Overview

• The Philadelphia School District was defrauded of nearly $700,000 through four unauthorized electronic payments in early 2024.
• Scammers impersonated vendors and manipulated payment systems to divert funds for flood repairs and special education services to their own accounts.
• City Controller Christy Brady discovered the fraud during an April 2025 audit and referred the case to the Pennsylvania Attorney General, FBI, and Inspector General for investigation.
• District officials confirmed that neither financial nor student data systems were compromised and have since revised bank confirmation processes and strengthened internal controls.
• Efforts are underway to recover the funds, but officials have not disclosed specific vendors or financial institutions involved to avoid jeopardizing the ongoing investigations.