In 2023, El Camino College social science professor Akello Stone started a semester with a full roster of students, only to discover that 40 of them were not real.

Fraudulent enrollment has only worsened since then.

On Feb. 1, the El Camino Community College District’s Board of Trustees approved a $54,000 subscription purchase of LightleapAI Fraud Detection Module, an artificial intelligence software designed to detect fraudulent student applications.

Following a one-month trial period during March, the software will officially be in use from March 3, 2025, to March 3, 2026.

Despite efforts like mandatory video introductions and profile photos, Stone and other faculty members still face an uphill battle in verifying who’s actually in their classes.

Even with these measures, fraudulent students continue slipping through the cracks.

Stone will think classes appear to be full, only to find that many of the students are not real, which leaves unexpected openings for legitimate students who may have been turned away.

“You get rid of a fraudulent student and another one would email you and well, they must be a student if they’re emailing me,” Stone said. “And it turned into not knowing who’s a real student or not until the second week of class.”

Stone said he has to manually remove dozens of fraudulent students each semester. This term alone, he removed 45 students across three classes.

“I am very much in support of [LightleapAI] because I think the sooner we determine something is fraudulent activity, the better,” Stone said.

This semester, ECC placed over 4,000 verification holds on student accounts, with the majority being fraudulent, according to Carlos Lopez, vice president of Academic Affairs.

“We’ve been hit with a lot of fraud this term. I mean a lot of fraud. It’s impacted us and the colleges around us,” Lopez said during the Feb. 18 Academic Senate meeting. “LACCD put in a verification system where everyone has to show ID to be able to even start the registration process.”

David Brown, assistant director of Financial Aid, confirmed there are many cases of fraudulent enrollment at ECC, and that it has worsened over the last two years.

He said that fraudulent applicants are individuals attempting to exploit the system for financial gain.

“They’re stolen identities,” Brown said.

By using stolen identification information including social security numbers, they can enroll in classes and apply for financial aid, often with no intention of attending.

Many students have struggled to enroll in online classes this semester as waitlists filled up quickly, leaving them scrambling for alternatives.

Rebecca Pegan-Goldblum, an 18-year-old English major, was unable to get into a screenwriting class this semester and had to register for a different English course to fulfill her transfer requirements.

“I registered pretty early and was still put on the waitlist for a couple classes,” Pegan-Goldblum said.

Fire science major Enoch Joo, 18, faced a similar setback, unable to enroll in geology, photography and political science.

As a result, his graduation was delayed by a semester.

“That [fraudulent enrollment filling up classes] just sucks,” Joo said. “A lot of people are here just to transfer and just get quickly in and out.”

Many students depend on online classes for their flexibility, especially those balancing work and other responsibilities.

Tanjanee Bufbe, a 26-year-old child development major, could not register for an online class she needed.

“I was able to email the professor and get into a hybrid one, but with my schedule I needed it online and it affected me because I have to take the day off and I can’t afford to take the day off,” Bufbe said.

Kristina Martinez, acting dean of Enrollment Services, emphasized that the college is addressing the issue and is actively placing holds on questionable accounts, preventing those users from registering for classes.

“There has definitely been suspicious activity that’s been increasing, not just at El Camino College but at colleges across the state,” Martinez said.

When the college detects suspicious activity, they put a verification hold on the student account and students are asked to come in and show identification to verify their enrollment.

“If students already registered, then we’re removing them from classes after they fail to respond to verify their identity, Martinez said.

Martinez shared that this process helps ensure only legitimate students are allowed to register and attend classes.

Beyond internal measures, ECC is required to report fraudulent enrollment cases to law enforcement and the U.S Department of Education’s Office of the Inspector General.

However, despite concerns about fraudulent applications, there is no indication that the fraudulent enrollment poses a cybersecurity threat or a risk compromising student data.

Martinez stated that El Camino College adopted LightleapAI because of its proven success at other institutions.

She said that LightleapAI has demonstrated proven success at other institutions with an accuracy rate of about 95% in detecting fraudulent applications.

The California Community College Chancellor’s Office identified three main types of fraud occurring in California community colleges.

Admission application fraud occurs when individuals apply without intending to pursue an education.

Financial aid fraud involves obtaining aid unlawfully after enrolling in classes and gaining approval from external agencies.

Enrollment fraud happens when fraudsters register for courses but don’t participate.

Savannah Campbell, an 18-year-old mathematics major, was unable to enroll in an online computer science class this semester and expressed frustration over fraudulent students taking spaces.

“Sad. I wanted to take that class,” Campbell said.