Sarah Austin, NASFAA Policy Staff
The Department of Education’s (ED) Office of Inspector General (OIG)provided NASFAA 2025 National Conference attendees with information on internal and external financial aid fraud and cybersecurity threats currently facing institutions.
The session, on Wednesday, started with Jason Williams, assistant inspector general for investigations, providing an overview of the operational components of OIG, focusing on the investigation services component, which operates the OIG hotline schools use to report suspected fraud. Williams also highlighted the various ways OIG works with Federal Student Aid (FSA).
Damian White, a special agent at OIG, then provided background information on what is considered fraud and what are common fraud risk indicators. White detailed some specific fraud risk indicators related to distance education, such as multiple repeated addresses, phone numbers, bank accounts, and IP addresses. White also listed different ways students might commit fraud, such as FAFSA fraud or falsification of documents, and the different charges prosecutors might pursue for crimes of fraud, including mail or wire fraud charges.
OIG staff then shared real case examples of financial aid fraud with attendees, as well as emerging fraud threats related to student loan scams from fraudulent third-party debt relief companies.
The session ended with best practices for financial aid offices and a description of the financial aid administrator’s role in fraud prevention. OIG staff reminded attendees of their statutory and regulatory requirements for reporting suspected fraud and suggested aid administrators stay current on FSA alerts and sign-up for OIG’s free notification service or contact their office via email: [email protected].
Publication Date: 6/26/2025
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