Security News > 2022 > August > Chinese scammers target kids with promise of extra gaming hours

Yesterday the CAC detailed some of the 12,000 acts of online fraud perpetrated against minors it handled this year.

The unfortunate 15 year old, whom the CAC identified as Tan Moumou, was playing a mobile game when an unknown person added him as a friend on messaging platform WeChat and claimed he could circumvent China's gaming restrictions.

The child surreptitiously made payments to his new "Friend" using his parent's mobile phone and handed over 3,800 yuan - around $560. Needless to say, the fraudster was not able to change Beijing's limit on allowed gaming hours.

In another case, a 12 year old lured by the promise of a free game skin was convinced they had committed an illegal act and that a $1,500 payment could make the problem go away.

Other incidences of fraud saw a 12 year old pay for gaming equipment that was never delivered, an eleven year old deceived in a fake lottery scam, and a 14 year old fooled into divulging details of their parents' payment services to a scammer who netted around $1850.

The regulator said that while local web giants co-operated with its inquiries, there is still plenty of work to do on measures such as fraud reporting mechanisms, timely handling of fraud reports, and ongoing security testing of applications and infrastructure.

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https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2022/08/09/china_minors_gaming/