The short answer
Scammers target students because they are moving money, signing contracts and dealing with unfamiliar systems. The most common scams involve fake offers, visa "guarantees", fake accommodation, impersonation of officials and requests to pay in unusual ways. If something is urgent, secret or too good to be true, pause and verify it through an official source.
Common scams
- Fake offer letters or universities. An offer that arrives without you applying, or a "university" with no verifiable record.
- Visa guarantees. No agent or adviser can guarantee a visa. Only the government decides.
- Fake accommodation listings. Cheap places, a landlord abroad and a request to pay before you can view it.
- Impersonation calls and messages. Someone claims to be from an immigration office, embassy or police and says you owe money or your visa is in trouble.
- Fake scholarships. You are asked to pay a fee to receive a scholarship.
- Job offers. Easy money for a student job that involves moving money or receiving parcels.
- Money mules. Being asked to let someone use your bank account.
Red flags
- Pressure to act quickly or to keep it secret
- Requests to pay by transfer to a personal account, gift cards or crypto
- Spelling mistakes and unusual email domains
- Contact only through messaging apps
- Refusal to give a verifiable address, licence or registration number
How to verify
- A university: check the official website, find its contact details yourself and call the admissions office.
- A UK sponsor: the Home Office publishes a register of licensed student sponsors.
- An Australian course and provider: check CRICOS.
- A Canadian school: check the list of Designated Learning Institutions.
- A German university: check DAAD's database and the university's own site.
- An accommodation listing: ask for a video tour, check the address independently and ask your university's accommodation team.
- A visa fee or request: go to the official government site yourself and never use links from messages.
Checklist
- To do: Verify every offer through the university's official site
- To do: Pay fees only to accounts confirmed on official pages
- To do: Never share OTPs, PINs or passwords
- To do: Ask someone you trust before you send money
- To do: Keep screenshots and receipts of everything
- To do: Tell your university if you suspect a scam
If you have been scammed
- Contact your bank immediately to try to stop the payment.
- Report it. In India, you can report cyber financial fraud on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal or call the national cyber crime helpline 1930. Also report it in your destination country to the relevant fraud agency.
- Tell your university and, if it involves your visa, the relevant authority.
- Keep evidence. Do not delete messages.
Verify before you act
Contacts and reporting channels change. Use the official sites: National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal.