Every week, Talking Points gives you a worksheet to practise your reading comprehension with exercises about the story we’ve written.
From fake items online to deceptive accounts on gaming platforms, scams targeting young people are growing.
For instance, a University of Hong Kong student lost HK$9.2 million to a phone scam in January.
Elvis Ng Ho-hei is the senior manager of youth services at the Hong Kong Family Welfare Society (HKFWS). He gave examples of common scams to watch out for and explained what to do if you have been scammed.
Scams are on the rise in Hong Kong thanks to technology and a lack of regulations
Buyer beware
According to Ng, many money fraud and personal information scams target teenagers. They could involve dating apps, online shopping and gaming.
“Scammers ... create fake deals to buy or sell game accounts, deceiving young players into sending money. After the payment is made, the victims frequently lose their accounts,” explained Ng. He has worked in cyber-safety education for 20 years.
He gave an example of a teen who came to HKFWS for support. She failed to buy tickets for a K-pop concert through official channels, so she paid HK$3,000 to a Carousell seller. However, the seller disappeared after receiving the money. Although she reported it to the police, she never recovered her money.
Teenagers spend a lot of time online. This can make them susceptible to scammers who build relationships with them before blackmailing them for money or inappropriate content.
“We encountered a case of a 10-year-old girl who made friends through online games and was invited to join a gaming group on Discord. She was coerced into taking inappropriate photos in exchange for money,” Ng said.
The girl’s school social worker found out what happened and referred her to the NGO’s internet-use education and counselling service, HealthyNet.
“We offered emotional support [and] parenting education and helped them connect them with the police, but they often are too late,” Ng said. “Ideally, we’d like to prevent these situations from happening in the first place.”
Importance of education
Schools and community groups are crucial in educating students to recognise scam tactics like phishing, impersonation and investment fraud.
Common red flags include requests for sensitive information such as ID numbers and passwords.
Teenagers should also be wary of urgent requests to send money or keep it a secret, as well as “too good to be true” offers that push them to buy something without checking if it is safe.
Ng said teenagers must learn to be responsible online, rather than just limiting their screen time. This education should start in primary school.
Don’t let Hong Kong’s latest anti-scam mascot, ‘despicable banana’, take a bite out of your savings
“Despite social media platforms having age limits ... many primary school students under 10 already use social media. These younger users are at greater risk because of their lack of maturity and exposure,” he said.
If you think you have been scammed, Ng suggested blocking the scammer’s accounts and changing all the passwords for your accounts.
You should also tell a trusted adult. Keep proof of the scam, such as screenshots of messages, emails, and records of money you have sent, so you can pass this information on to the police. If money is involved, contact your bank as soon as possible.
To test your understanding of this story, download our printable worksheet or answer the questions in the quiz below.
