You are currently viewing Google says older people are more likely to fall for online scams | See 5 tips to protect them

Google says older people are more likely to fall for online scams | See 5 tips to protect them

While there are more young netizens than there are older ones, the latter constitute the higher percentage of online scam victims. There are many reasons why older people are likelier to fall for scams. They are more trusting, are lonelier, do not have enough understanding of the web, use less-equipped devices and software, and more.

According to Google, they mostly fall for romance scams, loan scams, and investment scams.

However, regardless of what form the scams take, they usually require the victim to take some sort of action. Be it clicking a link, volunteering personal info, downloading malware, or another thing, scams do not happen unless you do something for the scammer.

Also read:
– iPhone 14 rumoured to be coming with satellite connectivity for emergency SOS messaging
– Before Ordering The iPhone 12, PS5 Or Xbox, See How To Identify Common Scams
– Seven Simple Online Security Travel Tips.

Below, I have streamlined 5 ways you can protect older people from online scam.

5 security tips to protect older people from online scam

1. Occasionally go through their devices and look out for suspicious apps that may be stealing their information or compromising their security in another way. You can quickly uninstall malware and change app permissions.

2. Remind them to always ask for a third-party opinion before making payment for a product or service or, they should verify the identity of platforms and vendors. Additionally, they should not use sketchy payment methods and stick to the popular ones.

3. Find out who they are chatting with (especially important in romance scams) and advise them to verify identity via video calls.

4. Install anti-virus software on their devices and anti-spyware software to protect the integrity of their devices.

5. Keep them up-to-date on safe online practices like telling them to always avoid hastily clicking “Yes”, “Allow”, “Authorize”, and other such buttons or options.

Of course, these are not all the steps there are to keeping your loved ones safe on the internet, but it is a good place to start.

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Onwuasoanya Obinna

A reader of books and stringer of words. Passionate about Science and Tech. When not writing or reading he is surfing the web and Tweeting.