Examples of fraud and scams affecting students

Many types of frauds and scams trick people out of their money because the criminals are are very believable, especially if they have personal information about you like your name, mobile number and where you are studying.

Types of fraud and how to avoid being a victim

There are many different types of fraud, some are very creative and some are very personal. Remember that these are global fraud and scams, and take place all around the world. They aren’t just happening in the UK, and they aren’t targetting you personally. Criminals will often target international students because they may have more money available due to how they pay for University.

The following fraud and scams affect mainly international students.

Find out more about the fraud or scam, and examples of how a criminal might try and trick you to get your personal details and/or a large amount of your money. 

Tuition fee fraud

Students (and applicants) are often approached on social media (WeChat, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok etc) by criminals pretending to be students or an agent who is offering to pay tuition fees on your behalf, sometimes at a reduced rate. A criminal may have some personal details about you, including your name and where you are studying. Students who have used this service have had their money stolen by the criminals. If someone offers you this service, say no and use the official University payment process.

This is how criminals may try and steal your money

  • They may contact you in Mandarin or English
  • They tell you that if you use this service you will receive a discount and/or a better exchange rate on your tuition fees. 
  • They may tell you this is how most international students pay their fees.
  • They say they will pay the University of Leeds the full amount of tuition fees on your behalf
  • They do this by using a stolen or cloned credit card information to make the initial payment so it looks authentic. 
  • They will send you a copy of a reciept for a payment of your tuition fees.
  • They’ll then ask you to transfer the tuition payment to them, minus the discount they are offering.
  • They later cancel the payment to the University of Leeds, so you will have lost your money and still owe the full amount of money to the University.

How this fraud or scam works

As the criminals are using stolen or cloned credit card information, the payment(s) the criminals make to the University can at first seem genuine. It may take a long time before the genuine cardholder realises their card has been used without their permission. The money can be claimed back (usually between 2 and 12 weeks later). 

When a payment is confirmed as being fraudulent and claimed back from the University we will ask you to make a further payment to cover this, so you may have to pay twice (once to the criminals and once to the University).

To avoid losing your money:

What to do if you're worried about a phone call, social media message or email, or if you're a victim of fraud

Accommodation and rent payment fraud

Students are often approached on social media (WeChat, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok etc) by criminals pretending to be students or an agent who can help offering a fraudulent rent payment service. A criminal may have some personal details about you, including your name and where you are studying. Students who have used this service have had their money stolen by the criminals. If someone offers you this service, say no. 

What to look out for

  • They may contact you in Mandarin or English.
  • They may say they are from your accommodation provider.
  • They tell you that if you use the service, you will receive a discount and/or a better exchange rate on your rent. 
  • They ask you to transfer the rental payment to them, minus the discount. 
  • They say they will pay the full amount of rent on your behalf. 
  • They pay the full rent and provide you with a receipt. 
  • They later cancel the payment, and you find out that your rent has not been paid and you have lost your money.

Another example is when you are contacted on social media by somone pretending to be a landlord,a current or former student.

  • They offer what looks like great accommodation and ask you to pay the deposit and rent in advance.
  • When you go to view or move in, you will find it belongs to someone else and you can’t move in.
  • You’ll lose your money and have nowhere to live.

FInd out more about housing contract scams.

Don’t trust anyone asking you to pay money in advance, especially if you haven’t seen your accommodation or signed a contract. 

Contact details for accommodation queries 

What to do if you're worried about a phone call, social media message or email, or if you're a victim of fraud

Visa scams

Criminals contact students by phone, email, text or social media and say there’s a problem with their bank account, their visa (for international students) or tell them they are suspected of a crime. They may pretend to work for the Home Office UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI), an embassy, the police, or another official authority. They may have some personal information about you, including your name and where you are studying

If someone contacts you this way, end the conversation immediately. None of these organisations will contact you and ask for personal details or money.

What to look out for

Criminals can make this seem very genuine and it can be quite scary for you. This is how they want you to feel so you will give them what they want. They may:

  • appear to be contacting you from a genuine Home Office or official authority telephone number/email address. 
  • impersonate University staff.
  • already have some personal information about you.
  • say you have done something wrong or there is a problem.
  • say that your family is at risk or you may go to jail if you don’t do what they say.
  • tell you not to tell anyone and that they are watching you.
  • say a payment is needed urgently (in order to try to pressure you into paying).
  • ask you to confirm or provide personal information and bank details.

What to remember

  • No official organisation will ever contact you in this way.
  • They will never demand an urgent payment.
  • They will not threaten you or your family with arrest.
  • End the call/contact and get advice from the university. 

What to do if you're worried about a phone call, social media message or email, or if you're a victim of fraud

More information about visa frauds and scams

These frauds and scams can affect all students.

Bank fraud

This could involve you receiving a call claiming to be from your bank saying you have been the victim of fraud and need to move your money to a new account with their help. Remember:

  • Your bank will never call you offering to set up a new account or suggest you move you money.
  • Your bank website has information on fraud and scams and how they might contact you to warn you of anything suspicious. Check this information so you know how to recognise bank fraud.

If you get a call from what seems to be your bank, hang up and phone your bank from a different phone to check if there is a problem. Don’t call from the same device that the call was made on as this is part of the scam to make you think you are phoning the bank independently. 

Money mules

This is a type of money laundering which is a criminal offence. If you become involved and get caught, the consequences could be very serious. You could:

  • Have your bank account frozen.
  • Lose your place at university.
  • Face a prison sentence of up to 14 years if you’re found guilty in a court.

This type of scam happens when you allow someone to put money into your bank account and then transfer the money into someone else's account. You might also be asked to withdraw the money in cash. The scammers will offer you goods/products or money ( a commission) as a reward for letting them use your account. 

Criminals encouraging people to get involved as money mules are not always obvious so be aware of:

  • Job offers that ask for bank details in advance without any interviews or applications. Stay with recognised job sites to avoid the risks.
  • People or organisations offering money that seem too good to be true – don’t trust anyone offering easy money.
  • Anyone (even people you know) who contacts you on social media, in a group chat or through an online request asking for your bank details so they can transfer money into your account. 
  • People saying they are having difficulty opening a bank account or have cash they want your help to keep safe by putting it in your account for a short while. Even if they offer money for your help, ignore them.

Watch a two minute video about how to avoid being a money mule.

Watch the true story of a student who was convicted of being a money mule.

Parcel delivery scams

Parcel delivery scams are messages that pretend to come from delivery companies. The message may say that your package is delayed or needs a small payment to be delivered. These messages can be difficult to tell apart from a real text or email. The goal of the scam could be to trick you into entering your card details into a fraudulent website, or the scam may encourage you to install an app or click a link that contains spyware. This is software used to steal personal and banking details.

How this scam works

You may receive a message claiming that: 

  • A small fee has to be paid to get your package. It may try to scare you by stating your package will be sent back or to a depot if you don’t pay. 
  • A package you’ve sent will be returned, as the address was incorrect. You’ll be asked to enter your personal and payment details. 
  • A company tried to deliver a package, but you were out. Often this scam will include a link to schedule re-delivery.
  • You may be contacted after the initial fraud has taken place to encourage you to move money into a scammers account for ‘safety’.  

What to look out for

  • A scam text message will often arrive as a mobile number, rather than from an official source. 
  • They will often try to get you to act quickly, without taking a second to think. If a message is trying to get you to give them your details quickly, this is suspicious. 
  • Delivery scams are often vague and won’t be specific about where the parcel is coming from, or what’s inside. 
  • A common way to spot a scam is through spelling errors. You may also see exclamation marks or strange capitalisation on fraudulent messages.
  • If your message is from Royal Mail and it’s asking you to pay a fee, you can be sure it’s a scam. Royal Mail will never ask you to pay fees in this way. 

If you receive a message, don’t respond or click on any links, and get in touch for help and support. 

Social media

The type of fraud and scam will change regularly but the general way they operate stays the same.  Criminals are very good at impersonating real organisations to get your trust.  They may offer free tickets, free supermarket vouchers, free merchandise or valuable items.  You will be asked to click on a link and then provide personal details e.g. name, password and/or bank information.  This will then be used to access your accounts and the information is sometimes sold on to third parties and can involve identity theft.  If something looks too good to be true - then it is.  Never click on a link and always be cautious of anyone asking you for personal information of any kind.  

Being told you have to pay a fine to avoid being arrested

  • This is when someone contacts you directly either by phone or email.
  • They may say they are from the police, Home Office or Immigration, or other offical authority.
  • They say that you have either commited a crime that you haven’t, or that your bank activity is suspicious.
  •  They may say that you will be arrested unless you pay a fine or money to avoid this happening.
  • They will usually tell you that you it is an offense to tell anyone else, and they are watching you.

This can seem very frightening and like a real threat. This isn’t a real event, as no organisation will contact you like this. This is a scam to scare you to pay money. 

If you receive a call, don’t respond to what the caller is saying, please put the phone down and get in touch for help and support. 

Fake kidnapping

This is when you are contacted by someone pretending to be from the Embassy or Police, who threatens to arrest you because of accusations of criminal behaviour..Students are told they need to pay money to avoid being arrested. When they are unable to pay the amount demanded, the callers asks them to take a video of them faking their own kidnapping and send it to their family. The students are then asked to send the video to their family so that they pay money to secure their release.

Understandably this is very frightening and can seem a very real threat. This is a scam and does not come from the Embassy or the Police. This is one of a number of scams pretending that something is wrong, e.g. you have commited a crime, or you are going to be arrested for something you haven’t done.

If you receive a call, don’t respond to what the caller is saying, please put the phone down and get in touch for help and support. 

Action Fraud is a trusted website to find out the latest news, examples and help about fraud and scams.

Learn more about how to protect yourself from fraud, scams and phishing emails. 

Find out what to do if you’ve received something and don’t know if it’s fraud or a scam.

Find out what to do if you’re a victim of fraud or a scam.