Ghost Students: Combating AI-Powered Financial Aid Fraud on Campus

Wednesday, September 30, 2026 | 9:30AM–10:30AM MT
Session Type: Poster Session
Delivery Format: Poster Session
Ghost students, fraudulent enrollees who use stolen or synthetic identities to harvest financial aid and vanish, have evolved into a sophisticated, AI-driven threat costing higher education hundreds of millions of dollars annually. This session examines the scale of the crisis with current data, the tactics fraudsters use, and the practical identity verification and detection strategies institutions can deploy today to protect students, staff, and public funds.

Presenters

  • Carolyn Basista

    Information Security, University of Maryland Global Campus

  • Chad Rychlewski

    K-20 Cybersecurity Lead, Accenture