Student Loan Forgiveness Scam

Student loan forgiveness scams exploit confusion around genuinely complex real government loan forgiveness, income-driven repayment, and consolidation programs. A caller or online ad claims the borrower's loans qualify for immediate partial or full forgiveness, or offers to enroll them in a 'special' repayment plan, in exchange for an upfront fee and, often, the borrower's loan account login credentials so the scammer can 'manage' the account directly.

Once the scammer has the login details, they may redirect the loan servicer's correspondence to their own email, request forbearance that quietly increases the total interest owed, or simply take the fee and do nothing at all while the borrower's loan continues to accrue interest in the background, unnoticed until a bill or delinquency notice arrives later. Every real government student loan forgiveness or income-driven repayment program is free to apply for directly through the loan servicer or the government's own loan website, and no legitimate program requires the borrower to hand over their account password to a third party.