Back-To-School: NY Consumer Tips To Protect Kids, Prevent Scams

NEW YORK — When it comes to back-to-school time, internet scammers are increasingly sophisticated at targeting you while you're shopping and at stealing your children's personal information, the state Division of Consumer Protection warned.

"As another summer comes to an end and New Yorkers begin preparing for the back-to-school rush, it’s important for parents and guardians to be aware of potential scams aimed at stealing personal information," Secretary of State Robert J. Rodriguez said in a news release. "Whether shopping for school supplies or helping your young student with new online learning tools, these tips will help protect you and your family’s privacy and finances."

Avoid Back to School Shopping Scams

Back-to-school shopping is parents’ second-largest spending event (behind holiday shopping), state consumer experts said. Scammers may try to exploit the back-to-school rush through fraudulent ads or through other forms of solicitations, state consumer experts said.

Oftentimes, a shopping scam starts with a fake website, mobile app or, increasingly, a social media ad. Nowadays, con artists will even send "phishing" emails about things such as school supply deliveries.

• Protect your identity when shopping online. Make sure transactions are conducted over a secure connection. Make sure the website is secure by identifying a padlock symbol by the URL or the https. Avoid using public Wi-Fi to log in to online accounts.
• Download retail apps only from trusted sources. Cybercriminals are now creating apps that look and might even function like legitimate retail apps but are actually malware designed to steal your personal and financial information, send text messages without your knowledge or even track your location using your phone’s GPS capabilities.
• Beware of fake ads and websites. As fraudsters continue to advance in sophistication, fake websites frequently resemble legitimate sites with credible looking logos, pictures and payment options. If the website is advertising extremely low prices, or discounts beyond 50 percent, consumers should be wary and diligently verify the legitimacy of the seller.
• Learn how to spot phishing emails. Scammers may send phishing emails to students and parents saying that they missed a delivery of school supplies. These emails request that the recipients click on a link to reschedule this delivery. That link either floods victims’ computers with malware or sends them to fake websites that request their personal and payment information.
• Ensure you know who the seller is. Some major retailers allow third party sellers to list items on their site, and those items can be hard to distinguish from the rest. Read all the fine print to ensure you are comfortable with the seller.
• Pay attention to return and refund policies. Retailers must post their refund policy. If no refund policy is posted, consumers have up to 30 days from the date of purchase to get a full refund or store credit with receipt. For more tips, please see information from this December 2022 Consumer Alert.
• Use a credit card for online purchases, if possible. Credit cards offer the most protection against fraud, including the right to dispute charges if there are problems with your purchase. Beware of online sites that ask for payments via gift cards or cash transfer apps.
• Watch out for fake coupons on social media. If the coupon doesn’t come from a recognized coupon distributor, the manufacturer or a specific store, be wary.

Think About Children’s Privacy

Parents and guardians need to place close attention to the technology children use, what personal information is collected and how it is all used.

Under New York State’s Education Law, if you are a parent of a child in school, you have rights regarding the privacy and security of your child’s personal information and data. NYS law requires each educational agency to publish a parents’ bill of rights for data privacy and security on its website.

Technology has become a permanent fixture of the education experience. The Federal Trade Commission has put educational technology companies on notice of their obligations to protect children’s privacy. In other words, they must comply with privacy requirements and can’t require parents and schools to agree to the comprehensive surveillance of children for kids to use their learning tools.

Some important things for parents to know:

• Your child’s personal information cannot be sold or released for any commercial purposes.
• If your child is under age 18, you have the right to inspect and review the complete contents of your child’s education records.
• If you have questions about student data, please see information available for parents from The New York State Department of Education.

Other ways to pay close attention to your child’s personal information:

• Protect documents that contain a child’s personal information. Understand where your child’s information is stored. Ask how after-school organizations and sports clubs secure their records: Are digital records connected to the internet and, if so, are they encrypted? Are physical records locked in filing cabinets? Who has access?
• Be careful when providing identifying information to after-school activities and sports clubs upon registration. If asked for a Social Security number, inquire why it is needed and ask to use another identifier. Oftentimes organizations include the SSN request as a formality and it may not be mandatory.
• Only label books, backpacks and lunches with the student’s full name and any other information on the inside. Using initials on the outside is okay, but names, even just first names, on the outside can create an unsafe situation.

• Discuss internet safety tips with children. Both parents and students should be careful on all social media platforms: don’t overshare. Any information you post can be seen and used by identity thieves. Avoid sharing personal information including full names, addresses, phone numbers, Social Security numbers or even where they go to school. Social media posts often reveal sensitive information unintentionally. Cybercriminals look for content that can reveal answers to security questions used to reset passwords, making accounts vulnerable to identity theft.