How do I keep my kid safe selling online?

Reselling is one of the strongest businesses on the list, particularly for a quieter kid who would rather not knock on doors, and it comes with its own set of rules that have nothing to do with the ones for outdoor work.

The account belongs to an adult. Most platforms require users to be eighteen, and a minor cannot agree to the terms anyway. So the listing is under your name and your kid does the work: the photos, the descriptions, the pricing, the messages. You are the account holder rather than the operator.

Meet-ups happen in public, in daylight, with you there. Many police stations have designated exchange areas for exactly this and they are the easiest option. Never at your house, and never at somebody else's.

Check the photos before anything is listed. Kids do not think about backgrounds. House numbers, street signs, school uniforms, mail with an address on it, anything identifiable through a window. A quick look at every photo before it goes up prevents the whole category of problem.

Name the common scams in advance so your kid recognizes the shape rather than working it out under pressure. Somebody offering more than the asking price. Somebody wanting to move the conversation off the platform. Urgency about an unusual shipping or payment arrangement. Anything with a story attached about why the normal way will not work.

Worth teaching directly: a buyer who is pushing hard on any of those is not a buyer. Stopping mid-conversation is allowed, costs nothing, and does not require an explanation.

Two smaller things. Personal information stays out of messages, including school, neighborhood, and schedule. And a kid should not be handling a meet-up alone at any age, regardless of how straightforward it seems.