Online Scams Targeting Kids
The naivety of children and their trusting natures make them perfect targets for scammers. Predators are targeting kids to steal money or identities, duping them into paying for fake items, and even blackmailing them. So what should you, and your kids, look out for?
Ads promoting knock down prices on gadgets such as iPhones - if it looks too good to be true, it usually is. Some kids have sold things or used birthday money to pay for something that doesn't exist. They can be caught out by fake adverts on auction sites or social media, but when they click through, a fake site has been set up to take payment and personal details, and kids never receive the ‘purchased’ item.
When it comes to selling things online, children can also be targeted by scammers using fake escrow accounts or faking proof of payment to make kids post items before they get paid. And then of course they don’t get paid.
Talent scams. These can be invitations to join a modelling agency, take a screen test or notification that they've won an award for their skills. Kids will often tell their parents who can be duped into paying an upfront fee for something that doesn't exist in the way they understand. Scammers often “legally” protect themselves in the small print.
Competitions & quizzes: children can be persuaded to give away personal information about themselves or their family. These can be highly sophisticated - there are ads on youtube for a fake Mr Beast competition, for example, that looks completely legit..
Scammers also use malware is for ID theft - for example there are scams that get kids to download apps that claim to tell them who has been looking at their social media profile, when they in fact introduce a virus that harvests data from a child’s device. Children should know that social media sites don’t share this kind of data with third parties. They should also know that recommendations from friends can be either fake, or mean that they have been scammed too. Don’t let your child install apps without your approval.
Social Media: Many kids post a lot of information on social media, which can used in identity theft. Names, addresses and dates of birth are often easy to find. Birthday posts from family and friends give away your age, posts about presents can let thieves know what’s worth stealing, as can posts that identify where a child lives or hangs out. Kids should ask themselves how many of their followers do they actually know? Tell your kids not to share birthday details or location data in photos, videos or posts.
Scams that impersonate popular brands or trends – these can be identified via shoddy design and spelling mistakes, but others are very sophisticated and can tap into desires for fashion items or fears around, for example vaccination programmes.
Get rich quick: again, if it looks too good to be true then it most likely is.
Catfishing: this is when someone pretends to be someone else online in order to gain money or personal information. They often target those looking for romance.
Phishing: this is when a person sends a fake text, email, social media message or pop-up message to get people to share personal information, passwords or financial details. Often these messages look like they’re from a trusted organisation. When they appear on friends’ profiles, kids are more likely to be conned into clicking. Tell your child not to click on random links and messages.
Smishing: this often takes the form of a text from a parcel delivery company about a package that needs to be redelivered. They’ll ask for details and sometimes payment in order to organise another delivery. Similarly, fake texts from banks can ask you to input information.
Sexual Predators: predators on social media sites and chat rooms gain the trust and confidence of their victims through flattery. If they are successful in persuading children to make indecent images, they then blackmail their victims financially or even into abusing others. There have been many child suicides caused by these horrific scams.
Talk to your kids about all of these issues and let them know that they should check with you before giving away any information or parting with cash.