A 16-year-old from Troy dodged losing $900 to a job scam in June after receiving what looked like an official email from his school. But he lost access to his Bank of America account for up to five years. The student, Jassal, received a message about a work-study opportunity signed by Bloomfield Hills Schools.
The email included details about the position, schedule, and pay. Jassal thought the message seemed weird because it came from a student account. Yet it had a bloomfield.org domain. “Of course, I needed a job, and it was through the school and I thought it would be valid,” Jassal told WXYZ.
He completed the application. Then he received an email with three checks for $500 each, which he was told to deposit. The scammers instructed him to send back $900 via Zelle.
When the checks bounced, he understood what had happened.
His father, Jasvinder Singh, said Bank of America closed the account and will report the situation to checks systems and early warning systems.
Sgt. John Julian of the Troy Police Department said knowing the warning signs matters. “Scammers are going to prey on what you desire: money. You desire a big return on your investment, so they’re going to prey on that. Trust is built slowly typically, but the scammers want to build trust quickly,” Julian said.
Bloomfield Hills Schools said it was unaware of the incident and gave a statement. “We recognize that phishing scams and other forms of cyber fraud continue to impact individuals and organizations across the country. We remain committed to educating students and staff about online safety… encouraging everyone to verify unexpected emails or requests before taking action,” the district said.
