Module 10 — Scams, Phishing & Identity Theft
Learn how modern scammers operate, how they trick good people into clicking, paying, or sharing, and how to build a “street smart” mindset for your inbox, your phone, your games and every app you use.
🧭 What this module covers
Scammers don’t care how clever you are. They care about how rushed, tired, worried, or excited you are. This module trains you to slow down, notice the hooks, and protect your identity, money, and peace of mind.
Key areas you’ll learn
• Email scams, phishing links, and fake “urgent” messages.
• Fake websites and cloned login pages.
• Text message scams (SMS & WhatsApp).
• Bank & HMRC impersonation (phone, email, letters).
• Parcel, job & romance scams.
• Social media and “crypto investment” fraud.
• How identity theft happens and how to fight back.
Skills you’ll build
• Reading messages like an investigator, not a victim.
• Spotting tiny details that give away a fake.
• Building safe habits for links, passwords and payments.
• Knowing exactly what to do if you click by mistake.
• Helping children, teens and older relatives stay safer online and in games.
🕵️♂️ The most common scam types
Tap each card to expand. These are real-world patterns used in UK and global scams every single day. The names change, the script doesn’t.
Look out for: Slightly wrong email addresses, spelling mistakes, rushed deadlines, and links that don’t match the real website when you hover over them.
Check: The full URL, the padlock, spelling, and never follow login links from random messages. Type the site manually or use your official app.
Always pause. Call your bank using the number on the back of your card, or your child on a known number or video call. Never trust a message alone.
Reality: Banks, police and HMRC do not ask you to transfer money to “keep it safe” or share full PINs. Hang up, wait a few minutes, then call the official number on their website.
Real employers don’t ask you to pay to get the job. Check the company on official sites (Companies House, LinkedIn) and never pay to apply or be “fast-tracked”.
Warning: Any “guaranteed” investment with huge returns and pressure to act fast is almost always a scam. Real investing is slow, regulated, and never guaranteed.
🚩 Red flags & emotional hooks
Scams are less about technology and more about psychology. They push your panic buttons: fear, greed, love, embarrassment, urgency. Tap each red flag to reveal how it’s used.
Safety habit: Whenever you see a countdown, slow down. Real organisations give you time and multiple proper letters or app notifications.
Real official bodies send letters, reference numbers and invite you to call back on official lines. Fear is a scammer’s favourite tool.
If a stranger insists you keep something secret from friends, family or your bank, that is a giant red flag.
Legit companies don’t ask for VAT in iTunes vouchers or Bitcoin. This is a major sign of fraud.
If it sounds magical, it probably is. Real opportunities involve risk, checks and time – not instant riches for clicking a link.
🛡️ Protecting yourself & your identity
You can’t stop every scam being sent to you. But you can make yourself very hard to trick and very fast to recover.
- Use strong, unique passwords and a password manager.
- Turn on two-factor authentication (2FA) for email, banking and socials.
- Always go to websites by typing the address or using official apps.
- Set bank alerts for transactions and new payees.
- Regularly check credit reports / bank statements for unknown activity.
- Reusing the same password everywhere.
- Typing card details on sites you don’t fully trust.
- Clicking links in random DMs or text messages.
- Sharing full passwords, PINs, or one-time codes with anyone.
- Rushing decisions when upset, scared or pressured.
If you think you’ve been scammed: Contact your bank immediately, change passwords (starting with email and banking), and record exactly what happened. Acting quickly can limit the damage.
🎭 Real-life style scam scenarios (Adults)
Read each message as if it landed on your phone right now. Ask yourself: “What are the red flags? What would I realistically do?” Then tap “Show what to do”.
HMRC: After the last annual calculation we found you are owed a tax refund of £247.66. Please claim your refund securely at https://gov-refund-hmrc-tax-secure.com within 24 hours or it will be cancelled.
• HMRC does not issue tax refunds by random text links with 24 hour deadlines.
• The web address is not the official gov.uk domain.
Better response:
• Do not click the link.
• Log into your HMRC account by typing www.gov.uk yourself, or use the official app.
• Report the text by forwarding to 7726 (spam reporting).
RoyalMail: We attempted to deliver your parcel today but no one was home. Please pay the £1.20 redelivery fee at royalmail-redelivery-fee.com to schedule a new delivery.
• The small fee makes it feel harmless, but the fake site can steal full card details.
• Official Royal Mail texts use specific formats and domains, and you can track parcels via the official website.
Better response:
• Ignore the link. Go to the real Royal Mail website or app and check tracking directly.
• Never type card details into a site you arrived at from a random text.
“This is the fraud department at your bank. We’ve detected criminals trying to access your account. To protect your funds, we need you to move all your money into a ‘safe account’ we have created for you now. Do not hang up or your account may be frozen.”
• Banks do NOT ask you to transfer all your money to a new account to keep it safe.
• Scammers rely on fear and keeping you on the line so you can’t check.
Better response:
• Politely hang up.
• Wait a few minutes, then call your bank using the number on the back of your card or official website.
• If you have already sent money, contact your bank immediately and explain it was a scam.
“Hi! We’re expanding our UK team. Earn £500–£1,000 per week working from your phone. No experience needed. You just need to deposit £250 today so we can activate your trading account. We’ll manage everything for you.”
• Pressure to deposit money quickly, with no credible company details or interview process.
• “Guaranteed” returns and vague job description – classic investment scam behaviour.
Better response:
• Do not pay any “activation” or “training” fee.
• Research the company name, check official reviews and financial regulators.
• Assume “guaranteed” high return jobs from random DMs are scams.
🎮 Kids & Teens – Gaming & App Scam Awareness
Scammers target young people using games, DMs, fake rewards and pressure tactics. These dangers appear in Roblox, Fortnite, Minecraft, VRChat, Discord, TikTok, Instagram and more. Tap the sections below to explore.
“Free Robux / V-Bucks / Skins”
Big colourful pop-ups offering free currency are the #1 way scammers steal Roblox
and Fortnite logins.
Teach: No game gives free currency outside the official store. Ever.
Discord & Game Mod Impersonators
Scammers pretend to be Discord “staff” or Roblox/Fortnite “admins”.
They claim your account will be banned unless you “verify”.
Rule: Real staff never DM players first.
Fake Friend / Duplicate Account
Someone copies a child’s friend’s name and picture:
“My old account broke, add this new one.”
Teach: Always verify through voice or video.
TikTok & Instagram “Giveaway Winner!”
Scammers DM children pretending to be influencers.
They ask for shipping fees, ID photos or credit card details.
Rule: Real creators do not DM winners privately.
“Don’t tell your parents…”
Groomers on Roblox, Fortnite creative, VRChat, Discord and Rec Room
often start with flattery, gifts or compliments.
Teach: Any adult asking for secrecy is unsafe.
“Buy me a gift card to unlock…”
Teens are targeted to buy Steam/Xbox/PlayStation cards to “prove they’re real”
or “unlock rewards”.
Teach: Never buy gift cards for strangers online.
🚩 Red Flags Kids & Teens Should Memorise
🎧 Gaming Voice-Chat Safety (Roblox, Fortnite, VRChat, Discord)
🚨 Roblox-Specific Dangers Every Parent Should Know
👨👩👧👦 Parent & Guardian Tips
- Enable Roblox/Fortnite chat restrictions.
- Turn on 2FA for all gaming accounts.
- Teach kids to show you suspicious messages immediately.
- Use platform parental tools (Roblox, Xbox, PlayStation, Switch).
- Set spending limits to stop accidental purchases.
- Allow kids to join private servers with strangers.
- Let kids use voice chat in 18+ or unmoderated games.
- Save bank cards on their gaming accounts.
- Ignore small red flags—kids drop hints early.
- Use shame-based conversations. Kids hide mistakes when scared.
🧩 Roblox Danger Quiz
Quick-fire questions about Roblox scams and threats. Great for kids, teens and parents together. Pick the safest answer for each situation.
🎧 Voice-Chat Safety Scenarios
Imagine you’re in a game lobby with live voice chat. Choose how you would respond. This works for Fortnite, Roblox, VRChat, Discord and more.
🛑 Robux Scam Detector – Spot the Red Flags
Look at this fake “Robux giveaway” page. Click on all the things that look suspicious. Then tap each red-flag button to mark what you’ve noticed.
You have been randomly selected to win 10,000 ROBUX.
Enter your username and password below and click “CLAIM REWARD” in the next 5 minutes before your prize expires!
📱 TikTok DM Safety Simulator
Read the DM, then choose how you would respond. This works for TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat and other social apps.
🧪 Spot the scam message – main quiz
For each pair, choose which message is the scam. You’ll get instant feedback and a running score. Don’t overthink it – look for red flags, strange links, urgency, secrecy and payment requests.
This module is for awareness and education. If you are ever unsure about a message, slow everything down and check via official websites, apps or phone numbers you trust.
