Phone, email, mail, and door-to-door visits are the four ways scammers try to lure older adults into falling for a scam.
Older adults are often targeted because they grew up in an era where answering the phone and being polite to visitors or callers was the societal norm.

You may not be able to change how polite your parents are to strangers. You can take steps to stop scammers from fooling them. Here are some of the easiest way to stop scammers.

Set Up Call Blockers

If their phone company offers call blocking services, make sure it’s set up. It won’t stop all spam calls, but it may reduce the number they get. As calls slip through the filters, make sure you mark them as spam to help the filters better identify and block spam calls.

Teach Your Parents to Skip Answering

It’s easiest to not answer the phone. Your parents can talk to their friends about leaving a voicemail and they’ll call them back. This is a good way to avoid falling for a spoofed call, which is when the scammer uses software to make it look like the number calling is a local number.

By not answering the phone, they don’t have to worry about a scammer reaching them. If it is a legitimate call, they can always call the person back after listening to their messages.

Follow Three Simple Rules

Teach your parents to follow the rules of the three N’s when they talk to a stranger on the phone.

1. No banking information
2. No personal information
3. No gift cards or cash

If they get a call asking for bank or credit card numbers, they refuse. If they’re asked for their SSN or date of birth, they say no. Finally, if they’re told they need to buy a gift card and share the gift card number or send money via a service like MoneyGram or a UPS Store, they also say no.

Arrange Caregivers

Make sure your parents aren’t always alone. If they’re alone and craving socialization, they’re more likely to talk to a stranger on the phone. The scammer will prey on your parents’ polite nature and emotions to get the money or personal information they after.

Caregivers can be the person your parents talk to every day. Your parents have someone to talk to, so the caller isn’t as important. Plus, caregivers can answer the phone or determine if the call is even worth answering.

Schedule caregivers by calling a home care agency. Answer questions about the things your parents need help with and what days are best. You’ll find out pricing and schedules as you go through the list of options.

If you or an aging loved-one are considering hiring  Home Health Care in Oakland, CA, contact the friendly staff at Home Care Professionals today.
Call (866)-940-4855

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andy@hcprosonline.com

CEO at HomeCare Professionals

Andy Howardis a Bay Area Native who holds a BA in Political Science (University of Colorado at Boulder, ’97). After college Andy worked in the surging tech industry.His Grandmother however, would suffer a significant decline in health and ultimately needed in-home care. The experience of a loved one depending on outside help to age in place proved to be pivotal for Andy as he left the tech industry in 2002 for an opportunity in the home care world with a large provider. After having success in home care, but being frustrated by corporate constraints Andy founded HomeCare Professionals in 2005.He methodically built the company one client at a time by focusing on hiring quality caregivers to ensure positive outcomes. Currently Andy serves as the CEO of HomeCare Professionals and is also highly active in the non-profit organization California Association of Health Services at Home (CAHSAH) which advocates for a higher standard of in-home care for those who wish to remain living at home in California.

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