We have been notified of a fraud operation that is targeting international students in the UK. Typically an “agent”, perhaps claiming to represent an organisation with formal links to the student’s institution, approaches a student by telephone and offers a discount on their next tuition fee payment.
After the “agent” has paid the fees in full to the institution, the student pays the “agent” the agreed discounted amount, but the payment to the institution is later recalled because it was made using a stolen credit card. The student has a fee debt, and they have lost the money they paid to the fraudulent “agent”.
The Action Fraud website offers advice on protecting yourself from fraud, and support and advice for victims of fraud. As they advise in their guide Protect yourself from fraud, “Be extremely wary of post, phone calls or emails offering you business deals out of the blue. If an offer seems too good to be true, it probably is. Always question it.”