Beware of Zhifen Scholarship Falsification

"I will never ask you any financial information, and I will never ask you any personal information beyond the scope of the scholarship application form. If you receive any email asking you to submit personal or financial information, please do not reply. Yesterday, the reporter saw this notice on "Beware of fraudulent e-mail of Zhifen Scholarship" in the "Highlights" column of the China Embassy and Consulate in Britain. According to the notice, "fraudulent e-mails claiming to come from Chevening Scholarships (or other trust organizations) are almost the same in appearance as those usually sent by these organizations. These emails usually contain links that lead users to fake websites and ask users to provide private information, including credit card numbers, user names or account passwords, in an attempt to commit identity theft or other criminal acts. Recently, some fraudulent emails informed scholarship applicants that they had won the scholarship and asked them to provide further information, which aroused our great concern. If you receive this email, please ignore it or contact the office where you submitted your scholarship application. "

The Chevening Scholarship is the flagship scholarship program launched by the British government. The target of funding is applicants who are studying or studying postgraduate courses in British higher education institutions. Scholarships provided by sponsors to eligible applicants include tuition fees not exceeding 65,438+02,000 pounds, round-trip air tickets to the UK and living expenses of about 8,000 to 9,000 pounds (studying in London) and 7,000 to 8,000 pounds (studying in other parts of the UK).

The reporter learned from the Cultural and Education Section of the British Consulate General in Shanghai that the number of people who receive Zhifen Scholarships in East China is about 30 each year. "In Shanghai, there are still many people who know and apply for this scholarship." Some people in the Shanghai study abroad market told reporters that the emergence of such fraudulent short messages is likely to make some unsuspecting people "win the bid".

Industry insiders reminded

"In the past two years, there have been frauds of stealing personal information and credit card passwords in the name of' foreign scholarships'. Some are in the name of some private schools, and some even pretend to be famous universities or officials, claiming that applicants have won scholarships and want to put money into their accounts. For foreign scholarships, applicants are excited for a while, and it is easy to lose their defensive mentality, and fraudsters can easily achieve the purpose of deception. " An industry insider reminded that applicants should immediately inquire about the awarding schools, institutions or relevant departments of local consulates after receiving the acceptance notice of foreign scholarships.

Dicky Cheung, director of Shangjiao Overseas Studies Office, said, "Most scholarships are awarded after students arrive at school, so the notice of issuance generally does not involve remittance." Therefore, it may be tricky to fill in personal financial information such as credit card account and password, or other private information outside the scope of scholarship application, and applicants need to be cautious.