Scams & Online Safety
Recognising financial scams and tricks; phishing emails and fake websites; protecting personal and financial information online; 'if it seems too good to be true, it probably is'
What a learner can do afterwards
- Identify at least two warning signs of a scam (asking for personal details, too-good-to-be-true offers, urgency)
- Explain how sharing passwords or payment details through an unchecked request can put accounts or money at risk
- Describe what to do if they receive a suspicious message or email (don't click, tell an adult)
1 · Read
A scam is a trick used to get money or private information by lying. A scammer might invent a prize to persuade someone to send details. Scams can appear in messages, emails, websites or pop-ups.
Zara gets a message: 'You've won a new phone! Enter your address and bank card number to claim it.' The unexpected prize and request for private details are warning signs. Zara leaves the link alone and asks a trusted adult to check.
Watch for unexpected requests for private details, surprising prizes or pressure to act quickly. These are warning signs, not proof by themselves. A scammer may pretend to be a school, bank, shop or friend. A fake message designed to steal private information is called phishing.
Someone who gets your password may enter your account and pretend to be you. Card details may let someone spend money. Do not send these details in messages or enter them through unexpected links or pop-ups. A fake website can copy a real site's appearance. Ask a trusted adult to help check a login or payment page before using it.
For a suspicious message, stop. Do not click links, open attached files, reply or enter details. Tell a trusted adult and check together. A familiar name or friend's account does not prove a message is safe. To contact the sender, use a number or website already known to be genuine, not details in the suspicious message.
A scam tricks you into giving away money or details. Stop, don't click, and tell an adult.
This lesson, its questions and flashcards were written for this dataset. The named message examples are fictional.
These five readings were written for this dataset. Online-scam, phishing, scam-avoidance, email-spoofing and gift-card corpus articles informed the teaching topics; their wording was not reused.
More to read
What is the message asking you to do?
Before answering an unexpected message, notice what it asks you for. A request for a password, payment details or money needs care. A prize promise or short deadline can make the request feel harder to question.
Those clues are reasons to check. They do not settle who sent the message. A scam can use a familiar logo and correct spelling. A genuine organisation can also have deadlines.
Leave suspicious requests unanswered and show them to a trusted adult. Check through a contact route already known to belong to the organisation. Do not use the message itself as proof that its claims are true.
Getting help with a phishing message
A phishing message tries to steal private information by pretending to be genuine. Its link may lead to a page that copies a real login screen.
Do not reply, open attached files or follow links in a suspicious message. Ask a trusted adult to look at it with you. The adult can help find the service's genuine reporting tools without using links in the message.
If you already clicked or entered details, tell the adult promptly. Say what happened without sending the private details again. The adult can help contact the account provider or bank through a checked route.
A report gives a service information to investigate. It does not guarantee that the sender will be caught or that lost money will be returned.
When a request feels frightening
Imagine a caller claims your family will be in trouble unless you send money immediately. The caller wants you to act while you are worried. Their claim still needs checking.
Do not give the caller money, passwords or payment details. End the call and tell a trusted adult what was said. The adult can check with the organisation through contact details already known to be genuine.
Scam attempts can arrive by phone, letter, message or in person. Pressure and threats are warning signs in any of these settings. A deadline alone does not prove fraud, but you should not let pressure stop you getting help with a suspicious demand.
A familiar name is not proof
A message can display a school's name without coming from the school. Someone may copy a name or logo. A stolen account can also send messages under its owner's name.
An unfamiliar address or spelling mistake may raise a question. A familiar-looking address and neat spelling do not establish that a request is safe.
Suppose a message appears to come from a friend but asks for private details. Ask a trusted adult to help check with the friend through a different, known contact route. Replying to the suspicious account only reaches whoever controls that account. You do not have to investigate or confront that person yourself.
A reward with conditions
Imagine an advert promises a gift card after you join several paid services. You would have to spend money to qualify. A service might also keep charging after a trial ends.
The reward could be real and still come with costs you do not want. Calling it free would leave out the money you must spend. That is different from a fake prize used to steal details.
Do not sign up, pay or enter private information on your own. Ask a trusted adult to check who runs the offer and read its conditions. Find out what must be bought, whether payments repeat, and what happens to the information requested.
2 · Watch
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Where it sits
Learn first
Optional connections
Where this leads
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