'Appointment scam' warning from VFS Global
A statement came from VFS Global following the visa fraud investigation of the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office.
Quick Look
Following the investigation initiated by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office on the allegation of fraud with the promise of a "guaranteed visa", VFS Global warned the applicants against unofficial persons and institutions.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office launched an investigation into allegations of fraud with the promise of guaranteed visas and issued a detention order for 60 suspects.
Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office announced yesterday that an investigation was being carried out into allegations that some individuals and companies operating in the field of visa consultancy and visa appointment provision received payments from citizens by promising "guaranteed visas" and "guaranteed appointments" on social media and the internet, and that they gained unfair advantage by not fully or partially refunding the fees collected in cases where the promised services were not fulfilled. In this context, detention orders were issued for 60 suspects.
VFS Global, which serves as an authorized official intermediary institution in the visa application processes of 28 countries, including the United Kingdom and Schengen countries in Turkey, pointed out that the investigation contributed to visa appointments reaching real applicants more quickly and fairly.
The company warned applicants to be especially careful about people and companies that claim to guarantee appointments or visas within certain periods of time. While it was reminded that visa appointments are free and can only be made through official VFS Global channels, it was stated that one should be wary of people and organizations that claim to act on behalf of the company and promise appointments or positive visa results in return for a fee.
VFS Global stated that it has implemented various security measures to prevent misuse of its appointment systems. These measures include blocking suspicious email domains, appointment limits per email, automatic blocking of unusual IP accesses, VPN restrictions, waitlist enforcement, and advanced one-time password (OTP) verification.
VFS Global Türkiye and Azerbaijan Regional President Sertan Aslantürk suggested that applicants plan their travels as early as possible and use only VFS Global channels for visa procedures.
"WE WANT TO REMIND YOU THAT IT IS FREE"
Aslantürk made the following statements in his assessment of the issue:
"We would especially like to remind you that appointments are free of charge. Any person or organization that promises an appointment or a positive visa result for a fee does not act on behalf of VFS Global. We constantly improve our security measures against attempts to abuse our appointment systems; we continue our efforts to ensure that applicants have safe and fair access to appointments."
What to Watch
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
VFS Global will continue to increase security measures
Likely · Within months
Open Questions
- How will the judicial processes of the detained suspects proceed?
- How many citizens are victims of fraud?
