We have been made aware of a scam email which a number of providers in our area have received, and unfortunately some have fallen for.
The email purports to be from UKVI and includes a PDF attachment which attempts to collect the providers login details for the online UKVI Sponsor Management system. We have heard from more than one provider who has had their SMS login taken over and their available Certificates have been assigned to desperate workers in return for large payments.
The scam is exploiting the workers but also causes a huge headache for providers who then need to attempt to prove to UKVI that they did not accept the payments themselves and are unable to sponsor new staff or renew existing sponsorships until UKVI have completed their investigation and reset the login details.
We have reported the issue to UKVI but it would be helpful if we can spread awareness amongst providers.