John:
Recently I got a call from the bank. The employee said that there are suspicious debits on the card and they blocked the card. I said that I had not paid for anything, I would study the text messages and call them back. I got into the messages and was horrified: it turned out that the last half hour I received some messages with codes, and then the money was withdrawn. Each time a thousand rubles. At the same time, I definitely did not buy anything.
I realized that my son had my mobile phone for the last couple of hours. I asked if he knew anything about these operations, and he burst into tears. For a long time I could not say anything, but I tried to calm him down, said that I would not scold him, it is important to understand the situation. Then he confessed.
A couple of weeks ago, on some forum dedicated to a computer game, he met a certain user who began to help him play. And it was this new acquaintance who begged his son for money.
I knew before that my son is fond of some kind of online toys and even buys something for himself in these games. But he spent little and paid everything out of his pocket money. I didn’t forbid him to play at all - it’s pointless. Moreover, I have already discussed this problem with other parents - it is better to resolve it little by little, the main thing is to have control. My son paid for purchases from his child's card, which is linked to my account. I could track everything, besides, I set a limit on the amount of transactions per day.
I began to study the history of payments more closely over the past two weeks and saw that the money was not spent on the game itself, but on someone's personal account. The son said that he pays this new acquaintance for all sorts of secret codes for the game and various tips. At first, he paid him $ 2-5, which was about the same amount that was spent on the game itself. That's why I didn't notice anything.
But on this day, he convinced his son to transfer a couple of thousand rubles for several courses of study - how to make money on computer games and how to reach the highest level there. The son told him that there was no money on his card. And then the user offered to take the card from the parents. They say, take a loan from them, and when you earn after my training, you will return much more money. The child took my card and phone from my bag and made these payments. But then the bank noticed something was wrong, and everything was revealed.
I didn't think my son was so gullible, but apparently he trusted this man very much. And he most likely used some kind of psychological tricks. In hindsight, I began to realize that my son had really become more withdrawn lately when he had this new friend.
Even now, the son does not want to believe that he has encountered an ordinary swindler. He still had a hysteria for a few days after this story. I had to change his mobile phone number, reissue bank cards for both me and him. But still, we need a good child psychologist for our son to cope with this story. Because just to dissuade him from spending all the time at the computer is unrealistic. And there are problems with trusting strangers, you need to somehow re-educate.
Financial Culture Expert:
Children are easily suggestible, especially when it comes to their favorite hobbies. In a virtual game, the sense of reality is lost, and the child's vigilance is dulled. He begins to identify with online characters and is willing to put in a lot of effort to succeed in the virtual world.
At this moment, fraudsters appear who want to earn extra money on children's gullibility. They make online acquaintances on the basis of a common hobby (games) and gradually begin to lure money out of them under various pretexts.
The extortionist convinces the child to keep their communication secret. As a result, children either begin to ask for money more often, or, as was the case with John, they simply secretly take away the bank card from the adults.
At the same time, the child has no malicious intent - under the strong psychological influence of a fraudster, he believes that he will return all the money to his parents.
Sometimes the business is not limited to extorting money. A fraudster may ask to photograph the parents' passports, and then try to issue a loan for them in someone else's name.
Sometimes children get hooked on paid games and without the influence of mysterious strangers. So that online hobbies do not lead to strong dependence, isolation and great losses, it is important from a very early age to talk to your child as often as possible so that he is not afraid to share his experiences. At the same time, you should not condemn him, even if he made a mistake, but instead try to understand the situation. Explain that money is not only an opportunity, but also a risk. For more information on how to start financial education in the family, see the text "How to talk with children about money."
It is important for parents to explain to their child the basic rules of financial security:
Do not transfer large amounts to his card. But even small pocket money can be additionally secured. Banks allow you to set a limit on the amount of purchases and on their number per day or week. This will reduce the risk that fraudsters will write off all the money from the card at once. Read about other ways to insure your child in the text "Bank Cards for Children".
It is better to install antivirus on all children's gadgets, you can also configure parental control programs.
For more details on fraudulent schemes that not only children may face, see the text "How to protect against theft of money from a card."
Recently I got a call from the bank. The employee said that there are suspicious debits on the card and they blocked the card. I said that I had not paid for anything, I would study the text messages and call them back. I got into the messages and was horrified: it turned out that the last half hour I received some messages with codes, and then the money was withdrawn. Each time a thousand rubles. At the same time, I definitely did not buy anything.
I realized that my son had my mobile phone for the last couple of hours. I asked if he knew anything about these operations, and he burst into tears. For a long time I could not say anything, but I tried to calm him down, said that I would not scold him, it is important to understand the situation. Then he confessed.
A couple of weeks ago, on some forum dedicated to a computer game, he met a certain user who began to help him play. And it was this new acquaintance who begged his son for money.
I knew before that my son is fond of some kind of online toys and even buys something for himself in these games. But he spent little and paid everything out of his pocket money. I didn’t forbid him to play at all - it’s pointless. Moreover, I have already discussed this problem with other parents - it is better to resolve it little by little, the main thing is to have control. My son paid for purchases from his child's card, which is linked to my account. I could track everything, besides, I set a limit on the amount of transactions per day.
I began to study the history of payments more closely over the past two weeks and saw that the money was not spent on the game itself, but on someone's personal account. The son said that he pays this new acquaintance for all sorts of secret codes for the game and various tips. At first, he paid him $ 2-5, which was about the same amount that was spent on the game itself. That's why I didn't notice anything.
But on this day, he convinced his son to transfer a couple of thousand rubles for several courses of study - how to make money on computer games and how to reach the highest level there. The son told him that there was no money on his card. And then the user offered to take the card from the parents. They say, take a loan from them, and when you earn after my training, you will return much more money. The child took my card and phone from my bag and made these payments. But then the bank noticed something was wrong, and everything was revealed.
I didn't think my son was so gullible, but apparently he trusted this man very much. And he most likely used some kind of psychological tricks. In hindsight, I began to realize that my son had really become more withdrawn lately when he had this new friend.
Even now, the son does not want to believe that he has encountered an ordinary swindler. He still had a hysteria for a few days after this story. I had to change his mobile phone number, reissue bank cards for both me and him. But still, we need a good child psychologist for our son to cope with this story. Because just to dissuade him from spending all the time at the computer is unrealistic. And there are problems with trusting strangers, you need to somehow re-educate.
Financial Culture Expert:
Children are easily suggestible, especially when it comes to their favorite hobbies. In a virtual game, the sense of reality is lost, and the child's vigilance is dulled. He begins to identify with online characters and is willing to put in a lot of effort to succeed in the virtual world.
At this moment, fraudsters appear who want to earn extra money on children's gullibility. They make online acquaintances on the basis of a common hobby (games) and gradually begin to lure money out of them under various pretexts.
The extortionist convinces the child to keep their communication secret. As a result, children either begin to ask for money more often, or, as was the case with John, they simply secretly take away the bank card from the adults.
At the same time, the child has no malicious intent - under the strong psychological influence of a fraudster, he believes that he will return all the money to his parents.
Sometimes the business is not limited to extorting money. A fraudster may ask to photograph the parents' passports, and then try to issue a loan for them in someone else's name.
Sometimes children get hooked on paid games and without the influence of mysterious strangers. So that online hobbies do not lead to strong dependence, isolation and great losses, it is important from a very early age to talk to your child as often as possible so that he is not afraid to share his experiences. At the same time, you should not condemn him, even if he made a mistake, but instead try to understand the situation. Explain that money is not only an opportunity, but also a risk. For more information on how to start financial education in the family, see the text "How to talk with children about money."
It is important for parents to explain to their child the basic rules of financial security:
- Never tell anyone the PIN code from a bank card, as well as full details, especially the three-digit code on the back, passwords and codes from messages from the bank.
- Do not be afraid to consult with your parents about financial matters, especially when it comes to purchases larger than usual.
- Do not send money or documents to strangers, do not buy anything from them without the knowledge of the parents.
- Do not post photos of a bank card, passport and other documents on social networks.
- Don't click on suspicious links or respond to reports of sudden winnings. Free cheese only comes in a mousetrap.
Do not transfer large amounts to his card. But even small pocket money can be additionally secured. Banks allow you to set a limit on the amount of purchases and on their number per day or week. This will reduce the risk that fraudsters will write off all the money from the card at once. Read about other ways to insure your child in the text "Bank Cards for Children".
It is better to install antivirus on all children's gadgets, you can also configure parental control programs.
For more details on fraudulent schemes that not only children may face, see the text "How to protect against theft of money from a card."
