Website in viral WhatsApp message promising students laptops, exposed as phishing scam

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Olaide Abioye

Claim: A viral WhatsApp message claims that more than 960,000 students will receive free laptops in 2025 under a “Students Laptop Scheme.”

Verdict: False. DUBAWA’s digital investigation shows that the message is linked to a phishing scam designed to fleece unsuspecting users.

Full Text

In March 2024, the Federal Government of Nigeria launched a nationwide initiative to strengthen technical and vocational education in public schools. 

Following this announcement, Abiola Arogundade, an aide to the president on technical, vocational, and entrepreneurial education, donated 50 laptops to students of Government Science and Technical College, Garki, Abuja, and Government Secondary School, also located in the Federal Capital Territory, in July 2024 and  September 2024, respectively. 

During one of the donation events, Arogundade announced that the government plans to distribute five million laptops each year as part of a comprehensive digital empowerment initiative.

However, a WhatsApp message recently claims that over 960,000 students will receive free laptops in 2025 under a “Students Laptop Scheme.” 

The message directs users to an archived website, promising immediate access to a free laptop after completing a short form. This raises concerns about the message’s authenticity and the risk of misinformation.

Because of the topic’s significance and to protect the unsuspecting public from falling victim to dubious links and potential data theft, DUBAWA took steps to verify the claim’s authenticity.

Verification

A verification analysis of the website by DUBAWA revealed several red flags. 

TechRadar, a tech news and review site, reports that domain extensions like ‘.shop’ and ‘.xyz’ are increasingly popular among cybercriminals. The website in the viral message uses a ‘.xyz’ domain, raising doubts about its legitimacy.

Additionally, the website’s design further raises concerns. It features low-quality graphics, lacks official branding or verification badges, and provides vague eligibility criteria, including a questionable age range of “10–50 years,” for registration. 

These elements suggest the site was quickly and poorly assembled, lacking the professionalism expected of legitimate scholarship platforms.

Furthermore, the site does not offer a privacy policy, terms of service, or contact details. These are standard features for any genuine organisation, especially one that requests personal data. The absence of these indicates a disregard for transparency and user protection.

Screenshot of the data entry form page

After DUBAWA filled in random information and clicked next, the site immediately displayed an approval message of acceptance to receive a student laptop. 

This is a common scam tactic designed to build false trust and create a sense of urgency, pushing users to engage further.

The site also instructs users to share the page with “15 friends or five groups on WhatsApp,” a classic method used in viral scams to spread the fraud rapidly. 

Although the site promises an SMS confirmation after validation, it does not allow users to enter their phone number or email to receive such a message.

Screenshot showing the approval and success message after inputting random details

DUBAWA checks using VirusTotal.com, a tool for cybersecurity, threat analysis, and verifying file or website safety, showed that eight out of the security vendors flagged the URL as malicious, suggesting that the site may be involved in phishing, scams, or distributing harmful advertising scripts.

Screenshot showing the URL’s analysis result on VirusTotal.com

Finally, after registration, DUBAWA was redirected to a dubious search engine linked with browser hijackers and adware instead of receiving legitimate confirmation or information about the laptop program. 

This redirection confirms that the website aims to generate advertising revenue or distribute malware rather than offer genuine support. 

Furthermore, the website lacks affiliation with recognised Nigerian government, educational, or charitable institutions. 

In Nigeria, official government websites like this are designated by the “.gov.ng” domain extension, which is exclusively reserved for federal, state, and local government ministries, departments, and agencies. 

These websites adhere to strict registration protocols and content standards. They typically feature structured layouts, official branding, and verified information or services. 

The absence of this official domain and any institutional linkage significantly diminishes the credibility and trustworthiness of the website.

Conclusion

This website’s claim that more than 960,000 students will receive free laptops in 2025 under a “Students Laptop Scheme” is FALSE. The site exhibits multiple characteristics of a phishing website, employing deceptive and coercive tactics to collect personal data and mislead users.