Elderly Safety: Protecting Seniors From Online Scams and Abuse

Used correctly, the internet is a helpful tool that makes daily life easier. However, it’s not without its dangers. Every year, millions of vulnerable citizens fall victim to online scammers and fraudsters. Whether you’re an elderly person or you care for one, here are some top tips for staying safe online.

Understand the risks

The most important thing to understand as an internet user is that not everything online is real. Scammers target elderly people as they are statistically more likely to fall for common cons asking for money or personal details. Not every link can be trusted, and not everyone is who they say they are.

Familiarising yourself – or the elderly person you care for – with common scams will help them spot them. For example, scammers often start with a text claiming to be the recipient’s child and to have lost their phone. Knowing that this scam exists helps people be cautious if they ever receive a text like this.

Strong passwords

The key to a good password is making it memorable without making it easily guessed. While it may be trickier for older people to remember passwords, their accounts still need to be protected. Password managers are a secure way to help with forgetfulness, or you could set up biometric passwords using fingerprint or face ID, if using a compatible device.

Protect your privacy

Social media can help generations of family stay in touch, but anyone holding an account should understand who can see their posts. It might be worth setting maximum privacy settings to minimise the ways that scammers can interact with elderly people. Limiting the amount of messages from unknown people limits the opportunities to fall for a scam.

Update regularly

Updates improve device security. Keeping everything up to date reduces the chance of hacks and viruses. If this is not easy for the user of the device, it may be helpful for carers to regularly check for updates.

Anti-virus software

Not only does anti-virus software protect devices against viruses, but some software helps to identify scams. By choosing software that blocks risky connections and flags potential spam, you can build protections into the device itself. This is especially helpful for vulnerable people who struggle with spotting scams.

Shop carefully

Getting to the shops is often difficult for elderly people, so online shopping can be a useful tool. However, the online marketplace can be a minefield of scams. Elderly people should get in the habit of checking URLs to make sure they are legitimate, and check reviews of retailers on independent websites. Bookmarking legitimate retailers or downloading their apps are good ways to make sure elderly people are always shopping in the right places.

Anonymously report crime

If you have information about an online scam or another crime, you can report it to Crime Stoppers Bermuda. Our online form and phone line allow you to report information without giving any personal details. We then pass the information to the police, allowing them to investigate without ever knowing who you are.

Use our online form or call 800-8477 to report anonymously.