Fake scholarship messages on WhatsApp: how to check before you pay or share

Every few weeks a new forward goes round: a free laptop scheme, a "national" sports scholarship, a message saying your child has been "selected" for a scholarship worth lakhs. In September 2026 alone, PIB Fact Check — the government's own fact-checking unit — flagged a "National Sports Scholarship 2026-27" flyer and a "National Student Laptop Scheme" as fake.

These messages work because parents want the best for their children. Here is how to check any offer in two minutes.

Seven red flags

1. You were "selected" for something you never applied for. No real scholarship selects a child who did not apply or sit an exam.
2. The link is shortened or strange — a bit.ly link, a free website builder, or a domain that only looks official.
3. The contact is a mobile number or a Gmail address. Government schemes use .gov.in or .nic.in addresses; companies use their own domain.
4. They ask for an OTP, UPI PIN, ATM PIN or card details. No scholarship ever needs these. Anyone who asks is a fraud.
5. They ask you to pay a "processing" or "release" fee to receive money you have supposedly already won.
6. They want Aadhaar scans on WhatsApp. Never send Aadhaar, bank or school documents to a chat number.
7. There is a deadline of hours, pressure to forward to ten groups, or official emblems pasted on a poster.

"But some scholarship exams do charge a fee. Is that a scam?"

Not by itself. Many genuine exams — school olympiads, entrance tests, talent searches — charge a registration fee to pay for running them. A fee is a reason to check, not proof of fraud. What separates a genuine exam from a fake one is whether you can verify it:

• Who runs it? A named organisation with a real website and an address.
• Are the rules published before you pay — including how many winners there will be and how they are chosen?
• Do you pay on the organiser's own website, through a payment gateway, with a receipt — never by UPI to a personal number?
• Are the results public, and can anyone verify a winner's certificate?
• Did you apply first? A real exam never tells you that you have won before you have taken it.

Check us the same way

We would rather you checked the ANOQR Scholarship Exam than trusted it. Here is how it answers each question:

• It is run by ANOQR in association with Brets Pvt Ltd (BRETS English Academy, Edapally, Kochi), at anoqr.com/scholarship — only there.
• The rules are published in full, including the arithmetic of how many scholarships each month's fees fund — about one for every 267 registrations.
• The ₹100 fee is paid only on anoqr.com through the payment gateway, with a receipt. Nobody from ANOQR will ask you to pay by UPI to a person.
• Results are published at anoqr.com/scholarship/results, and every certificate carries a code anyone can verify.
• ANOQR will never ask for an OTP, a PIN, or a "release fee" to pay a scholarship. Winners enter bank details themselves, in their own dashboard.

If a message uses our name and breaks any of these rules, it is not from us. Write to us at anoqr.com/scholarship/contact.

Where to check any scholarship

• Government schemes: scholarships.gov.in and your state's official scholarship portal.
• Viral claims: search "PIB Fact Check" with the scheme's name.
• Your school office: schools receive official circulars for genuine schemes.
• Cyber fraud: report it at cybercrime.gov.in or call 1930.

Forward this guide, not the fake message. One share in a parents' group can save a family their savings.