Action Fraud have identified a notable rise in student loan scams, which currently target new and returning university students via email as they prepare for the new academic year.
In a public warning released September 5, Action Fraud identified a peak in attempted identity theft and phishing scams over the last two weeks, which take place via one or a number of emails claiming to be from the Student Loans Company being sent to the victims.
The emails claim that the Loans Company accounts have been suspended due to insufficient student information, and redirect the recipient to a website attempting to harvest personal details.
Student Loans Company has, likewise, confirmed the reported emails to be fake.
In addition to new and returning university students, there have been reports of individuals who have never applied for a student loan also receiving the emails.
Action Fraud has also tweeted out several example photos of what the fraudulent emails might look like.
Here's a look at the fake #StudentLoan email doing the rounds, complete with glaring errors.
Got one? Report it. Don't click any links. pic.twitter.com/X1LcnNaueW
— Action Fraud (@actionfrauduk) September 5, 2017
To be vigilant and protect yourself from the scam, along with other phishing schemes, make sure to:
– Never give out passwords and/or credit card information or bank details to unofficial websites or unconfirmed links.
– Look out for emails that use your email address instead of your name in the greeting.
– See if you can spot bad spelling, grammar mistakes, poor quality banners and graphic design, or translated logos, all of which indicate a spam email.
– Do not trust alleged business emails which are sent from Gmail or Yahoo accounts, and/or consist of lengthy titles or subjects.
– Always keep your spam protection on, and trash any blatantly suspicious emails without opening them.
Hi there. I'm Irina, a student/staff member at University of Stirling, studying English and Journalism.
Its better to do online research and talking to a professional before applying for any loan. And it is clear that the Loan Scams have become common now a days because of the pandemic. And another reason is nobody offers luring benefits without any reason. So its necessary to do background check before taking any loan.