Adults over 60 lost $3.4 billion to fraud in 2025 — a 24% increase from 2024 — according to the FBI's Elder Fraud Report. The average loss was $33,915 per victim, with tech support scams, romance fraud, and government impersonation accounting for the largest shares. If you have aging parents or grandparents, this guide provides practical steps to reduce their risk without stripping away their autonomy.
Why Older Adults Are Targeted
Understanding why scammers target seniors helps you address the specific vulnerabilities:
- Accumulated wealth. Older adults are more likely to have savings, home equity, and retirement accounts — higher-value targets.
- Trusting nature. Many older adults grew up in an era when phone calls and mail were generally trustworthy. That learned trust does not automatically reset for the digital age.
- Digital unfamiliarity. While many seniors use technology daily, they may not recognize technical red flags like suspicious URLs, spoofed caller IDs, or phishing email formats.
- Isolation. Seniors who live alone have fewer opportunities to get a second opinion before acting on a scam request.
- Cognitive changes. Age-related cognitive decline can affect judgment, impulse control, and the ability to detect deception — even in otherwise sharp individuals.
- Reluctance to report. Many elder scam victims feel ashamed and do not tell family members, allowing the scam to continue.
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The Conversation: How to Bring It Up
The biggest mistake adult children make is lecturing. "You need to be more careful" or "You should not have clicked that" triggers defensiveness and makes future conversations harder. Instead:
Lead with Respect
Your parent is an adult who has made good decisions for decades. Frame scam prevention as protecting themselves from sophisticated criminals, not compensating for incompetence.
Share Specific Stories
Instead of abstract warnings, share concrete examples: "I read about a scam where people get a call that seems to be from their bank. The caller knows their name and bank name. It happened to a friend's parent and they lost $8,000." Specifics are memorable; generalities are forgettable.
Make It About You Too
"I got a scam text last week claiming to be from FedEx. I almost clicked it because I was waiting for a package. These things are getting really convincing." This normalizes being targeted and removes the stigma.
Create a Family Protocol
Establish a simple rule: "If anyone asks you for money, passwords, or personal information — whether by phone, email, or text — call me before responding. Not because I think you can't handle it, but because two brains are better than one."
Practical Technical Protections
Phone
- Enable call screening. On iPhone: Settings → Phone → Silence Unknown Callers. On Android: Phone app → Settings → Caller ID & Spam → Filter spam calls. This sends calls from unknown numbers to voicemail.
- Register on the Do Not Call list at donotcall.gov. While scammers ignore it, it reduces the volume of legitimate telemarketing, making scam calls more obvious.
- Set up carrier-level call blocking. T-Mobile Scam Shield, AT&T Call Protect, and Verizon Call Filter are free and filter known scam numbers.
- Write down legitimate contact numbers. Keep a card by the phone with real numbers for the bank, Social Security (1-800-772-1213), Medicare (1-800-633-4227), and you. If a "bank" calls, they can hang up and call the real number.
Computer and Email
- Install an ad blocker. uBlock Origin (free, available for Chrome, Firefox, Edge) blocks the malicious ads that trigger tech support scam popups. This one change eliminates a huge percentage of scam exposure.
- Enable browser phishing protection. Chrome's Enhanced Safe Browsing mode provides the strongest built-in protection.
- Set up automatic OS and browser updates so security patches are applied without action needed.
- Use a password manager (1Password or Bitwarden are good options). Besides generating strong passwords, it provides phishing protection — it will not auto-fill credentials on fake websites.
- Bookmark important sites. Set up bookmarks for banking, email, Social Security, and Medicare so they never need to search for or type these URLs.
Financial
- Set up bank account alerts. Configure notifications for any transaction over a threshold (e.g., $100). This provides early warning of unauthorized activity.
- Consider a trusted contact. Many brokerages and banks now allow account holders to designate a trusted contact who can be notified if the institution suspects financial exploitation.
- Look into daily withdrawal limits. Some banks allow you to set daily limits on wire transfers and ATM withdrawals.
Specific Scams Targeting the Elderly
The Grandparent Scam
"Grandma, it's me. I'm in trouble. I was in a car accident and I'm in jail. Please don't tell Mom and Dad. I need $5,000 for bail. Can you wire it to my lawyer?"
The caller sounds distressed and may vaguely resemble a grandchild's voice (or use AI voice cloning). They always say "don't tell anyone" to prevent verification.
Defense: Establish a family code word that must be used in any emergency request for money. If the caller cannot provide it, hang up and call the grandchild directly.
Medicare Scams
Callers claim to be from Medicare and need your Medicare number to send a new card, verify benefits, or process a refund. Medicare will never call you unsolicited to ask for your Medicare number.
Romance Scams
Older adults, especially those who are widowed or divorced, are heavily targeted on dating sites and social media. The scammer builds a relationship over months before requesting money. Losses in this category average over $50,000 for victims over 60.
Tech Support Scams
Pop-up warnings and cold calls claiming the computer is infected. Seniors are disproportionately affected because they are less confident troubleshooting technology themselves. See our full tech support scam guide for details.
Warning Signs Someone Is Being Scammed
Watch for these behavioral changes:
- Unusual purchases of gift cards or prepaid debit cards
- New secrecy about phone calls or computer use
- Unexpected financial anxiety or mentions of financial trouble
- New "friend" or romantic interest they met online
- Confusion about financial transactions or statements
- Reluctance to discuss certain topics (especially finances)
- Large or unusual withdrawals from bank accounts
If They Have Already Been Scammed
- Do not blame them. Shame prevents reporting and recovery. These scams are sophisticated enough to fool anyone.
- Contact their bank immediately to attempt to recover funds and secure accounts.
- Report to Adult Protective Services if significant financial exploitation has occurred.
- File reports with the FTC (ReportFraud.ftc.gov) and FBI IC3 (ic3.gov).
- Place fraud alerts on credit reports.
- Change all passwords if accounts may have been compromised.
- Consider counseling. Elder scam victims often experience depression, anxiety, and loss of self-confidence. Professional support helps.
Tools That Help
Set up IsThisAScam.to as a bookmark on your parent's browser. Teach them to paste any suspicious email, text, or link into it before responding. The tool is simple enough for non-technical users — paste the content, get a clear answer. Making this a habit can prevent the vast majority of scam attempts from succeeding.
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