School warns of fraud in live streaming of high school sports

JONESBORO, Arkansas (KAIT) – A fake social media profile is pretending to live stream high school volleyball games and asking for your personal information.

Jonesboro Hurricane Athletics is warning everyone that a Facebook account posing as the Arkansas Activities Association is scamming locals out of their money.

With only two followers, the fake account is still active as of Tuesday, August 27.

The scammer account shared links that purported to live stream volleyball games from several schools, including Brookland, Jonesboro, and Cave City. However, once payment is received, there is no game to watch.

Jonesboro athletic director Trey Harding said it’s a big red flag when a website asks for your credit card information. He recommends calling your school and verifying before making any purchase.

“Most schools don’t charge for live streams of games,” Harding said. “Ask to speak to the athletic department and do your research before releasing any information.”

Harding is discussing the issue with other athletic directors, as online fraud has been a common problem at schools in recent years. He said the first step is to report all fraudulent social media profiles.

“I mean, you basically have to spend all day locking down all the accounts and trying to get the word out,” Harding said.

The real AAA Facebook page has 35,000 followers and can be found here.

Harding said all sporting events in Jonesboro will be live streamed exclusively on YouTube by the profile @JHSTheWarning.

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