Some scammers run contests, with the aim being to gather entry money or personal information as a means of identity theft. Another variation exists in the form of literature or art competitions, in which creative young people can submit their work in the hopes of winning a prize or have their work published. Of course, the teen applicant wins—and is then asked to pay a sum of money for the work to actually be published or displayed. Or, the teen is required to send money with the opportunity to win an even larger prize.

Investment and money transfer scams operate in many different ways. Although these scams don’t necessarily target teens, they may be more likely to fall victim to them. It generally starts when they receive an email from a foreign businessperson who claims to need help moving funds abroad. Or, they get an offer to invest in a great opportunity with huge payouts (often known as a Ponzi scheme). Or, they are offered a quick and easy way to make money by recruiting others—a pyramid scheme. Although many of these scams operate in the online world, they exist in other forms as well.

Many young people are worried about financing their higher education, and this may cause them to fall victim to scams surrounding false scholarships or grants. Many of these offers are attempts to steal personal information from students who may be looking for financial aid. Other scams focus on charging money for information on potential scholarships that may or may not actually exist.

Another variety targets young college students who have accrued debt from legitimate student loans. These older teens may be approached by people who offer to help eliminate student debt in exchange for a small fee. Once the fee is paid, the fraudster disappears without, of course, altering the student’s debt at all.

Auction scams have been found to target unsuspecting teens in various ways. One scam involves an auction that the teen wins for an item that doesn’t exist or never arrives—though the teen has paid for it. Alternatively, when an unsuspecting teen is encourage to auction off possessions; the scam artist (the “auction house rep”) requires the teen to send in the item in advance, before the buyer’s payment arrives or even before bids are placed. Of course, the funds never arrive or the auction never happens, and the rep just disappears.

Many teens carry around their cell phones wherever they go, creating a vehicle for potential fraud. Knowing how kids love to personalize their gadgetry, some companies target teens for “free” new ringtones and wallpaper images that arrive on a regular basis. However, what they don’t advertise—or at least, make clear—is that this service comes with a hefty fee that’ll be added to the phone bill each month. Many of these fees appear on the phone bill with ambiguous terms making it difficult for consumers—be it the kids or their parents—to realize what they’re paying for.

It’s an old but eternally important life lesson: If anything looks too good to be true, it probably is. If you’re a parent, take the time to discuss the types of information that scammers are looking for, emphasize the need for security, privacy, and caution in sharing data. And make your children aware of any common frauds out there—especially on the internet.