Educational grant' phishing mail scam hits students

A prominent UK-based financial site has been alerting students about a new ‘educational grant’ phishing mail scam, which lures students into revealing sensitive bank details.

According to BBC, financial website Money Saving Expert said it is aware of the phishing email scam that has been targeting students at renowned universities. For instance, one student from Queen Mary University London  (QMUL) was tricked into revealing bank details and losing £300.

According to the victim's mother, her daughter had received the malicious mail last week and it looked as if it came from the university’s finance department along with the logo. It invited the student to claim a government scholarship.

As she processed to comply with further instructions, she was asked to fill an online form, which required her personal and banking details.

Subsequently, she was redirected to a bank verification page after which she became suspicious. However, the money had already been taken from her bank account by the fraudsters.

In its defence, QMUL said the scam did not originate from its own systems and hadn’t affected many students.

The University of Glasgow said it had knowledge about the scam and advised its students to ignore such mails. The university also said it never asks students to disclose banking details in such a manner.

In a mail sent out to all students, the university alerted students about the educational grant email scam.

It said: "This is an email message that appears as if it has come from the University of Glasgow's finance department. It has not.”

According to the Student Loans Company, Phising mails are usually sent in batches, especially around main payment dates in September, January, and April.

Students have been advised to be vigilant while going through such mails and avoid clicking on unknown links.