Here are some points to help children recognize and avoid online scams and phishing attempts:
1. Educate about personal information: Teach children never to share personal details like their full name, address, phone number, passwords, or school name with unknown individuals online.
2. Explain the signs of phishing emails: Inform them to look for suspicious emails with poor grammar, misspelled words, or requests for personal information from unverified sources.
3. Teach skepticism with links and attachments: Advise children to avoid clicking on links or downloading attachments from unknown or suspicious emails, messages, or websites.
4. Recognize fake websites: Show them how to check for secure website indicators (like “https” and padlock symbols) and to avoid websites that look untrustworthy or unfamiliar.
5. Enable security settings: Help children enable and understand privacy settings on social media and other online platforms to protect their personal information.
6. Discuss too-good-to-be-true offers: Teach them that offers of free prizes, gift cards, or unbelievable deals are often scams meant to trick them into providing information.
7. Monitor online interactions: Encourage open communication with parents or guardians about any unusual or suspicious online encounters or messages.
8. Use reliable antivirus and security software: Make sure the devices they use are protected with up-to-date antivirus software and security tools to detect and block scams or phishing attempts.
9. Teach safe password practices: Encourage using strong, unique passwords and avoiding sharing them with anyone, even friends.
10. Promote reporting suspicious activity: Teach children to report any suspicious online activity or attempts to their parents, teachers, or trusted adults.
