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The short answer
If a WhatsApp message or a payment link gives you a new account number for school fees, do not pay until you have confirmed it with the school's bursary on a number or office you already know. Schools publish their designated accounts in admission letters, fee schedules or their own portals; Igbinedion University, for example, warned parents that fees are payable only to the designated university accounts after an impersonator asked for payment elsewhere.
What the message usually looks like
The scam arrives at the times parents expect to pay: the start of term, before exams, before a trip or graduation. It can come as a WhatsApp message from an unknown number using the school logo, as a message in a class parents' group from a number that looks like a teacher's, or as a link to a smart payment page that asks for your child's name and class. The common thread is a change: "the school has changed banks", "the old account is under maintenance", "pay into the bursar's account to get the early payment discount", or "use this link, the portal is down".
Some versions are well researched. The sender knows your child's name, class and the exact fee, because a parents' group member list, a leaked spreadsheet or a lost phone gave it away. Knowing the details does not make the request genuine.
Why schools do not change accounts by WhatsApp
A school that changes the account it collects fees into has to tell every parent, and it has every reason to do so formally: in a signed letter on letterhead, on its official portal, in the fee schedule for the term, or through the bursary directly. Universities typically list the accounts in the admission letter and on their website. Igbinedion University's registrar issued a notice in October 2020 after a man posing as a staff member contacted students and parents; it said fees, including acceptance fees, are payable only to the university's designated accounts as listed in the admission letter and the fee structure on its website, and that its portal handles payments.
Primary and secondary schools vary more, but the principle is the same. A sudden change sent only by chat, a personal name on the receiving account, or pressure to pay today are all reasons to stop.
How to verify with the bursar
- Do not reply to the message or click the link.
- Find the school's contact details yourself: the number on last term's receipt, the official website, the letterhead or the gate. Do not use a number from the suspicious message.
- Call or visit the bursary or school office and read out the account name, bank and number you were sent. Ask whether the school has changed accounts and, if so, ask for the formal letter.
- When you pay, check the account name your banking app displays matches the school's registered name, not an individual's.
- Keep the receipt and send it to the school's official contact, so the payment is matched to your child.
| Signal | Likely genuine | Treat as suspect |
|---|---|---|
| How the change is announced | Signed letter, portal notice, fee schedule | WhatsApp message or voice note only |
| Receiving account name | The school's registered name | A person, or an unrelated business |
| Timing | Ahead of term, with notice | "Pay today or lose the slot" |
| Confirmation | Bursary confirms on a known number | Only the sender confirms |
If you already paid into the wrong account
Call your bank's fraud desk at once with the receiving account details and time of transfer, then tell the school so it can warn other parents. Report to the police; the steps are in our guide to reporting fraud to the police and EFCC. If the message came from a hijacked parent or teacher account, our piece on hacked WhatsApp requests explains how to warn the group without spreading the link. The same switch of bank details hits businesses paying suppliers, covered in supplier bank details fraud.
For schools: make the scam harder
- State in every fee letter that the school will never change its account by WhatsApp or text.
- Collect into an account in the school's registered name only, never a staff member's.
- Limit who can post in parents' groups and remove numbers that leave the school.
- Issue receipts parents can check, so a fake receipt shown at the gate is easy to spot.
Why the timing makes it work
Parents pay school fees under pressure. There is a deadline, a child who may be sent home, and often several children at different schools. A message that arrives the week fees are due, mentions the right amount and offers a small discount for paying early fits what a parent is already expecting to do. Scammers also exploit real changes: when a school really does move banks or opens a new collection account, a fake message sent at the same time is easier to believe. That is why the check has to be the same every time, whatever the message says.
A worked example
Example only. A parent with two children owes ₦180,000 and ₦220,000 for the term, ₦400,000 in all. A message offers a 5% early-payment discount if both are paid into a "new bursary account" today, so the parent sends ₦380,000 (₦400,000 minus ₦20,000). The school has not received anything, and the fees are still owed in full. The total exposure is ₦380,000 lost plus ₦400,000 still due: ₦780,000 from one message. A two-minute call to the bursary would have stopped it.
Where Pryme fits
Schools are one of the sectors in Spaces. Any Pryme customer can generate a regular or a verifiable receipt with VerifyDoc.ai, and anyone can check that a verifiable receipt is genuine and unaltered (see verifiable receipts). Neither replaces the basic step of confirming the account with the bursary before you pay.
Questions people ask
My child's school sent a new account number on WhatsApp, should I pay?
Not until you have confirmed it with the bursary using a phone number or office you already know. Schools announce account changes formally, by letter, portal or fee schedule.
How do I confirm a school's official account number?
Check the admission letter, fee schedule, school portal or last term's receipt, then call the bursary on a known number and read out the details you were given.
Can I get school fees back if I paid a scammer?
Possibly, if you act quickly. Call your bank's fraud line with the receiving account and time of transfer, tell the school and report to the police.
Why does the scammer know my child's name and class?
Details leak through parents' groups, lost phones and shared lists. Knowing the details does not make a payment request genuine.
Sources
- Myschool.ng: Igbinedion University scam alert notice (24 Oct 2020) · accessed Oct 2026
- Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act 2006 (PLAC Laws of Nigeria) · accessed Oct 2026
- Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act 2015 (PDF copy) · accessed Oct 2026
This article is general information, not financial, legal or tax advice. Products described are provided under the terms on this site and are subject to regulation and eligibility.