Older adults and the people they trust can take some measures to prevent being scammed, as well as to blunt the potential damage if a scammer is successful.
Pause before reacting. If you receive an unusual, urgent message of any type, take a moment to reach out through a different and trusted means, in order to confirm the message with the person or institution supposedly contacting you.
For instance, if you get a call from someone claiming to represent your bank, and they say you need to perform a financial transaction, hang up. And then call the number on the back of your debit card, so you can confirm whether the issue was legitimate. If you’re still unsure, ask people you trust what they think.
Create protections for finances. Nofziger suggested contacting financial institutions to set limits on specific activities on accounts, like wire transfers or purchases. One way to watch for signs of financial fraud is to request credit reports, which highlight activity that might otherwise go unnoticed. You can also attempt to prevent some forms of fraud by requesting a credit freeze. Credit rating agency Equifax notes that parents can opt to add a trusted adult child to their banking and credit accounts, so they can keep better tabs on accounts.
Filter unknown calls and texts. Some modern Android devices and iPhones using iOS 26 have a feature that automatically segregates messages and calls from unknown sources; you’ll still receive them, but they’re tucked away in a separate folder. Enabling these filters can prevent the types of random scam attempts that older adults may fall prey to.
Similarly, newer Android phones use AI to detect potential scams in calls and texts. Keep in mind that some of these features won’t work if you engage with the scammers. So it’s crucial that suspicious messages are deleted without being interacted with.
Although email services are better at filtering out scam messages, they’re not infallible. Some email clients, like Apple Mail and Thunderbird, let you create filter rules to send messages from anyone not in your contacts list to the junk or trash folders.
Audit or avoid social media. When you limit the information that’s visible in social media profiles and posts, it can become harder for scammers to tailor their targeted attacks or find samples to build AI voices. Social media can also be way for scams to spread, either through direct messages or ads on the platform.
It can be tedious to remove and limit public information from social media sites like Facebook. So this may be a task that older adults perform with the help of trusted family members. Be sure to save important personal photos and videos from these sites to a home computer or to a cloud-based photo-storage service, such as Google Photos or Apple Photos. Also, consider how limited these sites should be. Removing them entirely might cut off an avenue for scammers, but it could also prevent families from communicating easily.
Establish a family password. The experts we spoke with suggested establishing a family password in order to protect against impostor scams and AI-generated voices. That way, if family members receive an unusual request, they can simply ask for the password to confirm that someone is actually the person they claim to be. (This can take some practice.)
Employ digital hygiene. Everyone should install an ad blocker to protect against malicious ads. They should also use a password manager to generate unique and complex passwords for each online account, and they should secure those accounts with multi-factor authentication.
Keep in mind that while these tactics are important, they are intended to protect online accounts. Squire pointed out that many scammers aren’t trying to access accounts; instead many are interested in getting targets to send them money directly.
If you’re an older person’s trusted family member or caretaker, be proactive. Caretakers and family members should keep an eye out for gift cards, ATM receipts, and suspicious phone calls that might indicate a loved one has been caught up in a scam. They should also pay special attention if that person starts asking about the types of platforms and tools that are commonly used in scams — for instance, if the person asks for help with using instant-messaging platforms and social media or installing crypto apps, or if they request a ride to a new place (one that has a crypto ATM).
Changes in behavior are also something to watch for. If someone is suddenly sneaking off to send messages on their phone, or they are giddily talking about a new person they’ve recently met, it could be the sign of a romance scam in progress. “This is one of those things where you just really need to take a beat and listen,” Nofizger said.
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