How to Protect Elderly Parents From Phone Scams: 8 Steps That Work

The best way to protect an elderly parent from phone scams is to agree on a few simple rules before a scam call comes: use a family code word, hang up and call back on a known number, and never move money because a caller said to. Phone scams cost older adults the most. According to the FTC, when a scam began with a phone call, the median loss for people 60 and older was $3,000.

Why are phone scams so costly for older adults?

The FTC’s Older Adults Report, released in October 2026, covers 2025 data:

• Adults 60 and older reported about $3 billion in losses, about five times the roughly $600 million reported in 2020.
• The median loss was about $900 for people 60 and older, and $2,000 for people 80 and older.
• When the scam started with a phone call, the median loss was $3,000. For social media, it was $599.
• For people 80 and older, phone calls were the top contact method by total losses.
• Government impostors took 41% of older adults’ phone-fraud losses.

The FBI’s 2025 Internet Crime Report adds that people 60 and older filed 201,266 complaints and reported $7.748 billion in losses.

1. Agree on a family code word

The FBI warns that criminals use AI-generated audio to impersonate relatives in a crisis. A voice that sounds like a grandchild is no longer proof. Pick a word only your family knows and agree that anyone calling with an emergency must say it.

2. Hang up and call back

If a caller says they are a bank, an agency or a relative in trouble, your parent can hang up and call back using a number they already have: the number on the back of the card, a number from an official website, or a relative’s own phone. A real emergency survives a two-minute check.

3. Never move money on a caller’s instruction

The FTC’s August 2025 Data Spotlight, titled “False alarm, real scam,” looks at how scammers raise a false alarm and use it to take older adults’ life savings. The rule is simple: no real bank or agency calls and tells you to move your money.

4. No gift cards, crypto or gold for any agency

No government agency asks to be paid in gift cards, cryptocurrency or gold. The FTC reports that gift cards were the most frequent payment method in tech support, romance, family-impersonation and prize scams reported by older adults.

5. Talk about scams without shaming

Share a real case, like a grandparent scam or a fake prize call, and talk about it as something that happens to smart, careful people. Scammers often say “don’t tell anyone.” Make sure your parent knows they can always call you first, and that you won’t be angry.

6. Set up call protection

Many scam calls come from unknown numbers. A call protection app can check those calls and warn your parent. FamilyDefender, for example, checks unknown calls while they happen, can warn the parent if a call looks risky, and sends the adult child an alert.

7. Add trusted numbers

Save the numbers of family, doctors, the pharmacy and the bank in your parent’s phone. Then a call from a trusted number is easy to recognize, and an unknown number is a reason to slow down.

8. Know who to call

Write these on a card by the phone:

• AARP Fraud Watch Network Helpline: 877-908-3360.
• National Elder Fraud Hotline: 833-FRAUD-11 (833-372-8311), Monday to Friday, 10am to 6pm ET. Scammers sometimes pretend to be this hotline, so dial the number yourself.
• The bank, on the number on the back of the card.
• 911 if a courier is coming to the door to collect money.

Reports can be filed at ReportFraud.ftc.gov and ic3.gov.