The UK Border Agency are warning people to be aware of a number of scam e-mails and websites purporting to be sent and operated by UKBA; and of calls made by people posing as UKBA staff.
The scams that the UKBA are aware of are:
• Foreign criminals advertising fake UK jobs on the internet. Individuals that apply are told they have a job and are directed to a link to pay for visa and work permit fees. These websites are not operated by UKBA, and you should not click on any of the links or pay any money.
• Students at a number of UK universities have received calls from someone who claims they work for the UKBA, giving a false name and a return phone number. These calls are not from the UKBA, but the caller may appear to be genuine and convincing. The caller may say that there is a serious problem with your immigration status, and that you need to send a payment as soon as possible to prevent further action including deportation.
• A request for payment of a deposit as proof that you have sufficient funds to support your arrival in the UK until your first salary is received.
How to protect yourself:
• Do not give out any personal information, nor confirm that any personal information they have is correct.
• Do not make any payment.
• Do report the matter online to us via our online tool or by calling 0300 123 2040.
You should always access the official UKBA website by typing: www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk into your browser.
Please note that official UK Government websites will have the suffix “.gov.uk”.
Emailing the UKBA
When e-mailing the UKBA, you should also ensure that the e-mail address is genuine: name.surname@ukba.gsi.gov.uk or name.surname@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk.
Sometimes these exact addresses will appear on the screen, but when you click on the address, a different e-mail address will be selected, so you should be alert to this. UK Government bodies will never use free e-mail accounts such as hotmail, yahoomail, or gmail to contact you.
Visit the UKBA website for more information.
Please note: Action Fraud is not responsible for the content on external websites.
To report a fraud, call Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or use our online fraud reporting tool.
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