Check any internship before you join
Fake internships are common. Some charge a fee and send a certificate with no work behind it. Others take the money and vanish. These checks take ten minutes.
The four checks
A real internship passes all four. Ask about each one before you say yes.
They never ask you for money
A real internship does not charge a registration fee, a training fee, a deposit or a certificate fee. If any payment comes up, stop.
How to checkAsk straight out: is there any fee at any stage? Get the answer in writing.
You speak to a real person before you start
A real company wants to know who you are. Expect a call or a video chat with someone from the team, not just a form and a payment link.
How to checkAsk who your mentor will be and which team you will join. Vague answers are a warning.
Your offer letter names the company
It should carry the registered company name, its address, the name of the person who signed it, your dates, and your stipend if there is one.
How to checkLook the company up on the Ministry of Corporate Affairs site (mca.gov.in) and check that the name and address match. [REVIEW]
Your certificate can be checked online
A certificate is proof of work. If nobody can check it, it proves nothing. A real programme gives each certificate an ID and a page where anyone can enter it.
How to checkAsk for the check page before you join, and try it with a sample ID.
Red flags
One of these does not always mean a scam. Two or more, and you should walk away.
- A fee for registration, training, a kit or the certificate.
- A certificate on offer with no project and no mentor.
- A promise of a job at the end.
- Pressure to pay today, with seats said to be closing.
- Payment to a personal UPI ID or a personal bank account.
- Only a WhatsApp number or a free email address, and no registered company name or address.
- A well known company’s logo, but an email address that does not belong to that company.
- Nobody has spoken to you, yet you are selected.
If you already paid
Act today. The sooner you report it, the better the chance of getting the money back.
- Stop. Do not pay anything more, even to release a refund or a certificate.
- Call 1930, the national cyber crime helpline, or report at cybercrime.gov.in. Keep the payment details and screenshots ready. [REVIEW: confirm helpline details before launch]
- Tell your bank or UPI app about the payment and ask them to block further transactions.
- Save every chat, email, payment screenshot and the offer letter. Do not delete the chat.
- Tell your college placement cell, so other students are warned.
Who to call
- National cyber crime helpline1930
For money lost to online fraud. Reports go to the national portal.
cybercrime.gov.in - National consumer helpline1915
For a service you paid for and did not get.
consumerhelpline.gov.in - Chakshu on Sanchar SaathiReport a number
To report the phone number or message that contacted you.
sancharsaathi.gov.in
[REVIEW: confirm every helpline number and link before launch]
Check us the same way
We pass all four. Here is how to see for yourself.
- No fee to apply. No fee to join. No fee for the certificate.
- Our team calls you before any offer, and your mentor is someone from the team you join.
- Your offer letter names the group company you will work with. Our registered company is in the footer of every page.
- Every certificate has an ID that anyone can check at lsintern.com/verify.
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Most students find out an internship was fake after they paid. Share this page before someone you know does.