Teaching kids to smell a scam
Three tells that work across phishing, DMs, and ‘free’ game currency — the pattern under all of them.
Scams aimed at kids don’t look like the ones aimed at us. They look like free Robux, a rare skin, a giveaway, a DM from someone claiming to be a moderator. Different costume, same machine underneath. If your kid learns the machine, they don’t have to memorize every costume.
Three tells — teach these and they generalize to scams that haven’t been invented yet:
Urgency. “Only for the next 10 minutes.” “Your account will be deleted.” Real offers don’t need you to panic. A clock is a red flag, almost every time.
Something for nothing. Free currency, free prizes, doubling your coins — in exchange for a login, a code, or a click. The deal that’s too good is the deal. Nobody gives a stranger something valuable for free.
Move it private / prove yourself. “DM me.” “Send the code you just got.” “Type your password to verify.” The moment someone wants to pull them out of the open and into a side channel, or asks for a code or password, it’s over — stop.
Here’s the line that ties it together, worth saying out loud: nobody legitimate is ever in a hurry for your password. Teach the pattern, not the list. The costumes change every month; the three tells don’t. A kid who can name them has a defense that travels to every app they’ll ever open.