{"id":"sec-col-housing-deposit-scam-check","audience":"college","category":"security","track":"security","technique":"grounding","title":"Check an apartment listing against the housing office's scam guide","free":false,"task":"You found an off-campus apartment and the landlord emailed. Check the email against your housing office's scam guide: exactly 4 numbered lines, one per guide warning sign in the guide's order, each starting 'Present' or 'Not present' with a quote from the email as proof when present. Then a last line 'Next step:' from the guide. Plain text, under 110 words.","materialLabel":"Landlord email and housing office guide (attached to your prompt automatically)","material":"From: Richard Vance <r.vance.rentals@mailbox.example.org>\nSubject: Re: 2BR on Elm Street - available!\n\nHi Jordan,\n\nThanks for your interest! The apartment at 418 Elm St is still available for $650/month, utilities included. I'm currently working overseas on a medical mission, so I can't show it in person, but I can mail you the keys once your deposit is received.\n\nTo hold it, please send the $650 deposit today by wire transfer or gift cards (I'll send details). There are 4 other students interested, so I can only hold it until tomorrow.\n\nLooking forward to having you!\nRichard\n\n---\nCampus Housing Office - Rental Scam Guide (warning signs)\n1. Landlord can't meet or show the place in person.\n2. Asks for payment by wire transfer, gift cards or payment apps before you sign a lease.\n3. Rent is far below similar places nearby (2BRs near campus are usually $1,200-$1,500).\n4. Asks for your Social Security number before a showing.\nNext step: Look up the property owner in the county property records and call the Housing Office at (555) 012-3300 before paying anything.","rules":[{"type":"numberedItems","count":4},{"type":"plainText"},{"type":"maxWords","max":110}],"mistakes":[{"title":"A general scam explainer","why":"The AI lists every rental scam sign it knows instead of checking the guide's four.","fix":"Say: \"One line per guide warning sign, in the guide's order.\"","checks":["r0","numberedItems"]},{"title":"Saying everything is present","why":"The AI assumes all signs apply because the rest look bad.","fix":"Add: \"Mark Not present when the email doesn't show it.\"","checks":["r1"]},{"title":"Its own next step","why":"The AI says 'report it to the police' instead of the guide's step.","fix":"Ask: \"End with Next step: from the guide.\"","checks":["r2"]},{"title":"Trusting the AI to count words","why":"AI is bad at counting. Ask for \"under 110 words\" and it often lands well over.","fix":"Ask for less than the limit and cap each line: \"each line under 15 words, under 85 words total.\"","checks":["maxWords"]},{"title":"Letting markdown in","why":"AI adds bold and headings by default, and in your notes they show up as stray symbols.","fix":"Add: \"Plain text only, no bold, no headings.\"","checks":["plainText"]}],"promptHints":[{"label":"Uses the guide","patterns":["guide","warning sign","housing office"]},{"label":"Gives the labels","patterns":["present","not present"]},{"label":"Asks for quotes as proof","patterns":["quote","proof","evidence"]},{"label":"Says exactly how many","patterns":["\\b4\\b.{0,25}(line|sign|item)","exactly (4|four)"]},{"label":"Asks for plain text","patterns":["plain","no bold","no markdown","no formatting","no headings"]}],"hint":"A checklist works best when the AI checks it item by item. Give it the guide's signs as the test, ask for proof, and let 'not present' be an answer.","rubricLabels":["The 4 lines follow the guide's order and each starts with exactly 'Present' or 'Not present'","Signs 1, 2 and 3 are Present with quotes (for example 'can't show it in person', 'wire transfer or gift cards', '$650/month'), and sign 4 is Not present (the email doesn't ask for a Social Security number)","The last line starts 'Next step:' and says to check county property records and call the Housing Office at (555) 012-3300 before paying"]}