Case in point
Balbir Singh, a resident of Mohali, received an email in May 2008 from drawnnoticetiws@dodo.com.au informing him that he had won 1 million pounds in online promotion awards held in the UK. The sender, later identified as Bright, asked Singh for his personal details and to deposit some money in an account to claim the award. Through subsequent emails, Singh was asked to deposit Rs 1.81 lakh, which Singh did. Eventually, Singh complained to the Chandigarh Police and a trap was set up to nab the trickster. Singh managed to lure Bright to India by offering to pay for a return journey from London to collect more money. Bright came to Chandigarh and was arrested and lodged in Burail jail.

Safeguards
* Genuine UK companies are registered and a list of them can be found on www.companieshouse.gov.uk
* UK company addresses can be checked on www.upmystreet.com.uk
* Genuine UK companies would not give a mobile telephone number for contact details
* Most of the genuine UK companies would not use a 'hotmail' or 'yahoo' email account.The British Government does not send unsolicited mails with job offers, either directly or through agents. Government vacancies are advertised on official websites in UK on www.careers-civilservice.gov.uk or on the British High Commission website www.ukindia.com in India
* Think about the "recruitment procedure". Very few genuine UK companies would offer a job by email. Genuine companies have a rigorous selection procedure, which would normally involve a face-to-face interview
* Fraudulent email-ids such as ukvisas@hotmail.co.uk are being used to lure people. However, according to the UK High Commission, a genuine email from an official of the High Commission will always be from the official service provider -- @fco.gov.uk.
* How were you contacted by the UK firm? If you happened to meet an employee in an internet chat-room, who subsequently offered you employment, then it is very likely to be fraudulent.