Education feature: Study Abroad Scams: Why it is crucial to verify before you fly

So the real reason really why it happens is that you have people who dream really big, and you also, unfortunately, you have desperate people and on the other side you have people that are able to meet a quick buck.

It is a growing trend if to look critic trade, and that is the reason really why you would find these large amounts of scams, and specifically scams within the education sector, as you have already said, coming in different forms, mostly un solicited, but still mostly in many cases, which is too good to be true. So the simple reason why, okay, really is that it's lucrative and there's people that fall victim to these and people that are opportunistic, so we have a very fertile ground for this.

in the form of fake universities, fake programs. You also get visa and immigration scams, which are growing in popularity as you know, destinations that are sought after affecting to to to to stop the inflow of people that are visiting as working with the United States and other places. You also have specialized scams like housing scams where you are offered an opportunity to go stay at a specific

place while you study abroad. The scholarships and financial aid fraud, and also other really really frightening ones like that you are kidnapping as well as money neal skins. So that's basically what it means, and some of the different forms that these types of Sidia broad scams can take.

And the third part would be opportunities for as you had said, for the university to pay for your feet that you would't have to. So these are sort of the three high level areas where you would find high level of activity in scamming and fraud.

might not happen. But the majority of cases are people that are being swindles off their finances and they're hired and.

find that it happens. Really an impersonation of university if not immigration officials that would approach potential victims with offers for them to get visas or to study within specific universities, usually a top notch, very popular ones both in Europe as well as in the United States. Other ways that this can happen with the fake scholarships offers again being offered an opportunity to have your study funded overseas, others called too good to be true, admission processes promises, and

those would usually be coming from your prestigious universities. And how you would typically notice this is that the requirement for entry would be very minimal, so again to God to be true. And then there other ways that you would applic this up refutulant accommodation listenings where scammers would pose state rental as for students are housing abroad and collecting deposits you know for properties that donate and exist.

And thus the and increasing way that you're seeing, which is again increasingness of sophistication, will be social engineering where your details are taken off social media platforms and then the process would then use this information to convene to into paying for an opportunity that in most cases, I guess in all cases does not exist. So these are just some of the tactics that these scammers would be using to lure and suspecting victimising.

the world. It sounds like an interesting and amazing opportunity and you are fearing that it may be too good to be true.

scammers are usually running the scams from? Are these's generally locals or is it people abroad that are you know, abusing the system and maybe they've got contacts abroad, They've got a number abroad, and they've got something that looks really real, and that's why they can do people into some sort of a you know, proving legitimacy.

or currency that you know, international organizations are mentioning. But unless if you are really really well trained and sophisticated investigators and specialize this vibra security, most of us will probably never know where these cammas are coming from. And that's why it is so difficult then when you fall victim to try and get your money back, if you don't have certain systems in place that may allow you to be able to get your money back. So it

is typically what we have seen. It is cross border activity and incredibly difficult to determine exactly where these gammras will come from. So that's the first part. The second part is that even if law enforcement is able to close, you know, these mushrooming networks as they come up, online activity is very easy to then replicate elsewhere and then try and get loopholes. So it is incredibly difficult number one to completely avoid it, and number two to determine

where the people are placed. So that's the challenge really that you have on the table.

So I went onto this online scamming. Immediately, I thought, no, man, I've studied at some top universities, but these people don't look like they're the type of people that would agree to be in the same place at the same time and only took for me in my case. And I'll

go to other ways that you can tell. It's just to do a Google search and take the name of the program and the name of the institution that was sailing to run that program in that could commerce and do a simple Google search in quotation marks, and my goodness, that is where I saw comments upon comments of people complaining about how they would do them. These are executives that would typically be wanting to do such a program, not even young people. But other ways that you can tell.

Besides it's being too good to be true. I would say trust your instincts. Verifigh, I mean go through the official channel. So so the first I would say, do a Google fetch and look for reviews because now increasingly way out we've got many people that do reviews on products and check to see if such an organization exists.

Number two, do your research. I mean it's a Africa, We've got the Department of Higher Education and Training where you can go to check if local organizations are indeed registered, but you can also get information as to how to check other departments in your country of where you think the place is and try to see if this institution is legitimate. And then number three, go and do don't click on links where you get an email that's got a link and it's inviting you, do not click on

any links. Rather look at key information, the name of the institution, even the name of the person that has sent you this email, and go and do a Google search and do research before you click on anything. Another way that we found to be incredibly supportive and of high confidence is just to go to your higher education institution if you're looking at post graduate studies or if you are at high school. If you can approach your career guidance and ask them if they might be able

to help you with doing a sage. But if you're in higher education, I would suggest that you would approach your international or internationalization office, which are at most universitus you would have such an office, and they too would be able to help determine an opportunity might be a

scam or not. But most portunately, if there is urgency where the person is asking you to pay is at front or they are using agent pactics to say something along the lines of do this within the next twenty four hours out the while you would lose your place, be very careful of those. Usually universities do not operate like that. And then secondly, if they these requests are

also linked to threats. So maybe if you are an international student in South Africa and you are being threatened with your immigrating, with your with your status you revoked, then those things also are things that you should look out for. So if it's too good to be true, if they are threads and they're scared, and if there are promises that are or threats, that you might lose your position if you don't as quickly, I would say, rather stop, check and verify before you proceed.

again it's incredibly sophisticated. Rather be say some sort you don't click on links, verify, check, double check, and if it's too good to be through your scared, your under pressure, rather stock and check yourself before your check. I carn't get checked by illegal people. So that's basically you know some of the ways that you can save guards.

what the actual link is. But say you don't know that horror one can to do this. When you click on it, you think you're clicking on a specific email address or you're going to a specific website, whereas in the background it's taking you to a completely different website. And let's be honest, after you're clicking on a link, how many of us actually go to the top of the blog? But to speak, no one, what we clicked on is actually where we've gone, So do not click

on links. It also opens you up to activity and things that might download on your machine and keep writing in the background, So it's very dangerous.

You know, on my experience, I follow a couple of these pages on Facebook and I follow them also on LinkedIn, and you know, just so that I can get an alert from time to time if there's an interesting program or something to do. And I've only realized recently that a number of the ones that are on Facebook that I have been following that seem to be on a poster or seem a little dodgy. Something in me said

open the comments. And when I opened the comments, people in there were saying, this is dodgy, this is not true, this is fake. And I'm realizing that I would not have known if I didn't open the comments. To me, the role of social media, I mean, is that where.

these scams to mushroom and to take different forms. And because you are usually relaxed when you go on social media. You don't go on TikTok because you are you are you know, you've got your guid up. I mean, that's where you go to connect with people both locally and abroad, and of course gammers noted, so they want you when you are at your most vulnerable. So for me, unfortunately,

that is where I was almost scammed into. It was one hundred and twenty five thousand brand program that that's the amount of money that was almost fistent from me. So incredibly, incredibly a good place for these scammers to be operating. So much as we like social media. Unfortunately, if you're going to be transacting, you need to be a bit more careful and put your guid up instead of being relaxed as you usually are when we are on social media.

is very quick. You can have a website up and running in a matter of humanity. It's not ours because it is that easy, so they go as far as that, and that was the case with my case that I mentioned that it was a faith university that was created that minute. The real university and everything there look like the original website. But when you look at small things like, for example, if you've got Oxford University, then this one is that Oxford, you do ac that air or Oxford

your ac dot org. So small things like that that you typically wouldn't be looking at, but it's very easy. They it's an end to end to process. They create the product that creates the university, and then obviously they create the payment mechanisms. We also are very good with digital marketing. So again, if you click on it one time in a social media pose, it will keep feeding

you this ad. So then you get you get duped into thinking that if I've been seeing this air for a year, it would mean that it is a legitulate university because it's been around for so long. Meanwhile, that get the violet. It's just a face university.

academia for a long time. Where we've seen cases in you know, the last couple of years, is not even a scam, but it would be people selling university spaces, although locally it's not really an area where we've seen a lot of activity, So not really a scam because you understand that you're buying a university space. But again they haven't really grown locally as we had thought that they might grow. But what we have seen is said

it's criminal, it's a criminal network. It is scammers that are professional people that have been scamming people in various ways. And usually you would find that, you know, a single scammer would be running five or ten different types of scams. Say it might be a university scam there, it might be a credital scam or whatever scam. So it's criminals. It's very rare. In my case, I have never found

such activity within a legitimate university. You it's just brazen criminals that have found a way to take an opportunity from people that are dreaming big and that are desperate for opportunity. It's a criminal organization. There's no other way to put it.

under the jewress of somebody else. We have had cases of scammer farms, I think that's what they are called, where you have people that have been brought into a very large and unhygienic facility and they're working under duress, being forced to scan people and make money like that. So, because in most cases these are organized crimes in many different areas across the other clothes, it is incredibly difficult

to track them. Number one, if you do track them, it's most likely that they're going to be outside of your body. And if that is the case, that you're going to have to be dealing with international law, which is again very difficult to navigate as you might be away.

So these three elements are the ones that really are interplaying with each other to ensure that it remains a difficult crime to crack down on, and that's why it is growing so much and it is lucrative and even if you crack on it for you to obtain successful prosecution.

to pay for those or you'll lose the post. And there is a desperation I think from many people who are looking to study or further they studies, especially with South Africa. Some people finding that they're not finding positions or placements for the programs that they want to pursue. And here's a university, it looks appealing, it looks prestigious, it's abroad.

working locally or abroad. So programs around computter to engineering, programs around general engineering, because we all know that a lot of people want to do engineering. But even if you make the cart, you meet the Libiman requirements to see it in South Africa, you are not guaranteed a position because the spaces are so few, and that is also the case when you go abroad. It's really competitive

in those programs. The other one is your MBA, the same as an informacy right, because typically we all know that an NBA is not a cheap degree, so there you would be attracting people that are likely to have the funds that you're looking for. You might make it a little bit cheaper, but an NBA remains incredibly popular, but also one that I would attract people that are likely to have the funds to look at to look at it. And also your fellowships to executive leadership programs.

There are these fellowships that would involve you traveling to another country other executives, very very attractive. So those fellowships and executs programs are also some that we have seen to be incredibly attractive for scammers to use to newer people. So in my experience, these are the three, but obviously these are not the only ones, because if you're consistent searching for a specific program, scam I can pick up that activity if you click on their ad and they

can continue feely me what you want to see. So these three are obviously the most popular, but not necessarily the only ones, so there are many more out there.

know and what they should look out for. I'm sure there's those little things that pop out on an AD on social media, on an AD on Google that the lights should start going off when they see that.

aerial fonts. But fun, it's fun. There would be an inconsistency because usually these email packages that you're using are illegitulate, so they are they are not primed to look professional. So the first would be the selling errors, and then the second would be the inconsistent use of phones and the style of the lettering. So those would be they you know, your first step. But let's say that that you're dealing with incredibly smart stammering. Most of them are,

and they have checked those boxes. The second red flag would be if it's just too good to be true.

In some ways that you can figure this out. Number one is that if you are approached it's an unsolicited email, that would be the first the first red fleg and then too good to be true insofar as you know if you're looking, like for me, if I was looking at this executive development program of working executive education for a long time, and you do know that there are specific types of speakers that are likely unlikely to be

available at the same time. You know, for example, what are they chance that the treatment paper would be available on the same life, there be a bay became to me as part of this program. Now I know I am an intelligent person and I'm very very charming, but it's not gonna happen. Right when I was looking at this to be scammer for me, I just thought, it's not possible. There's used two people as already, so they would just take the time to be with me on

a single evening. So again those would be your your your second words, like you know they are too good to be true. The third one would be if you are you've already interacted with this person, they think that you're interested, and they start asking for money to process your application or things like that. But usually this request wouldn't be you know, please pay this application for me, because it is you think there are no I'm not interested.

They will say pay this application fee, but within the next three days or else you will we will no longer go to the application. So again a request for money that is accompanied by urgency, if not not threats, And the thought would be you're not really being able

to verify this particular university. You know, you're searching online, you don't find them, and you cannot find anything that is being said about this particular university that would be your your your your your your fourth I'm not sure

I am now your fourth flat. And then lastly again threads and uh you know, being threatened that if you don't pay this, who are going to to shut down your laptop or you know clone you know, or have your immigration stats revoked, things like that, So you would give them information and then they would use that information

against you. Uh so so so those types of red flegs, but again eficancy, they're ranging from really start or like incorrect usage of forms to really really I did, and and psychologically disturbing, like being threatened with stats that you may have, you know, being in the country for social period of time. So the red flags very in their intensity and in their you know ability for you to be able to pick them up easily.

incredibly popular. Social media platforms in particular, I won't mentioned names, but you know one big ber Motor's got other platforms underneath it that that have you know, some of the biggest audiences on social media platforms. So social media is your first area. The second w be email because we also, unfortunately live in an era of information liks. Your personal emails usually that you use to register for subscriptions, you know,

for streaming and all of that. If they get linked, then that email addresses like to go into lend in the hands of a scammer. So beyond the dogadasaurs saying do not check on links in emails, So that's where they would usually you know, approach you on emails. And then the third place really that you would get scammers is by you know, text, by by also by telephone.

Usually these telephones would be at peculiar times. Their favorite time is going a Friday evenly because usually your currently stively the glass of wine, your guide is fund so they're able then to siffent to do dub you into

thinking that you're dealing with the legitimate person. But to answer your question, any place where there is a large number of people is usually a place where you're likely to find these scammers because the more people they have, they're more likely they are to make pigbacks because there's a larger audience.

The incredibly brainson, but be are right. In most cases it will be without much contact. It will be e you know, just a discent communication via email. After that, I think the most popular would be text, you know, with the likes of WhatsApp or I'm assage to that type. If they were able to get your numbers, be it through a social media form, a website form, or through an information bik. And then the third part would be

when they call you. Usually, if they call you, it's not really unsolicit that you would have given up your number somewhere and they would be contacting you, linking you to that transaction that you would have done on the website by submitting your details to be contacted. And then you would again think that it's Algyimate call.

specializes in the investigation and presention of fraud. They also then would typically list all types of emerging types of scamming and fraud activity on their website, but that is the first place where you would need to go, not only for them to try and investigate, but also to serve as a platform where they can warm one other about emerging scams. You can also go to the South

African Collite service to open a case. Again, if your identity gets so then unaware or unbeknown to you, and you opened a case, then it is easier for you to make claims to insurance if any of your information is used to open, you know, illegitimate credit accounts and

so forth. But they also would give you clips as to where else can you go, like your credit duron to make sure that you put in AVA lets so that if anybody tries to open accounts in your name then they would be able to stop such an activity. The other plans if you have paid, which unpportunity can be the case for some people, you can contact your locale bank. I'm not sure if all the banks offer this,

but it's always worth a try. If it's taked with a credit card or with your card and you're very quick to realize that this was a camp, this was a scam there are certain mechanisms that are in place that can allow certain banks to be able to revel

those transactions, but obviously this is not guarantee. Depending on the type of mechanism that was used, it might not be possible for you to get your money back, but it is worth calling your bank so that at least they and stop the card and then not have those details the valid for the scammers to make use of

your card in other transactions. And then lastly, if you've got any disputes, really you can contact the National Consumer Commission who can also asks to you if you have blocked the disclude and you feel that you know the information that you're getting is not satisfactory. So those are the organization South African Forward Prevention Service, the South African Police Service, your local bank if you have already made the payment. And finally you can also speak the National Consumer Commission.

So I'm always voting for reporting. It might not stop them from doing it to another person, but it might stop them from doing it to another person in using the same technics that they tried with you. But it's an evolving trend. It's never going to stop. Where human behavior is and where human behavior evolved, you will find an evolution of these scammers. But reporting it and being stops another person from being scanned the same way as you,

And who knows it might be me. They're be stopping you just simply by reporting, I might be stopping the scammers from also scamming you in the same way. There's a tribe with me, So I highly recommend reporting.

rather re said an embassy. So if you're looking for to pursue your studies, identify the university, the names of the university is where you want to study, and I find out where those universities are located in each country, and then go and approach an embassy so that they can give you advice as to the best way for a person in your country to have access to these thing for opportunities, and embassies would have you know things like what are the possibilities that you can get in

when can you apply, who are the right people that are recruiters that can help you with your application. So usually they will give you a complete set of information step by step as how you can access those those opportunities. So please suit with your embassies. The second part is that again i've mentioned fit with your school so that they can help you with research or speak with your

university's international office if you're interested in post graduate studies. Again, even if you have graduated as an alumni, your university or your college would have an alumni office that would also be able to help and guide you along the right opportunities internationally that could be pursued. And then said and lastly, just these feature means you know, if you you are too lazy to go to an embassy, just look for simple things. If it is too good to

be true, it probably is. So those would be the three tricks that I would be due to to listeners. Visit and embassy. This is your university if you're a post graduate or your school if you're looking at undergrad graduate studies, and if it's too good to be true, it probably is. And also you can speak with the

Department of Informational Relations and Cooperation. They too, would have access to such information, as well as the Department of Basic Education and the Department of Higher Education and Training, and lastly the South African Qualifications Authority through the Council on Higher Education. So there are many sources that you can look at. You just have to make sure that you place yourself, don't be forced into doing anything, don't

fall under the pressure of losing out. Just take your time and make sure that you are pursuing the right information that you got from legitimate sources like embassy government departs as well as your university alumni office or your school.