On your phone? Email yourself the link for the classroom computer.
Email me the linkManaging risk · About 20 minutes · thedime.news/resources/worksheets/spot-scams/
Spot scams and protect your identity
The red flags in scam texts, DMs and calls, and what to do if your information is stolen.
Read
Scammers target teens with fake jobs, prizes, brand deals and messages from "your bank." Most scams share the same red flags: pressure to act right now, a request for a password or code, payment by gift card, crypto or a payment app, and offers that sound too good to be true.
Phishing messages pretend to be from a real company so you'll click a link and type in your login. Real banks and companies don't ask for your password or verification code by text, email or phone.
Identity theft is when someone uses your personal information, like your Social Security number, to open accounts in your name. If it happens, report it at IdentityTheft.gov and contact the companies involved. You can also freeze your credit at the three credit bureaus for free, so no one can open new credit in your name. Checking your credit report helps you spot problems early.
Words to know
Write what each word means in your own words.
- Phishing
- Identity theft
- Credit report
Questions
- Read each message. Write SCAM or LEGIT, and the red flag if it's a scam.
Message Scam or legit? Red flag "USPS: your package is on hold. Update your address within 12 hours: usps-redelivery[.]top" "Your verification code is 482913" (you just tried to log in) "You're a brand ambassador! Free kit, just pay $49.99 shipping" "This is the IRS. Pay $800 in gift cards today or be arrested" - A text from "your bank" asks you to confirm your password through a link. What should you do?
- Click it and confirm quickly
- Reply with your password
- Ignore the link and contact the bank using the number on your card or its app
- Forward it to friends
- Where do you report identity theft and get a recovery plan?
- What does freezing your credit do, and what does it cost?
- Practice: play thedime.news/resources/scam/. Which message fooled you, and what red flag did you miss?
Answer key: Spot scams and protect your identity
Words to know
- Phishing: A scam message that pretends to be from a real company to trick you into giving up passwords, codes or money.
- Identity theft: When someone uses your personal information, like your Social Security number, to open accounts or borrow money in your name.
- Credit report: A record of how you've borrowed and paid back money. You can check yours for free at AnnualCreditReport.com.
Questions
- USPS text: scam (fake link and a deadline). The code you requested: legit. Brand ambassador: scam (paying to work). IRS call: scam (gift cards and a threat of arrest).
- C. Contact the bank yourself through a number or app you already trust.
- IdentityTheft.gov.
- It stops anyone, including scammers, from opening new credit in your name. It's free at each of the three credit bureaus.
- Answers will vary.
The Dime worksheets are licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0. Share and adapt them freely with credit to The Dime, but don't sell them.
More free worksheets
- Insurance basicsManaging risk · Premiums, deductibles and how to compare two plans.
- The real cost: cost per month and cost per useSpending · How to compare prices by spreading them over time, uses or units.
- Read a pay stubEarning income · Where your paycheck goes before it reaches you, and how to check the math.
Free: every lesson worksheet in one printable PDF
Pay stubs, budgeting, compound interest, credit, investing, insurance, the Fed, scams and more, each with an answer key. Enter your email to download it, and get tomorrow's bell-ringer before first period.