: Source is the campus police.
    20. present: The issuer is FIUPD.
    21. present: A named university sender.
    22. present: University police timely warning.
    23. present: Source coded present.
    24. present: FIUPD is the speaker.
    25. present: Named FIUPD.
  • Hazardpresent25/25

    Final assessment

    All 25 passes found the spoofed faculty job-offer scam (25/25).

    What the threat actually is. A complete warning names the specific danger, such as a shooter, a fire, a tornado, or a gas leak, rather than a vague emergency, because people decide what to do based on what they are facing.

    See all 25 individual reads
    1. present: Fraudulent fictitious employment and SPOOFING name the hazard.
    2. present: A check-deposit job scam is a specific threat.
    3. present: Spoofed faculty job offers are the hazard.
    4. present: Hazard: fraudulent employment emails.
    5. present: The scam is specifically spoofing.
    6. present: Employment-opportunity fraud is specific.
    7. present: Named process SPOOFING is the hazard.
    8. present: Hazard present as scam.
    9. present: A job-offer check scam.
    10. present: Hazard equals spoofed employment.
    11. present: The fraud is named.
    12. present: Specific threat: spoofing and fraudulent checks.
    13. present: Scam is in the first paragraph.
    14. present: Hazard is present.
    15. present: Fraudulent job offers are a named type.
    16. present: The product is a job-scam warning.
    17. present: Named scam.
    18. present: Hazard: spoofed faculty email.
    19. present: A fraud threat is named.
    20. present: Specific scam threat.
    21. present: Spoofing is the hazard.
    22. present: The text names fraudulent employment.
    23. present: Hazard coded present.
    24. present: A scam is specified.
    25. present: Named spoofing scam.
  • Locationpresent25/25

    Final assessment

    All 25 passes found FIU / campus community (25/25).

    Where the threat is. Saying whether danger is in a specific building, a part of campus, or area-wide lets people judge their own proximity and choose a safe direction. Without a where, a warning is hard to act on precisely.

    See all 25 individual reads
    1. present: FIU faculty email and campus community locate it.
    2. present: An FIU faculty address is the lure.
    3. present: Campus community is named in the Clery clause.
    4. present: Location: FIU-linked email and campus.
    5. present: FIU is the campus.
    6. present: Where: FIU students.
    7. present: Campus crime timely warning implies campus.
    8. present: Location present as FIU.
    9. present: FIU faculty email locates the lure.
    10. present: Named campus FIU.
    11. present: Location: campus community.
    12. present: FIU students are the victims.
    13. present: Campus community in the Clery sentence.
    14. present: Where is FIU.
    15. present: Location present.
    16. present: The campus is identified.
    17. present: FIU-scoped notice.
    18. present: Campus-scoped.
    19. present: Location coded present.
    20. present: On campus / FIU.
    21. present: The place is FIU.
    22. present: Campus.
    23. present: Location satisfies.
    24. present: A campus cue.
    25. present: Campus is the location.
  • Guidancepresent25/25

    Final assessment

    All 25 passes found do-not-engage and contact-FIUPD instructions (25/25).

    The protective action to take. A clear, specific instruction, such as shelter in place, evacuate, avoid the area, or run-hide-fight, drives faster and more correct protective behavior than describing the threat alone.

    See all 25 individual reads
    1. present: Do NOT engage and contact FIU PD are protective instructions.
    2. present: Be cautious and never wire money are instructions.
    3. present: Contact your bank immediately is guidance.
    4. present: Verify job offers without replying is guidance.
    5. present: Phish Alert button and abuse@fiu.edu are instructions.
    6. present: Do not reply to the email you received.
    7. present: Protective actions: do not engage.
    8. present: Guidance present as contact FIUPD.
    9. present: Guidance: contact local jurisdiction too.
    10. present: Never send money to strangers.
    11. present: The public is instructed.
    12. present: Contact FIU PD at 305-348-2626.
    13. present: Guidance is present.
    14. present: An instruction list is guidance.
    15. present: Avoid falling victim section is guidance.
    16. present: The community is told how to avoid the scam.
    17. present: Guidance: set of don'ts.
    18. present: Contact manager-equivalent: contact FIUPD.
    19. present: The notice tells people what to do.
    20. present: Closed-ended instructions to not engage.
    21. present: Guidance coded present.
    22. present: Work-arrangement-like: do not deposit checks.
    23. present: Instruction to faculty-equivalent students.
    24. present: Protective guidance.
    25. present: The audience is directed.
  • Timepresent25/25

    Final assessment

    All 25 passes found June 23, 2025 (25/25).

    When the message applies. A timestamp, the word now or immediately, or a phrase like until further notice tells the reader whether the danger is current and how quickly to act.

    See all 25 individual reads
    1. present: June 23, 2025 is a date.
    2. present: The timely warning is dated.
    3. present: A calendar date is present.
    4. present: Time: June 23, 2025.
    5. present: Dated notice.
    6. present: The product is dated.
    7. present: June 23 is when.
    8. present: Time present.
    9. present: A date satisfies Time.
    10. present: When: June 23, 2025.
    11. present: A calendar date.
    12. present: Today-like dated warning.
    13. present: Date satisfies Time.
    14. present: June 23 is a time cue.
    15. present: The warning is dated.
    16. present: Time present via the title date.
    17. present: The day is named.
    18. present: A date is stated.
    19. present: Time satisfies.
    20. present: Dated notice.
    21. present: June 23, 2025.
    22. present: The title is dated.
    23. present: Time is given.
    24. present: The warning is dated.
    25. present: Date plus timely-warning recency.
  • Impactpresent25/25

    Final assessment

    All 25 passes found the stated money-loss consequence (25/25).

    What the hazard could do to the people in its path. Beyond naming the threat, a complete warning conveys its potential consequences or severity, such as that a tornado can level buildings or that a leak could be explosive, so recipients grasp how much danger they are in. Research on warning message content finds that a concrete impact statement helps people personalize their risk and act sooner.

    See all 25 individual reads
    1. present: Victims will lose the money is a stated consequence.
    2. present: Loss of deposited funds is impact.
    3. present: The victim will lose the money they sent.
    4. present: Impact present via financial loss.
    5. present: I=1 because money loss is stated.
    6. present: Consequence: lose the money.
    7. present: Impact: fraudulent checks and lost funds.
    8. present: Impact present.
    9. present: Harm is financial loss.
    10. present: I coded present.
    11. present: No injury but money loss counts as impact.
    12. present: Impact not absent.
    13. present: Severity is loss of money.
    14. present: I present.
    15. present: Explicit future harm: lose the money.
    16. present: Naming money loss is impact.
    17. present: Impact present.
    18. present: Financial harm is stated.
    19. present: The notice has an impact sentence.
    20. present: I is present.
    21. present: Consequences stated as impact.
    22. present: Money-loss clause.
    23. present: Impact conveyed.
    24. present: Harm-severity as lost funds.
    25. present: I=1.

Coded by SuperGrok Heavy 4.5

Systematic AI judgments with visible reasoning, not human-validated codings.

About this analysis
Context

Background

Official FIUPD timely-warning archive at police.fiu.edu/crime-awareness-2/timely-warnings.
Analysis

Key Findings

Official Clery timely warning for a spoofed-faculty job-offer check scam.
Outcome
Warning instructs victims to contact FIUPD and their bank; no suspect identification in the product.
Provenance

Sources

Every claim on this page is meant to be checkable. Open the links below (and the Verify this quote control under each confirmed alert) to read the original university, news, or archive page yourself. Hostnames are shown so you can see where you are going; archived copies survive when live pages move or disappear. See also our methodology.

  1. Official
    TIMELY WARNING - June 23, 2025
    police.fiu.edu
    archived copy
Cite this case

Campus Alert Archive. "Florida International University: Spoofed faculty job-offer check scam." Incident of June 23, 2025. Added August 2026. https://campusalertarchive.com/case/florida-international-university-spoofed-faculty-job-scam-2025-06-23/

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Alert text quoted on this page remains the work of the issuing institution; the archive is a secondary source.

Tags
fiuscam2025
Added August 2026Updated August 2026Via ingestion