Understanding Online Risk and Common Scam Tactics

Recognise how scammers use pressure, trust and confusion before money or information is lost.

What you will learn

• Explain the main goals of online scams
• Recognise pressure secrecy and impersonation tactics
• Use a pause and verify routine

Safety note

Use invented examples during practice. Never publish or send real passwords, PINs, verification codes, recovery codes, private tokens or complete financial details. If money or account access may be at risk, contact the relevant provider promptly through independently verified official details.

Understand the goal

Scammers usually want money, account access, personal information or control of a device. The message may arrive through WhatsApp, email, social media, a phone call, an advertisement or a marketplace listing.

A familiar logo, profile photograph or local telephone number is not proof of identity. Names, numbers, websites and screenshots can be copied or falsified.

Notice manipulation

Urgency, threats, secrecy, unexpected rewards and unusually attractive prices are common warning signs. A scammer may also spend time building trust before making a request.

Strong emotion reduces careful thinking. Stop when a message creates fear, excitement, sympathy or pressure to act immediately.

Pause and verify

Do not use the link, number or contact details supplied in a suspicious message. Find the organisation’s official contact information separately and ask whether the request is genuine.

Discuss uncertain requests with a trusted person. A legitimate opportunity can normally survive a short verification delay.

Guided practice

1. List three ways a scammer might contact someone.
2. Write a three-step Pause Verify Decide routine.
3. Review a sample urgent message and identify its pressure tactics.

Knowledge check

1. What are four common scammer goals?
2. Does a familiar profile photograph prove identity?
3. How should an unexpected request be verified?

Completion standard

Continue when you can complete the guided practice safely and explain the knowledge-check answers in your own words.