Fraud Alert

Notice to our Suppliers: Fraudulent Purchase Order Email Activity

We want to alert you to fraudulent email scams involving purchase orders and request for product quotations claiming to originate from the George Washington University. While the university cannot prevent this illegal activity, we are actively working with security to investigate these fraudulent emails.

Here are some common trails or themes from these fraudulent emails. This may help reduce risk to your company in becoming a financial victim of this scam:

  • The email message is poorly written with misspellings and awkward sentence structure.
  • The sender's email address or website links are not authentic to the George Washington University.
  • The message requests shipment of products to non-GW addresses.
  • The message may include an attachment that is designed to look like a purchase order, complete with a logo or graphic, and a signature that may look legitimate.

If you believe you have received a fraudulent email that appears to be from the George Washington University, you may forward it to our Purchasing Department at [email protected] or call us at 202-994-2500. Our team will help verify the email's legitimacy prior to responding and fulfilling the order.

The George Washington University Procurement Department values its partnership with our vendors. We will assist in the investigation to the fullest extent of the illegal activity. The Procurement Department reports all fraudulent emails to the appropriate authorities.