How to Protect Your Elderly Parents From Scam Calls

If your parent or grandparent has ever called you, worried about a strange voicemail claiming to be "the bank" or "the IRS," you're far from alone. Scam calls that target older adults are a well-documented problem, and it's worth understanding both the scope of it and what actually works to stop it — without turning it into a source of constant anxiety for anyone involved.

How big is the problem, really?

The Federal Trade Commission tracks scam reports nationally, and its own data shows a clear pattern: scammers are deliberately targeting older adults' savings. In one FTC Data Spotlight, the agency describes "a growing wave of scams aimed squarely at retirees' life savings," often carried out by callers pretending to represent trusted government agencies or businesses. At the same time, the FTC is careful to point out that scams aren't exclusively an older-adult problem — its Consumer Sentinel reports show that people of all ages are targeted, so this isn't about singling anyone out. It's about a real and growing risk that deserves a real response.

Unwanted robocalls remain one of the most common complaints the government receives. The FCC's own guidance calls unwanted and spoofed robocalls its "top consumer complaint and a top consumer protection priority" — which tells you how persistent this problem has become for every household, and especially for older ones who may answer every call out of politeness or habit built up over a lifetime of landline use, when picking up the phone simply meant someone you knew was calling.

The standard defenses — and why they help, but only so much

1. Register on the National Do Not Call Registry

Adding a number to the National Do Not Call Registry is free and takes a couple of minutes. It's a genuinely useful first step for reducing legitimate telemarketing calls. It's less effective against outright scammers, who ignore the registry entirely — but it's still worth doing, and it costs nothing.

2. Ask the phone carrier about call-blocking tools

The FCC recommends talking to your phone company about the call-blocking and labeling tools it offers, and checking into third-party apps that can flag or block suspicious numbers. Many carriers now offer this at no extra cost, and it's worth a quick call to ask what's already available on your parent's line or account.

3. Build the habit of not answering unknown numbers

The FCC's own advice is blunt: "Don't answer calls from unknown numbers. If you answer such a call, hang up immediately." It also warns that caller ID showing a local number doesn't mean the caller is actually local — scammers spoof numbers to look familiar and trustworthy, sometimes even mimicking a neighbor's exact prefix.

4. Never give out personal information over the phone

Account numbers, Social Security numbers, and passwords should never be given out in response to an unexpected call — even one that sounds official. If someone claims to represent a company or agency, the safer move is to hang up and call back using a number from an account statement or the official website, rather than any number the caller provides.

5. Set a voicemail password

It's an easy detail to overlook, but the FCC specifically notes that some voicemail systems can be accessed if a scammer manages to spoof your home number. A password closes that particular door.

Why these tools still leave a gap

Here's the honest limitation: every one of these defenses depends on your parent recognizing a scam in the moment and reacting correctly — hanging up, not pressing 1, not giving out a birth date. That's a lot to ask of anyone, and it's especially hard for someone who may be more trusting, more isolated, or simply caught off guard by a convincing recorded voice that sounds exactly like a real person.

Call-blocking apps help by flagging known scam numbers, but scammers constantly rotate numbers to stay ahead of blocklists. None of these tools change the fundamental fact that the phone still rings for people your parent has never met — the defense only kicks in after the phone is already ringing.

A different approach: only ring for people you approve

This is the idea behind approved-contacts call screening, and it's the core of how Homie works. Instead of trying to detect and block bad numbers after the fact, the phone simply doesn't ring unless the caller is already on a list you built together — family, close friends, a doctor's office you've added. Everyone else is blocked automatically, before the phone even rings. 911 calling is included.

For a parent whose biggest worry is "what if Mom answers a call from someone pretending to be me," this flips the problem: there's no decision to make in the moment, because the call never gets through in the first place. It removes the burden of vigilance from someone who shouldn't have to be vigilant every time the phone rings.

Putting it together

None of this means your parent needs to give up their phone or their independence. A sensible approach looks like:

• Register their number on the Do Not Call Registry.
• Turn on whatever call-blocking tools their carrier offers.
• Talk through the "don't answer, don't press 1, don't give personal info" habits from the FCC's robocall guidance.
• Set a voicemail password if their line has voicemail.
• Consider a phone built around approved contacts only, so the safety doesn't depend on split-second judgment calls.

We built Homie for grandparents with exactly this in mind — a simple, familiar handset that only rings for the people they love, with 911 calling included. It's not about restricting anyone's independence; it's about making sure the only calls that get through are the ones they actually want. Homie ships Fall 2026.