In a digital age, it is important that we educate our kids how to avoid scams and to stay safe online. I like to dig through my spam folder to find examples of scams and use them as examples for students to critically analyze why they should be skeptical of the email. Previously I posted some examples of emails that you can share with your students. I also have posted a crowdsourced presentation of Digital Citizenship one liners that you may find helpful.

A popular scam email that I occasionally receive is one that looks like it is from someone I know, and they are in trouble asking for money. Usually, the email looks like it is from someone I know because their account has been hacked. In response, I will NOT reply to the hacked email. I will compose a fresh email to the person to let them know their account has been compromised and that they should consider changing their password.

Suspicious

A suggestion to have students look at these scam emails and explain why this looks like a scam.

• The email is not personally addressed.
• Friends do not usually send emails asking for large sums of money.
• There is no address or phone number to get in contact with the friend.
• The email is not signed by the friend.
• Even impromptu trips usually are shared on Facebook. If this person is a good enough friend to ask you for money, then you were probably a good enough friend for them to tell you they were going out of the country.
• Grammatical and spelling errors. “Now, our passport is in custody…” Sentences are starting with a lowercase letter.