Most parents fear it's 'only a matter of time' until their children become victims of 'gamer fraud'

A study of 1,000 mums and dads of kids aged six-15 found 31 per cent feel ‘powerless’ to protect them – with 36 per cent anxious their own finances are at risk.
However, 38 per cent have never spoken to their little ones about the threat posed by fraud when gaming online.
And this is despite 55 per cent of parents giving their children access to their credit or debit accounts.
Following the findings, Lloyds Bank, which commissioned the study, has teamed-up with gaming industry body, Ukie, to produce guidance and an interactive quiz to see how much parents are aware of when it comes to protecting their children online.
Parent-of-three and former Blue Peter presenter, Helen Skelton, is backing the campaign urging mum and dads to talk to their kids about gaming fraud and set-up parental controls on devices which can limit in-game chat or spending.
She said: “For a lot of children, gaming is playground currency, especially to kids with older siblings.
“Mine are no different to other kids and my eldest in particular is showing a growing interest in online games and activities.
“I am a self-confessed technophobe so, like a lot of parents, I am nervous about the world beyond the screen I know nothing about.
“That’s why it’s important to me to try and put protections and safeguards in place so I know they can at times play safely online like their peers.”
Parental awareness
The study also found that one in 10 of those polled said their kids have already been victims of this type of crime – with identity fraud the most common, followed by hacking, phishing, and grooming.
The most common methods used by scammers are in-game chat functions, impersonating in-game support, phone calls, phishing emails or texts, and malware.
But 77 per cent let their kids play video games without any adult supervision