Gaming Scams and Virtual Items

Gaming scams represented by a game controller with gold padlock, virtual items, coins and scam warning icon

Gaming scams can target money, virtual items, account access or the device a child uses to play. This guide helps families recognise the request behind an attractive offer. For example, free currency or a valuable skin may be bait for a fake login. A friendly teammate or familiar account can also pass on a criminal’s message.

If an account, payment or device is already at risk, start with I think I have been scammed: what to do next. Stay calm with a child who tells you what happened. Asking for help should not cost them your support.

Table of contents

How gaming scams turn play into pressure

Virtual currency buys game content, while a skin changes an item’s appearance. Some games also allow item trading. These features can give criminals something valuable to steal. Australia’s ASD gaming security guide describes risks involving currency, items, unofficial offers and unsolicited downloads.

A criminal may promise a reward, offer to help a player improve or threaten a ban. Then they ask for a login, payment, download or item transfer. The Social Engineering guide explains the shared pressure tactics. You do not need to memorise every scam name to question an unsafe request.

Gaming scams involving currency and giveaways

Free virtual currency offered outside the game’s official channels is a warning sign. Epic Games warns against external websites promising free V-Bucks or other products, and advises players to verify genuine promotions through official Epic channels. Likewise, Roblox’s trading-scam guidance cautions against deals outside supported trading systems. A promised gift, valuable skin or urgent bargain is not a reason to share account credentials or one-time verification codes. Parents should help children use the game’s official reporting and recovery controls rather than pay an unofficial intermediary.

An offer may appear in game chat, a video comment, an advert or a separate messaging group. For example, a supposed reward page may ask a child to sign in again or share a login code. A page that looks polished can still be a fake.

For Epic Games, official account security advice warns against unofficial offers of free currency and payments to third parties for game gifts. It also warns against buying, selling or sharing accounts. Open the official game or store yourself to check an offer. A screenshot of a promotion is not proof.

  • Check the destination independently. Open the game’s established app, launcher or official website rather than a reward link.
  • Keep credentials private. Do not send passwords, login codes, recovery codes or browser session information to another player.
  • Decline verification payments. Do not pay a stranger to unlock a promised giveaway.
  • Avoid account sales and account lending. Another person may retain recovery access, and platform rules may prohibit the arrangement.

Also, a child does not need to enter a giveaway because friends appear to have joined. Comments, screenshots and familiar accounts can create false confidence. Check the offer with a trusted adult before acting.

Virtual item theft and unfair trades

Roblox provides a Trade Quality Filter that can help identify unfavourable offers within supported trades. Its official instructions place the setting under Account Settings → Privacy & content restrictions → Trading & inventory, where users can choose None, Low, Medium or High. This feature does not guarantee a fair trade and cannot protect deals outside Roblox’s supported trading and selling systems. Steam also describes a seven-day Trade Protection feature for supported items, currently Counter-Strike 2 items, if an account was compromised. It should not be described as a universal Steam refund right. If a child loses virtual items, preserve the relevant transaction details and contact the platform promptly; Roblox says requests for limited compromised-account item recovery should be made within 30 days, with no guarantee of recovery.

Keep item trades inside official systems. Roblox warns that off-platform transactions are not protected by its trade rules and lost items or Robux may not be returned. Check the official trading and selling tools rather than trusting a promise from a player or a social media account. Likewise, Epic Games’ account guidance warns against unofficial free V-Bucks offers and third-party sites requesting sign-in details. A real teammate or familiar avatar does not prove an offer is genuine.

A person may ask to borrow a valuable item, offer to sell it for the owner or promise a better item later. Another may change the proposed exchange before acceptance. Keep the actual contents of the trade separate from what someone promised in chat.

For Roblox, official trading scam guidance warns against lending items or accounts and arrangements where one person sends first. Roblox cannot enforce deals made outside its official features. Rules and available trading features differ across services, so do not apply one game’s system to every other game.

  • Stay within the service’s official trading features where trading is available and permitted for the account.
  • Read the final offer carefully. Check the exact item and what you will give away before accepting.
  • Decline temporary holding or checking requests. Do not transfer items to prove ownership to another player.
  • Stop if the terms change. Pressure to hurry is a reason to leave the deal.

An official trade tool does not guarantee a fair price or make every participant trustworthy. Similarly, parental permission cannot make an unofficial deal recoverable. Check the platform’s current rules before any exchange.

Fake support and gaming scams about bans

A message may claim that someone reported the player by mistake. It may then direct them to a supposed administrator on another service. Steam’s warning about false reports identifies this as a scam. The threat of losing a treasured account can make the demand feel urgent.

Instead of following a stranger’s support contact, open the service’s official help route yourself. Do not transfer items, pay a deposit or disclose recovery codes to a supposed moderator in chat. Also, a profile picture, staff title or copied conversation does not independently establish who controls the account.

Downloads, cheats and account theft

A supposed friend may offer a mod, cheat, tournament tool or game update. A file or browser extension can compromise a device even when the conversation began inside a trusted platform. Therefore, treat an unexpected download request as a separate safety decision.

Use the developer’s official distribution route and check whether the game permits the software. Do not disable security tools or paste commands to claim a reward. Also, avoid signing in through a site supplied by another player. Return to the official app or website yourself.

Familiarity is not enough to verify a file. A friend’s account may be compromised, or they may unknowingly repeat a harmful suggestion. If you installed something suspicious, use another trusted device for urgent account recovery and follow the response guide’s device advice.

Protect accounts and agree family rules

Use CODA’s existing Gaming Platform Safety Settings for the relevant service’s controls. Review account security, communication and purchase protections together. Features vary by platform, age and account type, so use the applicable guide rather than assuming every game has the same settings.

  • Secure the email account and linked accounts as well as the game account. Use unique passwords and the service’s available multifactor authentication.
  • Keep approvals private. Do not share an authentication code or approve an unexpected login, even when someone calls it a security check.
  • Agree spending boundaries and review purchase approvals and saved payment details through the relevant platform guide.
  • Make a pause rule. Check unexpected requests for logins, downloads, trades or payments before acting.
  • Agree how to ask for help. Keep the conversation open if a child breaks a rule or loses an item.

These protections reduce risk, but they do not verify every message or trade. For example, sharing a live approval code can undermine an extra login check. Also, another account or a move to private messaging can take the conversation beyond a parent’s chosen controls.

Spot the pressure in a fictional gaming scam

Fictional example: A teammate offers a rare item and says the player must claim it within ten minutes. They send a page that looks like the game’s login screen. Afterwards, they ask for a code “to finish the gift”.

  • Claim: A helpful teammate can provide a scarce reward.
  • Action: Sign in through their link and disclose a code.
  • Pressure: Friendship, excitement and a short deadline.
  • Uncertainty: The player has not verified the offer through the official service.
  • Safer check: Leave the page, open the game independently and ask a trusted adult before continuing.

Discuss what the code might authorise. Then practise declining without having to accuse the other player. A simple “I only check offers inside the official game” can help a child leave the conversation.

If a gaming scam has happened

  • Stop further contact and transfers. Do not pay someone who guarantees item or account recovery.
  • Secure affected access. Use the official account recovery route and protect the linked email account. Check unfamiliar sessions or connections through the provider’s instructions.
  • Contact the bank or payment provider promptly if card details, payments or banking access are involved.
  • Keep safe evidence. Note usernames, messages, trade details and payment references. Avoid opening more files or links to investigate.
  • Report through official support and the platform’s reporting tools. Report suspected fraud to your local Garda station in Ireland.

Roblox’s compromised account guidance explains its recovery process and says recovery of lost items or currency is not guaranteed. Other services have their own conditions. Therefore, seek help promptly without promising a child that everything will return.

For threats, blackmail or wider device exposure, follow the scam response guide. If someone faces immediate danger in Ireland, call 112 or 999. Also, reassure the child that the offender is responsible for the deception.

Frequently asked questions

No. A subscription or valuable account does not verify other players. However, available purchase and security controls can reduce particular risks when the family configures them appropriately.

What if the request comes from a friend?

Check unexpected requests through an existing separate contact route. A familiar account can be compromised. Similarly, a genuine friend may share an unsafe offer without realising it.

Will support return a stolen item?

That depends on the platform and circumstances. Keep evidence and use official support promptly. However, avoid anyone who demands payment or credentials while promising a guaranteed recovery.

Related CODA guides

References

About Children of the Digital Age

Children of the Digital Age provides online safety education and training for families, schools and organisations. Our work connects practical cybersecurity with online behaviour and cyberpsychology. These guides support informed choices and appropriate specialist help.

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    Last updated: 26 October 2026