got a call from 866-283-5184. they left a message that they were trying to reach some guy about his student loan app.
the number instructed to call back was 800-562-2525. have no idea what the scam is, or if someone made up a fake number and it just happened to be mine. Just a nuisance. I don't answer and don't call back.

it MUST be.  They keep calling for my husband who has NEVER had a student loan!  They wanted his birthdate, not his social.  Where did they get get his info?

Pardon me, but I have never had a student loan and I don't know anyone who has student loans and yet I was called. I received this call while out of signal range, and when I finally hear the message I called back, a bit confused to say the least with the message. The person knew my name and number which by the way is not only 3 months new, but unlisted as well. This person was asking for someone who I never heard of and when I asked how they got my number the rep said she couldn't figure that out since my number that I repeated to her was not on her file....now I am a bit more curious, so I asked if they did not have my number on file, how did they get my name. Again I was confused with the answer of....the person we are looking for must have given your name and number as a reference or contact person....ok! however my cell phone number is "new". The cell phone company is "new"...so see, some of us are not numb or stupid...we are just confused by these phone calls. Perhaps you could explain???

what is skiptraced actually mean? I received a call from a Rep at ext.302, since I missed the call she left a message asking for me to call back at the 1-800 number, which I did however another rep said she was not available. I asked how this person had found my number since it is unlisted and she stated that my number was not on record, nor was my name. In the voice message the woman stated my name correctly and was looking for a person whom I either did not know or was the President of a company that I worked for almost a decade ago. This company is no longer in business since it was a non profit and the funds had run out. The lady was nice enough to apologize, and I asked her to have the lady who originally called, to call me back and give me information on how she found my number. This confuses me and the rep I spoke to was also confused.

Student Assistance corp left a voicemail "very important call" for someone (not me).  Called them back, got their mailing address and asked them not to call again.  The gentleman said I'd likely be called again tomorrow, I said I'd like to own me a little collection company.  He laughed and said I could try.

legit ~ will assist to prevent garnishment & protect tax return for students that are behind on school loans

I'm not going to give a pass to any solicitor who was rude, if they called you and gave you an attitude or told people lies about you, then they're at the very least a bunch of jerks.

But they just called me about an ex of mine, they were very polite, they're trying to reach him to "give him a message." (doublespeak for "get their money" but I appreciate that they didn't blurt that out to a stranger.) Knowing what I do of the guy, I have no problem whatsoever believing that he owes them money. I told them he's an ex, I haven't talked to him in 10 years, and the last time I talked to him I said I'd call the police if he contacted me. They very nicely said they'd take me off their list.

I received the number from one of the employers at Sallie Mae. It is a legitimate company and not a scam. If you've never completely paid off your loan from Sallie Mae then the loan is forgiven and sold to the United Student Aid Forms people. That's how they have your number. They're just trying to collect on your debt that was paid off by them. It is not a SCAM. It's still a debt that you owe, you just owe it to someone else other than Sallie Mae now.

I received an email starting with Dear (no name) stating "whoever" is delinquent and needs to fill out the financial form showing proof of income and fax back immediately. Sent by Mallory Shantel.  Even if I was "supposed" to be a reference it mentioned NO NAME.  Well Mallory - I would consider your email to be an EPIC FAIL

And yet another great example of the services provided by your company.  Is calling someone an idiot another example of the "options" you offer?

Another great example of the services provided by your company

Really?

You provided the classic demonstration of the poorest type of a collector...the same old story, ?we are trying to help you by treating you poorly.?

This is actually a legit company guys. This is Student Assistance Corporation, and they work together with Sallie Mae to handle payments and payment arrangments on student loans. I was just given this number after logging in to Sallie Mae's website, calling Sallie Mae directly from a number on the website, and speaking to a Sallie Mae agent who instructed me to call them.

I have dealt with them before. They're legit.

they just called me ( a woman) from number 866-283-5184 and left me a message asking for a referance to someone named joshua and asked me to return their call at 1-800-562-2525 X 155 if this is a wrong number and if so they'd take me off their list or to call if i am some guy (i forget the name) for a referance.
being the nice me i phoned back and a man answered in a forgein language i don't understand and i said "hello" and he started talking in english and asked for my name and i wouldn't give it to him and told him they got the wrong number and he said "oh for joshua okay."

Several months ago, I sent in a doctor-prescribed form asking to have my student loans forgiven/erased permanently, due to total disability.  Having not heard anything for more than a year, I called Sallie Mae and was given the 800-562-2525 number to call, as they had transferred my application on to "WE NW Education Loan Foundation".  Upon Googling the number, I found a pdf file that noted the name of the company with that phone number as "United Student Aid Funds".  The number was called.  Looooooooong story short, I got the run around to different agencies, right up to the federal level Dept. of Education, and back down the line again until I FINALLY got the information I was originally requesting--but not from them.

They are legitimate, but they couldn't answer my specific questions.  Instead, they gave me a number to call, who gave me another number to call, who gave me yet another number to call, almost ad infinitum.  They're obviously just part of a long line of places that student loan info and forgiveness applications go on their way to somewhere else.

the only reason student assistance is contacting you is because your lender, whoever it may be, possibly Sallie Mae turned your information over to your guarantor. student assistance works for the guarantors office & the guarantors office is responsible for basically preventing default on a loan. they are helping you! once a loan goes over 60 days delinq, it gets turned over to student assistance which consists of 3 different departments. depending on how delinquent you are, depends on which department you get to. & they offer you the same options & many more than your lender does. a forbearance can be done verbally over the phone w/in minutes, as long as your under 270 days past due. all you have to do is say "yes" to some terms & there you go, your acct is current. how hard was that? but no...some people choose to ignore the calls from their lender for sooooo long that their acct becomes overly past due & gets handed to the guarantor who btw, can call a # up to 8 times a day, & NO, it's NOT against the law. it's your own fault if you choose to ignore the calls & continue to become delinquent on a loan. & just because you send in "payments" on a past due loan...doesnt mean it's gonna make everything okay!!! you need to bring it current by doing a forbearance or deferment unless you can pay the full past due.

i swear this is the funniest thing i've read ALLLLLL night lol. thanks for the good laugh (: & btw, you can't sue them for calling you. they work on behalf of the gurantor's office for federal student loans; look it up!..federal as in the government...yes. if they're calling your # for the wrong person, someone who don't know or have no contact with, it takes 2 mins to answer the phone & tell them that they have the wrong #, verify the # (it doesnt even have to be the full # either, the last 4 of the # will do just fine)...you can even go as far as telling them to mark it as a "do not call" & trust & believe they'll have no problem doing so because they don't want YOU...they want the person who OWES on the student loan. alot of people fail to realize that. these people are doing their job, which is something majority of you idiots talking trash on a damn site, wouldn't even be able to do becaue your head is stuck so far up your own rectum that you fail to see that they are only trying to help you in the long run. just tell them it's the wrong# & be done with it. THATS ALL!

okay, that is absolutely the most ridiculous thing EVER! if you have to go to such lengths to try & prove that a scam is going on...you have WAY too much time on your hands buddy. If you call in from a "fictitious" number & they can't pull you up in the system for having a student loan, they won't be able to say much to you. They'll be able to explain what their company does, of course, but as far as trying to get personal info from you...definitely a no-no. You call in, they'll ask you either for a phone# that you received the call from, or your ssn or account #. Now most people that call in who has a student loan usually give their ssn# but NOT ALL. Some people usually get their acct#'s off of the letters they receive from their lender or they can be pulled up by name or phone# & sometimes even an email address. In no way is this a scam! Get your facts together sir!

I have student loans and guess what I got a forbearance by contacting the loan holder.  Note I CONTACTED THEM.  Your loan holders want to help you so that they can get paid.  This number has called me three times this week.  I will not be calling them back, but will be calling the FTC with a complaint.

I just threatened to sue these A#$holes after they called me and left 1 message. I live in florida and I invite these retarded companies to try me cause I can very easily find a lawyer to sue these f****!

Here's what you do to cut to the chase. Make sure you record the whole thing. Call from a phone that can't be traced back to you. Give the them a fictitious name and say you have received a voice message that instructed you to call this number 800-562-2525 and you don't know what it's about but you are concerned about what they have to say. From there just play along and the truth will come out. Again make sure you record it and stay friendly and concerned. Afterwards post your experience on this site for all of us to see, plus if it is a scam go to the authorities with it or find an attorney who will take on the case on a pro Bono basis. An attorney will do that only if they feel that they have a winnable case. Too many people get scammed nowadays. Good luck.

They keep calling and calling and calling, if I answer they are not there, if I don't they leave automated message for me to call them about an important business matter. I don't have any business matters that I don't know about or that I would be called about.  I believe they are up to NO GOOD!!!

ok, you can tell me this is legitimate until you are blue in the face, but here is the deal.  I have never defaulted on any loan, I make all my payments on time, my student loans were paid off quite some time ago, my credit score is excellent, and not one person that I know has ever been given the phone number that I received this call on (thiswas my business line and I only use it as a bridge to a soft phone), so it could not possibly be someone who used me as a reference.  Furthermore, the houses on both sides of me have both been vacant for at least a year.  All I got was a pre-recorded voice on the line that just told me that I needed to call that number and no reason was given as to why it was so important for me to call.  Since this whole experience just REEKS of scam, you can bet I will not be calling because some random recording told me to call without even saying who they were or what company they represent.  If this is not a scam, then at the very least, it is a company with some very poor business practices.

Agreed. One of the simplest ways to verify they are who they say they are is to ask them to mail you a written correspondence or in the case of a deferment or forbearance; the application needed. They will be more than happy to accommodate you because it shows you are willing to work with them to avoid defaulting on your loan. I speak from personal experience.

Again, these people provided you with a means to afford an education. They held up their end now it is your turn. The really disturbing part is that they have to resort to these measures in order to get in touch with you. Chances are you KNOW you have a student loan that you are NOT paying back, you decided this path and with it come the consequences of that path. Again, I work for Rite Aid pharmacy, not SAC. I am just sick of people who are "skeptical", but not concerned enough to double check anything! Lets just say when a real collection agency takes interest in you then you will know the phone calls from SAC were real enough but by then, its too late to take care of your student loan on your own terms.

Then this just means that someone who does have a student loan that is in danger of defaulting has listed you as a reference for one reason or another. Chances are you know the person in question and all you have to do is tell them "hey I have a company calling me about your student loan and they want you to cal them at.... extension... before the loan goes into default and the real nasty people at the collection agency the guarantor hires start hunting you down."

Listen up people, this is a legitimate company and it is a sub division of Sallie Mae known as Student Assistance Corp. Sorry no, I do not work for them I work for Rite Aid pharmacy. They emailed me (thinking I was my mother; who took out a student loan for me). All three of us are working together to get it taken care of. As far as the rudeness is concerned I have had one or two conversations with rude individuals through this phone number. All you have to do is hang up and call back and you will get some one new. the majority of employees there are actually very patient and helpful, but you can't blame people for wanting their money back. They were able to provide you with a means to afford an education and now you have to hold up your end of the deal, what do you expect? If you are weary about giving your information over the phone; like I am, ask them to send you a written correspondence or to send you an application. You will see when it arrives that it is all legit. Good luck with your student loans!

I keep getting a message from a woman named Kristen who works for Student Loans (or something like that). The number she left was 1-800-562-2525 and is asking for Charles Young. There has never been a Charles Young living in my apt. I've lived there for 20+ years. Second, they leave personal information about this guy on MY machine and have the audacity to request if I am not the perosn not to listen to it. Tough  s$^t! I have called and requested they remove my number, but they keep calling. I have reported them numerous times as well. From what I have been told, just ignore them. They are scammers trying to have you reply to their call to find out personal information.  I just got another call this morning and wll be reporting their sorry a***s again. It doesn't bother me since I will just delete the call, but I feel for those who really call them back because they try to sound professional.

Freaking idiots the lot of them! Calling for someone who doesn't live here and still calls back when you tell them they have the wrong number.  Had to threaten to file complaint with BBB to get them to take my name off list.

@UNSIGNED UP!

They called me also and asked me to verify the last 4 of my social. So THAT part about YOUR post was fake fake fake.
Like others I called them back and unfortunately confirmed my info. My Sallie Mae loan has been deferred and  will be deferred for the next 3 years. I  have letters from SallieMae stating this. The company is bogus and are fishing for info.