Parent's Guide to Identifying Online Game Scams Targeting Children

Video games are a staple in many American households and kids and teens make up the largest share of players. Eighty-four percent of kids aged 5 to 17 spend over an hour a week gaming, more than any other age group.

With so many young people logging on to play, safety is a serious concern. Teaching kids and teens how to spot online gaming scams can help them avoid losing money to financial fraud. Here’s what parents need to know about online gaming fraud detection.

Why Children Are Primary Targets for Online Gaming Fraud

Fraud in the gaming industry is not new, but children are increasingly falling victim to gaming scams. A combination of factors may make kids particularly vulnerable to online scammers, including their age, the amount of time they spend online, and a lack of online safety knowledge.

For example, a child may be more trusting of people they encounter in online gaming spaces than an adult would be. The notion of being scammed may not be on their radar. So if someone asks a kid to click a link or share their account details, they might go ahead and do so. Scammers rely on behavior like this to carry out gaming fraud.

Scammers also use bullying and peer pressure to try to manipulate kids into falling for scams. For example, they might threaten to exclude a child from group play or block them if they don’t agree to their demands. The fear of being left out may push kids to comply with their requests, without realizing that it’s a scam.

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Common Online Game Scams to Watch For in 2026

Multiple online gaming scams are making the rounds in 2026, and some of them are similar to common bank scams. The types of games your child plays can influence which scams they might run into. Teaching them how to spot these different types of online game fraud could help them stay protected as they navigate their favorite digital spaces.

Fake Virtual Currency Generators (Robux and V-Bucks Scams)

Some online games require players to use a specific virtual currency to play. For example, gamers need Robux to make purchases in Roblox, and they need V-bucks to buy skins (virtual accessories that change the look of items in the game) and other items in Fortnite. Kids (or parents) need to exchange real currency for in-game currency. So you might buy your child a $20 Roblox gift card that’s good for 2,000 Robux in the game.

However, fake virtual currency generators promise kids free currency in exchange for completing a specific task. For example, kids might be told they need to log in to their gaming account through the currency generator website in order to get their Robux or V-bucks. Or they might be told to click on a certain link to generate a code for free virtual currency.

But these currency generator sites are just fronts for scammers who use them to install malware on kids’ devices or lure them into phishing traps.

Phishing for In-Game Skins and Rare Account Items

Some online games allow users to purchase or collect skins and other rare items that are used when playing the game. Users of these games can be targeted for phishing scams that operate similar to virtual currency scams.

Here’s how such a phishing scam typically works: A player may be told they can obtain a free skin or rare item by logging on to a specific website. Once they log in, one of two things may happen:

•   A scammer can use their credentials to steal items from their account inventory and/or access their account billing details.

•   The scammer might install malware on their device to collect their logins and other details across all the websites they visit.

Just like the fake currency generator scams, the player never receives the skins or rare items they’re promised.

AI-Generated “Celebrity” Giveaways and Influencer Impersonation

Artificial intelligence is increasingly being used to perpetrate online gaming fraud using deepfake technology. Scammers are using AI deepfakes to impersonate celebrities and gaming influencers or, in some cases, take over their accounts entirely for the purposes of defrauding young players.

For example, someone who appears to be a well-known gamer might invite young players to participate in a test run of a yet-to-be-released feature for a popular game. They send players video and text messages from a deepfake account that looks like the real deal. Young players get a link to a website where they can log in to play alongside the celebrity gamer. It looks legit, so the child clicks through and enters their login credentials.

At this point, the scammer has their login information, which they can then use to raid their account. They may also have hidden malware in the link, which spreads across the young player’s device.

“Pig Butchering” and Social Engineering in Gaming Lobbies

“Pig butchering” scams are coordinated scams that typically play out over a longer time frame. With this type of fraud, the scammer feeds the young victim a story to earn their trust, similar to the way a farmer fattens a pig before slaughtering it. Then they use that trust against the child to scam them out of money and/or install malware on their devices.

This type of scam often goes hand-in-hand with social engineering tactics. For example, a fraudster might chat up a player in one game by claiming to know them from another platform. Or they might offer a sob story about how their account was hacked and they lost all their rare items.

The scammer relies on psychology or an emotional connection to be able to manipulate the young victim into giving them something they want. That might include virtual currency or in-game currency, the child’s login credentials, or their (or their parents’) FDIC-insured bank account details.

How to Spot the Red Flags of Gaming Fraud

Online gaming fraud detection requires an awareness of signs that might give a scammer away. Kids may not be able to recognize them right away, but parents can learn what to look for and teach them to their child.

Examples of common red flags associated with online gaming scams include:

•   Overfamiliarity with the child or claiming a connection or friendship that your child doesn’t have any knowledge of

•   Bullying behavior or peer pressure to do certain things for another player

•   Offers for free virtual currency or skins that seem too good to be true

•   Requests for personal or financial information

•   Unsolicited messages from celebrities or influencers that find their way into your child’s private inbox

•   Messages that include links to unsecured websites

Deepfakes and AI add a new wrinkle to online gaming scams, and spotting them requires vigilance and close observation. You could use AI detection software to determine if a video, image, or website is legitimate (see more about this below).

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5 Proactive Ways to Protect Your Child’s Digital Wallet

You want your kids to enjoy gaming but you also want to protect them. Setting up multiple layers of defense like the methods below may offer some insulation against online gaming scams.

1. Enabling Phishing-Resistant Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)

Multi-factor authentication (MFA) requires users to take additional steps when logging in to a website or app. For example, once an individual enters their username and password they might be required to enter a numeric code that’s sent to your email or text messages.

Phishing-resistant MFA takes that a step further by using something called public key cryptography to prevent scammers from stealing login credentials. Essentially, this type of MFA verifies that the website that your child is logging into is not a fake phishing site. If your child games on platforms that support phishing-resistant MFA, enabling it is a simple way to protect them against gaming fraud. Parents can use hardware security keys or passkeys that are built- in to the device to help prevent phishing attacks.

2. Using “Vaults” and Spending Limits for In-Game Purchases

If your kids make in-game purchases using your bank account or their own, you could choose to set limits on what they can spend. This simple step can prevent unauthorized transactions and help you and your child keep track of what’s spent each month.

You might also consider using savings vaults to designate a certain amount that kids are allowed to spend in-game monthly. For example, with a SoFi Checking and Savings account, individuals can set up multiple vaults for different financial needs. One vault could be designated for a child’s gaming with a set amount of money in it through a parent’s digital wallet.

This approach may help kids develop discipline around in-game spending so they don’t drain their vault too quickly. It could also be a way to help instill lessons about budgeting for teens.

3. Auditing Parental Controls and Privacy Settings

Parental controls exist to give parents a say in what their child does online, including when they’re playing video games. Depending on your child’s age, maturity level, and internet safety know-how, you might choose to restrict their ability to chat in game or accept private messages from players who aren’t on their friends list.

You can also control what information is shared through the game’s privacy settings. This is important because scammers may use identifying information shared through a child’s profile to target them for scams. Restricting your child’s profile to friends-only or private could help keep their details from being compromised by a scammer.

4. Educating Kids on the “Pause and Verify” Habit

“Pause and verify” is a simple strategy that may help kids stay safe while gaming online. With this approach, kids are encouraged to:

•   Pause and ask themselves some key questions. For example, do they know the person who is messaging them? If someone is offering free currency or game items, does it seem too good to be true?

•   Verify that a request is legitimate and from a trusted source. That might mean checking the source of an email or text, or running a shared link through a trusted scam detection website, for which they might need your help.

You can also institute a rule that they aren’t allowed to share any information, including their login details, with people they don’t know. Encourage your kids to check with you if they feel unsure or uneasy about any message they receive or game offer they come across.

5. Implementing Biometric Age Verification Tools

Biometric age verification tools use technology like facial age estimation, document matching (this is basically an authenticity check), and liveness detection (ensuring that there is an actual person present and not a deepfake) to verify someone’s age.

This type of tech is designed to go a step beyond regular identity verification methods to protect kids when engaging in online spaces. Roblox, for example, uses facial age estimation to allow players to unlock the chat feature.

Biometric age verification can protect kids by making it more difficult for scammers to assume false identities or bypass age restrictions when engaging with players. It can help prevent account takeovers, which can happen when someone steals another player’s login credentials, and minimize the number of bot accounts that can target players with fake giveaways and other scams.

Emerging Threats: Deepfakes and Synthetic Identities in Gaming

As mentioned, deepfakes and AI can be used to perpetrate online gaming scams by presenting a false image of celebrities or influencers. Kids may be lured by someone they think they know from social media or TV, setting themselves up for a scam.

Synthetic identities represent a different type of threat. With this method, scammers create entirely fictional personas to defraud kids through online game scams. The most sophisticated synthetic identities blend real and fake information to gain players’ trust. Once a scammer forms a friendship with a child through an online game, they can then initiate phishing scams and other types of fraud.

If your child tells you they’ve made a new friend in an online game, check out the individual’s profile. Look for information that you can verify publicly and check for inconsistencies if they have accounts set up on multiple gaming or social media platforms. And of course, trust your gut. If something feels off, it could very well be a red flag that the person your child is playing video games with is a scammer in disguise.

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What to Do if Your Child Falls Victim to a Gaming Scam

If your child becomes the victim of an online game scam, first and foremost, stay calm. Listen as they tell you what happened without anger or judgment. Ask for as much detail as possible to make sure you understand what happened and the type of scam you’re dealing with.

Then, change your child’s passwords on all gaming platforms and social media platforms they use. If you’re worried about bank accounts being compromised, you can change those passwords as well. Enable multi-factor authentication if you haven’t yet done so.

Next, document the scam using screenshots, emails, texts, private messages, and any other type of contact the scammer had with your child. Once you have proper documentation, block the scammer so they can’t contact your child again. Report the scam to the gaming platform and share your documented evidence.

If you think a scammer may have gotten access to your bank account, contact the bank to ask what you can do to protect yourself. For example, there may be some online banking security measures you can take.

Report any unauthorized transactions that show up on saving or checking accounts or credit card accounts right away. You might also consider freezing your credit, or at the very least, monitoring it closely for suspicious activity.

Check all the devices your child used for malware or spyware. There are free and paid detection tools that can help you do this. Encourage your child to monitor their email accounts and text messages for login alerts, password reset requests, and messages that include verification codes. Finally, educate them on how to protect their account from hackers and spot scams going forward to help keep themselves safe.

The Takeaway

Online gaming scams can harm kids emotionally and also do serious financial damage. Being proactive is one of the best ways to minimize your child’s risk. Talking to kids about scams, and teaching them what to watch out for and how to protect themselves, can serve them well throughout their childhood and into adulthood.

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FAQ

What are the most common gaming scams targeting kids right now?

Some of the most common online gaming scams targeting kids now involve “free” virtual currency or skin giveaways, deepfake and AI scams, and pig butchering scams. Scammers play on kids’ trusting natures and lack of knowledge about internet scams to commit these types of fraud.

How can I tell if a “free currency” offer is a scam?

A free currency offer is usually a scam if it seems too good to be true or when it comes from a source other than a legitimate gaming platform. Other signs of such a scam include being directed to visit a third-party website to share your login credentials, or being asked to share a “secure” link to the giveaway with others.

Are mobile games safer than PC or console games for children?

Mobile games, PC games, and console games can all present safety risks for children if they allow for in-game purchases, have built-in chat features, or have limited security features. Understanding the games your child is playing and the types of risk that each platform presents to young gamers can help you build lines of defense to help keep kids safe online.

Can scammers use AI to trick my child in game chats?

Scammers can and do use AI and deepfakes to perpetrate online gaming scams. AI makes it easy for scammers to create a synthetic identity that looks real, or to replicate a celebrity or influencer persona and use it to chat with kids online. Observing the “people” your children are interacting with and using AI detection tools can help you spot deepfake and AI scams.

What should I do if my credit card was used for a fraudulent game purchase?

If your credit card was used for fraudulent game purchases, contact your credit card company immediately. Report the unauthorized activity and dispute the charges. Request a card freeze or a cancellation of the card to prevent new charges, and put a fraud alert on your credit report. Remove the card as a payment method from any platforms you’ve linked it to.

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Photo credit: iStock/DjelicS

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