By nature, children are more impulsive, curious, trusting, and inexperienced with harmful encounters, which have made them a popular target for cybercriminals.
No matter the screen time rules and restrictions we set for our kids, they will inevitably have moments alone online where we are not there to protect them.
Children are increasingly targeted by scams online, especially as they spend more time online for school, gaming, and social media.
Therefore, it is crucial that we educate ourselves and our children about the online threats they can encounter. This topic should be a regular part of our conversations about life online.
Our kids should be aware of the scams they may encounter online and know how to respond to them properly. Many of these scams are phishing scams, while others are carried out by fake profiles contacting kids while gaming or on social media. A lot of scams also happen around trading, or when ending up on fake websites by mistake, to give a few examples.
So, what is a phishing scam? Phishing scams are emails or messages pretending to be from a trusted or official source, often promising a prize or reward as bait to make it tempting to respond. The purpose is to trick the victim into giving up personal information or payments.
Scams of many different kinds are everywhere, targeting all online users. They can be very hard to spot at times, and even experienced adults fall victim to online scams.
Many scams are especially targeted at children, capitalizing on their hobbies, interests, and social communities.
The first step in steering clear of scams is to know what is out there. Here are seven common ways kids are scammed online. Knowing about the details and signs of these pitfalls in the digital space helps us teach them what to look out for.
1. Fake gaming promos
A way to trick children into giving out personal information can be fake gaming promotions that promise free in-game items, currency, or upgrades (e.g., free V-Bucks for Fortnite or Robux for Roblox).
Using a fake gaming promotion, children can be tricked into entering their login details on fake websites or online forms.
In other virtual scams ,scammers might pretend to be selling rare items or pets, which the buyer, of course, will never receive.
2. Fake friend requests and messages from fake profiles
A common way for scammers to target children is by posing as new friends on gaming servers or social media, sending messages or friend requests from fake accounts.
Scammers can also pose as friends or relatives to the victim to instantly gain trust. With today's AI technology, it can be hard to tell what is real or not.
Often, they aim to get the victim to click on links or provide personal information that will give the criminals access to their device or account. The purpose can sometimes be to trick personal content or images from the victim, as is often the case with sextortion.
The phrase ‘stranger danger’ has been used to remind kids that friendly strangers can be harmful. Usually, the harm involved some kind of physical harm or exploitation, and the motive was often solely the perpetrator's need to harm the victim for personal satisfaction.
These predators are still to be found both online and offline. However, in the present online world, they have been by far outnumbered by a new kind of dangerous stranger.
Today, organized scammers are creating fake gaming or social media accounts to approach children as friendly strangers.
The purpose is to trick the victim into sending sexual or intimate content purely with the intention of financial gain.
A scammer hiding behind a fake profile can be working on scamming multiple victims simultaneously.
Even though these dangerous online scammers are not interested in the child or in physically harming them, their methods can be very similar, and the consequences can be equally harmful.
3. Contest and giveaway scams
Sometimes scammers use fake ads or messages to claim that the child has won a contest or is eligible for a big prize or reward.
This can happen in the form of a phishing scam, where the sender of an email or message pretends to be from an official or trusted source to appear reliable.
These contest scams or giveaway scams are also seen as random pop-ups on websites or as text messages from unknown, mysterious senders.
The purpose of this is usually to make the child click a link or provide personal details to claim their ‘prize’. This can give the scammer access to the victim’s device or account.
4. Fake websites
Scammers sometimes impersonate educational platforms or other trusted official platforms to trick the victims into downloading harmful software, providing personal information, or making payments. This kind of deception is called spoofing.
There are cases of fake websites impersonating the original source, offering jobs or scholarships, or desired products to get hopeful victims to fill out a form with personal information.
There are also cases of scamming on fake gaming platforms where many children and families go to download games or gaming-related software.
Scammers are skilled at creating fake websites that look real with only minor changes to the design and URL.
5. Influencer or social media-driven scams
On social media, it is easy for scammers to make anything seem real and trustworthy.
Kids might fall for fake webshops, “get rich quick” courses, charity organisations, or investment ‘opportunities’.
Young people can be tempted and tricked into buying fake courses or products that don’t live up to what was promised or may not even exist.
Sometimes, social media influencer scam artists can keep victims as devoted paying customers by promising the desired outcome if they wait a little longer or keep their fake success stories or stories of a fake charity organisation alive with regular posts, etc.
Online Influencer scams can make victims feel that the results are right around the corner, and it would be a waste to give up, considering the amount of money and time they’ve already invested.
These Scammers appeal to kids’ desire for success and adventure, to encourage them to buy fake business courses.
Especially older kids, ready to start a life on their own and dreaming about easy success and a glamorous life, can be sensitive to these kinds of scams.
Charity scams appeal to empathy and the victim's compassionate nature to get them to donate to fake causes and organisations.
Kids might even be able to persuade their parents to pay for what might seem like a wise, educational, or kind choice.
6. Trading scams
In the world of gaming, trading scams are sadly very common. Most kids or adults who love online games have either tried to get scammed or know some who has.
In gaming, it is common practice to trade skins, pets, or other valuable virtual items. However, these trades are often trust-based, and the other party in the trade is often just a stranger online, communicating through their gaming or social media profile.
At other times, the scams around trading in gaming are much more sophisticated and can be hard to guard against. It is wise to ensure you are familiar with the different kinds of scams in gaming if your child loves online gaming.
7. Sextortion
Sextortion is an incredibly cruel way of scamming children, that are alarmingly increasing in recent times. For this reason, this kind of scam deserves its own section and spotlight here.
Sextortion scams are often carried out by very professional and organized scammers, intentionally targeting young victims, often boys. They contact their victim using a fake profile pretending to be a peer, flirting or showing romantic interests.
The communication aims to win the trust of the victim, persuading them to share personal and intimate photos of themselves. These images are then used to pressure the victim to send money to prevent them from being shared with all their contacts, school, etc.
The number of teenagers, especially boys, being targeted is drastically increasing in recent years. These scams can be severely damaging to the victims and their families.
Often, victims are too ashamed or scared to reach out for help and can risk reacting in panic with devastating outcomes.
Know your child’s online world
Knowing about the different kinds of scams our children risk running into online is the first step in teaching them how to avoid them.
Find out more about how to help kids identify and avoid scams. Practical tips to spot these tricks and tips on what to do if your kids fall victim to online scammers will provide a great foundation for a safe online experience.
