In today’s technological world, where everything is digitalized and done online, there is no doubt that some risk is always lurking around on the internet. One of them is online scams; most scammers target younger children since they can be easily persuaded and fall for their misleading information and tricks.
And if you are concerned about your child and want to know how your teens can be protected from online scams. Is there any software or application that you might use to protect them from such scams? If yes, then how can online monitoring help your kids to avoid them? Then this blog will help you with all the information you need about online scams and monitoring applications.
What are Online Scams?
Online scams are fraudulent activities that use internet services to deceive people or takes advantage of victims, typically for financial gain by providing misleading information. Online perpetrators use different ways to fool people into entering their sensitive information like credit card details, phone numbers, and house addresses.
Scammers may contact your teens through social networking sites, email, dating apps, or other mediums. Many online scams have the same outcome: victims lose their money or do not receive what the fraudsters promised.
There are several scams that your kids can fall for when they surf the internet. According to the FBI Internet Crime Report, they received 791,790 complaints of suspected online crime, with losses reaching $4.2 billion. Phishing scams, non-payment/non-delivery frauds, and extortion were the top three crimes reported by victims in 2020.
Types of Scams
Today, many scams are found on the internet, but most of them focus on stealing personal information, financial gain, or essential business data. A list of common scams is provided below.
1. Phishing
Phishing is a common form of scam where scammers send you an email that seems to come from a trusted source. The received email will trick your kids into disclosing personal information such as credit card details, bank details, and passwords.
Scammers even attach a link to redirect you to other websites or malicious software that can harm your device. In most cases, scam emails are usually created in a hurry. One way to identify them is if it has specific red flags, such as misspellings, language errors, urgent demands with threats of monetary penalties, and logos that don’t appear to be correct. Also, never click on a link or source that you are unsure of.
You may also like: Hidden Spy App For Android Phone – BlurSPY
2. Online Shopping Fraud
Online shopping scammers pretend to be legitimate online sellers, either with fake websites or advertisements. They use the latest technology to create a website using sophisticated designs to attract customers; they often use famous brands. Most websites offer luxurious goods such as the famous brand of clothing, accessories, and gadgets at relatively low prices. Whenever you pay for them, either you will receive duplicate products or nothing at all. Many kids fall for such shopping scams.
The easiest way to find a retail website is a scam is the method of payment. All of the legitimate online stores ask you to pay after you receive your purchase order. But scammers will often ask you to pay money or advance before you receive your order. And if you send money this way, it is unlikely you will see that online store again or receive your order.
3. Employment Opportunity Scam
The majority of teens are in search of a job to become financially independent of their parents. Scammers publish job openings on the internet in the same way that real companies do. You could come across job openings on social media, employment portals, or classified advertising. They promise you a job, but all they want is your money and personal information.
Scammers try to deceive you by claiming that you will make a lot of money in a short amount of time or that you will be able to establish your own business or be your boss after working with us. However, your children may have to pay for registration fees, training, and useless certificates instead of earning money. Some examples of job scams work from home scams, nanny, caretaker, job placement service scams, and many more.
4. Scholarship Scam
Scholarship fraud is a scam where fraudsters appear as official organizations, such as government agencies or educational institutions, and offer to provide children with scholarship possibilities. The majority of scholarship fraudsters demand payment of a registration fee or a certain amount of money, and some are also involved in identity theft.
Scammers might ask for unusual information like social security numbers, credit card numbers, and bank details. It might be a fraud if you have to pay money to receive a scholarship. Beware of scholarship notifications that tell you that you won a scholarship, but you have never applied for it.
4. Lottery Scam
A lottery scam is a fraud that comes in the form of emails notifications, phone calls, messages, or through social networking sites. Scammers will call or message you and say that you won a lottery, prize, and sweepstakes like mobile phones, cash prizes, vehicles. They might identify themselves as a legitimate lottery.
Scammers will often ask you to send money to claim all your prizes. If you have to pay for the prizes you won in the lottery, that is a scam. And other things that you should remember to recognize is if they say you have won a lottery, but you have never participated in any lottery programs or bought a ticket.
5. Technical Support Scam
The tech support scam is an industry-wide problem where scammers contact or send messages pretending to be from a well-known company. They might say that your device has a problem and needs to fix your device and software problems.
These scammers want to gain access to your device, your important files, take your money, and other essential documents. All they want to do is install harmful and malicious software, ransomware, damage your data and device. So, they might ask for remote access to your device. It might appear in the form of pop-up messages that won’t go away, display fake support numbers on the website you visit. If you never expected a call or complained about your device, then it might be a scam.
6. Online Dating Scam
Many teenagers use online dating sites to find a perfect match for them. Users have to create their profile, mention their interests and hobbies, workplace, and age. On the other hand, scammers use online dating websites to create a fake profile in which they impersonate someone else by using fake photos, lying about their age to lure young teenagers into their trap. Many teenagers fall for such types of scams since their profiles look perfect.
Scammers establish a connection with their victims to gain their trust, sometimes messaging or calling them multiple times each day. Sometimes scammers come up with fake stories like they need money for their surgery or other medical issues, pay for a plane ticket or other travel expenses, etc., to acquire money from victims.
7. Credit Card Phishing
While accessing some websites, you may be asked to enter your bank information or credit card details. And if you provide all of your information, there’s a high possibility that fraudsters will take all your money without your permission.
Some websites, particularly those with pornographic or other explicit content, try to entice you with free content. Scammers will next demand that you submit credit card information to verify that you are at least 18 years old. Many customers claim that money was deducted from their accounts without their authorization after they provided their information.
8. Threat or Extortion Scam
Threats and extortion are terms used to describe illegally obtaining money or property from a person or an organization. Most scammers blackmail the victim by threatening to expose possibly unpleasant or socially harmful information unless their demand is fulfilled.
For example, a scammer might collect all of your children’s personal information and photos from their social media profiles and use them for inappropriate purposes. They will blackmail you by saying they will distribute images and videos unless you pay a certain amount.
Now that you know what online scams are, you’ll be able to identify them quickly. You can warn your kids about those scams and make them aware. You can also teach them how they can avoid such scams. Now let discuss online monitoring apps and how they will help you and your kids.
What is Online Monitoring?
Online monitoring is a process where you use software or application specially designed to watch and track your target’s device’s whole activities. Online monitoring apps also allow you to block inappropriate websites on the target devices. Some of these apps also have built-in antivirus and firewall capabilities to prevent unauthorized access and malicious software.
With online monitoring apps, you can keep track of everything they do on their devices, including their messages, phone calls, browsing history, and more. Based on their activities, you can tell whether they’re experiencing trouble, if they’re getting spam phone calls and texts, or if they’re falling for internet fraud.
How Does Online Monitoring Help Teens Get Rid of Online Scams?
With the advancement of technology, its risk is also increasing. Online criminals use a variety of techniques to mislead people. Since it is the simplest way to entice children without the risk of being discovered, online frauds have been on the rise. I have explained all types of scams that your child might fall for when surfing the internet, so it’s best to watch their actions before anything terrible happens to them. The online monitoring application provides several features required to track your child’s online activities.
1. Keylogger and Keyword Track
With the keylogger feature, you can set specific keywords and get a notification whenever your kid enters that keyword on their device. You can set keywords related to explicit content, abusive languages, cyberbullying, sensitive information so that you get notified every time they share such information with anyone they meet online.
Online monitoring apps keylogger feature can be used on social media, SMS, and search content or visit websites. This feature allows you to see whether your child is sharing personal information, passwords, or credit card numbers with others.
2. Track phone calls, IM chats, and SMS:
Monitoring chats allows you to control their outgoing as well as incoming SMS and chats. You can watch whom they are talking to and what kind of messages they send to others. Your kids may be responding to scam messages posted on the internet, which you can avoid by monitoring your child’s text messages.
For instance, some scammers directly send text messages related to offers, job opportunities, and free online shopping. If you think those messages are fake and trying to make money from your kids, you can warn them to prevent them from falling for such scams.
3. Track browsing history
These days, children have quick access to the internet and smartphones. As a result, kids can easily access a wide range of information on the internet. They might click on any links they find on emails, social media, or ads that redirect them to other websites. There are various age-inappropriate content, sexually explicit, or violent materials that your kid can see while surfing the internet.
Many online shopping sites are involved in fraudulent activities to scam people. With this feature, you can track their web browsing history, which can help you determine if your children visited such websites unintentionally or on purpose. And you can block that particular website.
4. Track locations and get alert notifications.
Most monitoring apps include a GPS location tracker that allows you to keep track of your children’s device’s present position. If you are always concerned about your children’s whereabouts, it can help you in tracking their real-time location.
Your teenagers might not be mature enough to take wise decisions all the time. For instance, your kids meet many new people on social media and online dating sites. Many scammers use dating sites to lure young kids. They build trust with your children by talking with them regularly and may even invite them to meet.
Its geofencing function allows you to mark some locations as restricted areas and get alerts if they enter the restricted area, allowing you to safeguard them from danger. You can also set a specific route for your child and get notified if they visit any other location that you restricted.
Best monitoring applications
There are several monitoring applications that work best for tracking online activities. But you might want to choose reliable, convenient, easy to use, and at a fair price. So I have mentioned some of my favorite parental control applications.
1. MobileSpy
MobileSpy is one of the best monitoring apps for parents to monitor and keep track of their children’s online activities. You can never trust online sites and ensure their safety while they are online. So, it allows you to track and control your teen’s mobile phones all the time, ensuring that they have a secure online experience.
MobileSpy offers a simple user interface that makes it easier for parents to navigate all of the functions. It operates in full stealth mode, and you can remotely monitor your child’s activities without being noticed by the target device. It is compatible with both devices, Android and iOS.
Features:
- It tracks all activities of target devices such as phone calls, text messages, social media activities, web browser history, and many more.
- Takes a screenshot of your child’s mobile phone activities and automatically sends it to you at a certain time interval.
- Geo-fencing allows you to mark areas that children are not permitted to enter. You will get alerts if they enter a prohibited area.
- The GPS history and live location function allow you to trace their exact location.
2. Norton Family Premier
Norton Family Premier provides a good monitoring service package for mobile phone web browsing, app usages, and desktop web browsing. With Norton, search engine filtering settings are enabled, preventing unwanted information from showing up in search results. It is compatible with Android, iOS, Windows but not with macOS.
Features:
- It allows you to monitor multiple devices with one subscription. Norton Family comes in handy when you need to keep track of all of your children’s activities.
- You can set time restrictions to limit their screen time.
- It includes added features such as a firewall, VPN, and antivirus.
- View text messages, IMs chats, and set limits on who your kids can text.
3. Qustodio
Qustodio is a well-designed, simple, and highly functional monitoring application for keeping track of your kid’s online activities on Windows, Android, and iOS devices. Its advanced web filtering system prevents access to websites that fall into any of the following categories: pornography, violence, drugs, and gambling. You may use Qustodio to restrict not just mobile apps but also desktop and web apps.
Qustodio offers a Panic Button feature which is only available for android users. You can add up to four trusted contacts, each with an email address and mobile number. If a child is lost or is in danger, they can use the app’s SOS bubble. And it automatically sends alert notifications and child locations to those contacts.
Features:
- You can set daily restrictions on how much time your child can spend on their smartphone.
- Track your kid’s real-time locations.
- You will have access to their social media account, web browser history, and the option to block unwanted websites and applications.
- For android users, Qustodio offers a panic button feature that will send alerts to four people from a trusted contact.
4. Net Nanny
Net Nanny is another monitoring tool that offers you complete control over your child’s device so you can see what they are up to. It uses artificial intelligence (AI) to filter out unsuitable information before it reaches your child. You may install Net Nanny on your teen’s device to guarantee that they are not exposed to improper information while surfing.
With Net Nanny, you can set daily screen time limitations for your children. When the time limit is reached, it pauses the phone or any other device your child uses. It also notifies your children about their timetables by displaying a full-screen message when their scheduled time has passed.
Features:
- You can block and allow specific applications and websites.
- Geofencing allows you to track your child’s mobile location in real-time.
- It pauses the mobile phone itself when it reaches the time limits.
- Provides you with a detailed report and alerts you about the child’s online activity.
5. mSpy
mSpy is the most effective and widely used parental control monitoring program. mSpy is a complete solution for monitoring your children’s online and offline activity on their devices. It operates in the background on the target device, so you don’t have to worry about your children discovering it. mSpy works on both devices Android and iOS.
Features:
- Easy installation and simple user interface.
- Monitor the instant messaging application on the target device.
- Update information of the target device every 5 minutes.
- It offers keylogging and keyword alerts.
6. Famisafe
With Famisafe, you can track your teen’s online activities remotely. It provides close online supervision of all your child’s activities on their phone and computers. Famisafe is compatible with all operating systems, including Windows, Mac, iOS, and Android. You don’t need to root or jailbreak a device which makes installation easy for users.
Features:
- Track their real-time location and location history through google maps.
- Detect suspicious photos and text.
- It generates a Personal Identification Number (PIN) for you to use to secure your account from your child from changing the app’s settings.
7. Bark
Bark offers intelligent content filtering, which helps your kids from accessing inappropriate websites and unwanted applications. With this application, you can get notifications when your child accesses anything inappropriate.
Features:
- Easy installation and reliable application at a fair price compared to other apps.
- Schedule screen timing for your kids.
- Detects profanity
- It monitors across 30 social media apps.
- Affordable and compatible with most devices, including Android and iOS.
Conclusion
Scams on the internet are on the rise these days. . They come in various forms such as phishing, job placement, lottery scam, scholarship scam, and many more, all of which are aimed primarily at children. Most scams are related to stealing money, identity theft, and other essential data of an organization. And we all know kids are not mature enough to take wise decisions.
So, with the help of a monitoring app, you can keep track of all of their actions. Monitoring software will help you in ensuring that your child’s internet activities are safe. With these applications, you can protect your kids from many online dangers and scams.
You may also like: 7 Best Android Spy Apps for Cheating Spouse
