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International students in the United Kingdom have become victims of swindlers who pretend to be government officials and threaten students with deportation.
In August, the University of Manchester Students’ Union released a statement about the scam. The union confirmed that some international students were successfully duped as they paid fines in fear of conflict with UK authorities.
The swindlers targeted students from countries outside the European Union, such as India and China.
Swindlers called international students on the phone and threatened them with immediate deportation and long-term immigration bans due to failure to accomplish the correct paperwork. Students were then asked to pay up to £6,500 as fine for their supposed error.
To make the calls realistic, swindlers used a program that shows the contact numbers of the police and the UK Home Office department. Aside from intimidating students, swindlers also used tactics like telling students that ending the call would give the impression of involvement in a criminal activity.
In response to the fraud, the Home Office department said that it would never contact anyone over the phone to ask for fines. The department also urged students to contact the police if they believe that they were scammed.
A similar scam troubled Canada in April. International students received calls from swindlers who introduced themselves as administrative officers from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada.
The Government of Canada announced on its website that international students were asked to transfer money and send gift cards to avoid deportation or arrest. Although local numbers were shown on the students’ screens, government officials believe that the calls came from outside Canada.