Today’s older adults have adapted to new technologies for decades. So much so, 78% of individuals age 65 or older own a smartphone and 90% are active on the internet.1, 2 In our digital age, scammers have more opportunities than ever to target their intended victims. And it’s only increasing with the advancement of technology: In 2025 adults aged 60+ lost a collective $7.74 billion, a 59% spike from 2024, according to the FBI’s elder fraud report.3
As a family member or caregiver, protecting elder loved ones from cybercriminals can feel overwhelming, but there are simple ways to help increase their cybersecurity. Here’s your three-step guide.
Step 1: Talk About Scams
Raising the topic of elder fraud can be difficult, but it might help to begin by gently reminding your loved one that anyone — no matter their age — can be exploited by a skilled scammer. Many scams begin with an unsolicited phone call, email, text or social media message that employs classic social engineering tactics. Scammers will look for moments of vulnerability and use urgency, fear or loneliness to trick their victims into sharing sensitive information or sending money.
Examples include:
- Government impersonation scams, where bad actors pretend to be representatives from the IRS, Medicare, the Social Security Administration or other government entities, and demand payments or login credentials with threats of frozen accounts, fines and arrest.
- Romance scams, where scammers cultivate relationships, often via social media or dating apps, before requesting money — usually by creating a fabricated emergency.
- Grandparent scams, which involve cyber thieves pretending to be a grandchild in distress who needs immediate financial help.
Let your loved ones know you want them to tell you if they encounter something suspicious — someone reaching out for personal information, requesting immediate action or making offers too good to be true — so you can help.
If you’re not available in the moment, share these simple “exit steps”:
- Phone calls: Only answer calls from numbers you recognize and never share personal information when you receive an unsolicited inbound call. It’s okay to hang up and call back using a phone number found through a trusted source, such as the company’s official website.
- Email: Don’t click links or open attachments from unknown senders and never provide personal information when responding to an unsolicited email request. Delete suspected fraudulent emails by marking them as spam/junk.
- Text messages: Don’t engage with unsolicited text messages. That means don’t click links or attachments or even text back “STOP.” Simply block the number.
If your suspect your loved one has been hacked or scammed, act quickly to limit the potential damage. This may mean changing account passwords and alerting their financial institutions.
Step 2: Boost Account Security
Work with your loved one to help protect their online accounts, especially the ones they use frequently like email, social media and financial activities. Account security can be as simple as creating strong unique passwords, enabling multi-factor authentication (MFA) and enhancing privacy settings on public-facing accounts like social media.
Passwords and MFA
Everyone, including seniors, should use unique, lengthy and complex passwords for their online accounts. Reusing the same password for online games, medical portals and retirement accounts poses significant risk. If a hacker gains access to one account, they could potentially access others.
You might be concerned about your loved one’s ability to remember multiple passwords, which is where a password manager comes in. A password manager app will generate unique, complex passwords, store them in an encrypted state, and autofill them when you go to log into your account. With a password manager, your loved one only has to remember their master password.
You also want to be sure MFA is enabled for every account. MFA requires using two or more methods of identification, such as a password plus a one-time passcode, when logging in. MFA makes it harder for hackers to gain access.
Social Media
Roughly half of individuals 65+ use social media.4 While connecting with friends and family can bring endless joy, the personal information shared via social media like birthdays, family names and location can be exploited by scammers. Updating privacy settings to limit who can see what your loved one posts and who can direct message them can reduce the likelihood a bad actor can access their information.
Morgan Stanley Accounts
Help your loved ones add a trusted contact to their Morgan Stanley accounts, which can be found under Profiles + Settings. This person will only be contacted if there are concerns about the account holder’s well-being or possible financial exploitation. A trusted contact does not have authority to take any action on the accounts.
Step 3: Secure Devices, Apps and WiFi
Create a list of the internet-connected devices your loved one owns, and consider discarding those they don’t use. Ensure all the software running on these devices, including the operating system, applications and browsers, are up to date. Software "patches” regularly contain security fixes, and devices that aren’t quickly updated are prime targets for hackers. If you don’t want to do this manually, ensure your loved one has automatic updates on.
You’ll also want to ensure hardware, such as smartphones and tablets, with access to sensitive information automatically locks and requires a password to open. Take a minute to review the applications downloaded to these devices and review the privacy settings to see what information is being tracked. Only allow applications access to the data and information they need to function.
Finally, if you haven’t already, secure your loved one’s home WiFi by replacing the default admin login on the router with strong, unique credentials, since these devices can be an easy target if left on factory settings.
Stay Connected
Cybersecurity can be a shared family routine. By talking openly about scams, strengthening account protections and keeping devices updated, you can help your loved one stay safer online while building connection along the way.
