When "too good to be true" actually isn't

25 March 2026 Tags: RT-qPCR laboratory equipment teaching labs BioGrad Novacyt equipment donation molecular biology undergraduate teaching laboratory infrastructure university partnerships genesig q16 PCR systems

We are constantly told to be vigilant. Banks, universities, IT departments – everyone warns us that if an offer seems too good to be true, it almost certainly is. Phishing emails, advance-fee scams, social engineering attacks. The advice is sound, sensible and serves us well.

Until it is not.

The message that looked like a scam

Last autumn, I received a message from someone I did not know. The content, roughly paraphrased:

"I am making donations of brand new PCR machines to UK universities. I have £23 million worth to donate. Please let me know if your university would be interested – they are ideal for undergraduate teaching labs. The machines are the genesig q16 real-time PCR system from Novacyt and we can provide 25 of them free of charge. They retail at around £9,800 each."

Twenty-five RT-qPCR systems. For free. Nearly £250,000 worth of equipment. No strings attached.

Absolutely a scam.

But what if it is not?

Due diligence

The sender was Professor Natalie Kenny. A quick search confirmed she was very much a real person – CEO of the BioGrad group, a UK biotechnology company combining hands-on scientific training, research infrastructure and therapeutic development. Their stated mission involves bridging the gap between academic education and real-world life science practice.

Still: twenty-five PCR machines? For free?

But there was something about it. The details were specific. The offer was not asking for personal information or bank details. The company was legitimate and findable.

Of course the timing of the message coincided with my massive autumn teaching load, which meant I had neither the time nor the mental bandwidth to properly investigate this myself.

Delegation

I approached Darren, a Senior Technician in our teaching labs, explained what I had received, shared what I had found and asked whether he had capacity to chase it down. To his enormous credit, Darren was willing to take it on. From that point forward, he did essentially all of the heavy lifting and deserves considerable credit for making this happen.

I forwarded Darren's contact details to Professor Kenny, and before I knew it they had got to work. A meeting was arranged and Darren had verified that the offer was genuine. He confirmed there were no hidden strings, no requirements that we purchase consumables exclusively from Novacyt (the machines work with other suppliers' reagents), no trap waiting to spring.

It was actually real.

The business logic

This was not pure charity, of course. BioGrad's donation model represents smart business strategy that happens to benefit everyone involved. Getting high-quality RT-qPCR equipment into university teaching labs means:

• Students gain hands-on experience with professional-grade molecular biology tools
• Universities acquire equipment that would otherwise strain already-stretched budgets
• Equipment manufacturers build relationships with institutions and the next generation of scientists
• Companies like Novacyt, who design primers and provide consumables for these systems, potentially develop future customers familiar with their platforms

It is enlightened self-interest – investment in training and infrastructure as long-term commitment to building scientific capacity and innovation ecosystems. The donated instruments form part of a broader initiative linking training providers, equipment manufacturers and universities to expand access to practical molecular biology teaching.

Everyone wins. Students get better training. Universities get equipment. Companies build goodwill and relationships. It's rare to encounter a genuinely win-win scenario, but in my mind this one really qualifies.

The outcome

It took several months to arrange everything – logistics, paperwork, scheduling – but we had the genuine pleasure of welcoming Professor Natalie Kenny to campus for a Special Guest Lecture on the Future of Health and Innovation. And we were indeed gifted 25 genesig q16 real-time PCR systems from Novacyt.

Very much real. Other institutions received similar donations. The offer that looked too good to be true turned out to be exactly as good as advertised.

Having the machines available for students is already transformative for our teaching capacity. But the connections formed represent something potentially more valuable. The Special Guest Lecture was excellent, and we're all looking forward to what will hopefully be the first of many fruitful interactions.

The lesson (such as it is)

So: if an offer seems too good to be true, it probably is.

But sometimes – rarely, admittedly, but sometimes – it is worth checking the fine details. Verify the sender. Research the organization. Look for the business logic. Ask whether this could possibly make sense for all parties involved.

Enormous thanks to Professor Natalie Kenny for the initial contact and for delivering an outstanding guest lecture. Thanks to Darren for handling all the logistics and verification that turned a suspicious email into actual equipment. Thanks to BioGrad for the donation model that makes this kind of investment in education possible. And thanks to Novacyt for manufacturing equipment robust enough to trust in undergraduate teaching labs.

In a landscape dominated by scams, phishing attempts, and too-good-to-be-true offers that absolutely are too good to be true, it is genuinely refreshing when legitimate opportunities still exist. You just have to be willing to do the homework to distinguish them from the noise.

Twenty-five RT-qPCR systems. For free. Sometimes the improbable is just improbable, not impossible.