Mallory Wortman
ON THE RECORD · 9 verbatim quotes · every quote source-verified
“They’re going to have multiple applications,”
Mallory Wortman · said date not stated · reported 2026-10-02
Wortman said fraudsters will have multiple applications as a red flag to look out for.
“That's kind of what we've seen, straw student schemes turning into today,”
Mallory Wortman · said date not stated · reported 2026-10-02
Wortman compared current ghost student fraud to schemes she observed during her time in community college.
“People, scammers specifically, look for vulnerable places like student loans and unemployment fraud to take advantage of those channels because historically they have been lax in their controls,”
Mallory Wortman · said date not stated · reported 2026-10-02
Wortman told Fox News Digital that scammers target vulnerable channels like student loans because they have historically had lax controls.
“You're going to have shared information, that unusual movement of funds and then multiple apparently unrelated customers with common either connection activity, IP addresses, and then funds flowing through the account that just don't make sense,”
Mallory Wortman · said date not stated · reported 2026-10-02
Wortman described how fraudsters use data breaches and phishing to obtain personal information, leaving traces in banking records.
“This has been going on, and I'm glad that they're finally doing something about it,”
Mallory Wortman · said date not stated · reported 2026-10-02
Wortman said the ghost student scam has been ongoing and she is glad it is finally being addressed.
“Anytime there's an opportunity where funds are flowing, like financial aid fraud, or another example would be when there's unemployment fraud during COVID, they're gonna use that as a method to get those funds,”
Mallory Wortman · said date not stated · reported 2026-10-02
Wortman said fraudsters take advantage of any opportunity where government money is flowing, such as financial aid or unemployment fraud.
“They're going to have common information. There's gonna be some unusual enrollment patterns and then suspicious changes to their account before those funds are disbursed.”
Mallory Wortman · said date not stated · reported 2026-10-02
Wortman described unusual enrollment patterns and suspicious account changes as warning signs of ghost student fraud.
“attaining the aid rather than pursuing an education.”
Mallory Wortman · said date not stated · reported 2026-10-02
Wortman said today's fraudsters' main objective is attaining financial aid rather than pursuing an education.
“Just be aware and keep tabs on your personal financial information,”
Mallory Wortman · said date not stated · reported 2026-10-02
Wortman said the best defense against fraudsters is keeping a close eye on personal financial information.