Trump admin drops hammer on ‘ghost students,’ claws back $1B from alleged loan scammers
FIRST ON FOX: The Department of Education thwarted more than $1 billion in student aid fraud under President Donald Trump's first year in office, including stopping suspected bots and "ghost...
By Fox News · Fox News
FIRST ON FOX: The Department of Education thwarted more than $1 billion in student aid fraud under President Donald Trump's first year in office, including stopping suspected bots and "ghost students" from obtaining taxpayer-funded loans, Fox News Digital learned. Officials say the savings come from new "enhanced fraud controls" the department implemented in June to combat fraudsters from working to obtain financial assistance loans from colleges. College officials and cybersecurity experts in recent years have pointed to a new scam trend of "ghost students," which are fabricated or stolen identities created solely to enroll, trigger financial aid disbursements and then disappear. Ghost students are believed to be powered by AI bots or run by criminal networks using real Americans’ personal information. Other scams have included the use of deceased individuals' identities in order to fraudulently obtain loans. FAKE YALE STUDENT SCANDAL RAISES ALARMS OVER ACADEMIC FRAUD, FOREIGN INFLUENCE RISKS To crackdown on fraud, the Department of Education heightened its identification verification process for first-time applicants attempting to receive Federal Student Aid. The department said in June that the Biden administration "removed verification safeguards and diverted resources from fraud prevention toward its illegal loan forgiveness efforts" amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which compounded fraud schemes. "American citizens have to present an ID to purchase a ticket to travel or to rent a car — it’s only right that they should present an ID to access tens of thousands of taxpayer dollars to fund their education," U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon told Fox Digital Thursday. "From day one, the Trump Administration has been committed to rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse across the federal government," she added. "As a result, $1 billion in taxpayer funds will now support students pursuing the American dream, rather than falling into the hands of criminals. Merry Chr…