London:
British authorities here have uncovered a scam aimed at luring international students to come and study in the UK by designing a glitzy website of what was called 'Glastonbury University.' The catch: the university simply does not exist.
Council officials said the website, which promoted a fictitious university was being used to rip-off unsuspecting applicants particularly from the Far East," the council said.
Glastonbury, with a population of nearly 10,000, is a small town in Somerset, south-west England, better known for the Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts, which has attracted thousands of people every year since the 1970s.
But Glastonbury has lately been in the news after the Somerset County Council uncovered the Malaysia-origin scam that used the town's name and set up the website, which has now been taken down.
The council was alerted to the scam after a London university reported it had received an application from a student claiming to have a degree from Glastonbury University.
The website used the glitzy image of the David Wilson Library at the University of Leicester, and claimed it as its campus. It claimed to be well regarded for its research and mentioned the names of departments and other details to lend authenticity.
The website boasted that the university was "a leading private and independent university of world standing".
It said that "a London university reported it receiving an application from a student who claimed to have a degree from Glastonbury University".
Councillor David Hall said he was pleased "that swift action was taken to remove this outrageous fake university site."
"I hope this is the last we will see of the fake Glastonbury University, but it may well reappear under another name," Hall said.
The investigation revealed that the address given on the site for the university was actually an empty office building in the centre of town. The website offered courses in "one of the world's most exciting cities".
University of Leicester spokesman Ather Mirza said they were first made aware of the use of the image of its library building in August.
"The University of Leicester had no association with the University of Glastonbury and had not sanctioned use of any images or materials on its site," Mirza said.
He said the university was pleased to hear that action had been taken and the website removed.
Investigation by the Trading Standards, a government body, involved contacts with overseas companies and regulators including the Florida FBI, and culminated in the domain name being removed from the internet.
Officers from the Metropolitan Police's e-crime unit have removed the domain name and site: www.glastonbury-edu.org.uk.
Council officials said the website, which promoted a fictitious university was being used to rip-off unsuspecting applicants particularly from the Far East," the council said.
Glastonbury, with a population of nearly 10,000, is a small town in Somerset, south-west England, better known for the Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts, which has attracted thousands of people every year since the 1970s.
But Glastonbury has lately been in the news after the Somerset County Council uncovered the Malaysia-origin scam that used the town's name and set up the website, which has now been taken down.
The council was alerted to the scam after a London university reported it had received an application from a student claiming to have a degree from Glastonbury University.
The website used the glitzy image of the David Wilson Library at the University of Leicester, and claimed it as its campus. It claimed to be well regarded for its research and mentioned the names of departments and other details to lend authenticity.
The website boasted that the university was "a leading private and independent university of world standing".
It said that "a London university reported it receiving an application from a student who claimed to have a degree from Glastonbury University".
Councillor David Hall said he was pleased "that swift action was taken to remove this outrageous fake university site."
"I hope this is the last we will see of the fake Glastonbury University, but it may well reappear under another name," Hall said.
The investigation revealed that the address given on the site for the university was actually an empty office building in the centre of town. The website offered courses in "one of the world's most exciting cities".
University of Leicester spokesman Ather Mirza said they were first made aware of the use of the image of its library building in August.
"The University of Leicester had no association with the University of Glastonbury and had not sanctioned use of any images or materials on its site," Mirza said.
He said the university was pleased to hear that action had been taken and the website removed.
Investigation by the Trading Standards, a government body, involved contacts with overseas companies and regulators including the Florida FBI, and culminated in the domain name being removed from the internet.
Officers from the Metropolitan Police's e-crime unit have removed the domain name and site: www.glastonbury-edu.org.uk.
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