OK, serious suggestions please. Protecting my elderly mother from spam calls

[TheVTCGuy]

My step father died (unexpectedly) last Christmas night. My mom, is a go-getter at age 86, she needs a cane and sometimes a walker but volunteers at the hospital every week and lives a full life. She forgets names now and then, (who doesn’t) but is sharp as a tack. She has a landline phone and gets probably six to eight calls a day minimum from scammers. Saying she owes money on an overdue loan and all her accounts will be frozen, this is the IRS, Microsoft etc. GOD help myself and the individual I ever meet that prays on the elderly for money; I won’t be responsible for my actions. Anyway, I beg my mom to let everything go to the answering machine, but she has lots of friends and spends a ton of time on the phone so answers almost every call. She is sharp, even makes fun of the spammers, (she has a loud whistle by the phone and blows out their eardrums), but still, there is a large amount of money that could be vulnerable if she were tricked in to giving account numbers. I have looked at black boxes that hook in to landlines that are spam blockers, I don’t know how or how well they work, but want to install one in her home. Anyone have any advice or experience?

[Pantheon]

Have you considered moving your mother to an Ooma phone system? If you get the premium service it has a blacklist aggregate that would automatically block calls from its scammer/robocall database that gathers from all of its users. I find that it works pretty well for my mother's home telephone system.

Its definitely tough on the elderly nowadays with tons of calls from consulates, utility companies, car warranties, and etc. Also there are businesses I've known from the past that actually targets elderly people because they're easy to trick into buying things. Also even worse now is all the call spoofing. I've had scam calls that I missed and when I call back the person on the other end had never called me.

[Blansky]

Tell her not to answer and have her tell her friends to leave a message and she'll call them right back or she can hear when they call and pick up.

I had a phone device a few years ago that could block numbers and area codes but since all the calls are spoofed now the area code thing doesn't work. So she can only block what has already called her, and they don't use the same number twice.

And with things like NOMOROBO the phone still rings once, which is annoying.

[Jocke]

Paul, give her your SIM card, problem solved. 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[Tools]

Look into CPR Call Blocker.

[TheVTCGuy]

Originally Posted by Jocke

Paul, give her your SIM card, problem solved. 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Jocke, stop calling my mother!!!!!!

[77T]

First word of advice: find a solution that doesn’t create new problems.

For example, don’t try to modify your Mom’s joie de vivre - it’s just not worth it. Unless she is asking you to find a solution, maybe just ask her to let you know how you can help. If she says nevermind- then do that.

But if she. It’s want your help, you can always look for some of these if you haven’t seen them in your research:

https://mashtips.com/landline-call-blockers/


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[Chester01]

Originally Posted by TheVTCGuy

My step father died (unexpectedly) last Christmas night. My mom, is a go-getter at age 86, she needs a cane and sometimes a walker but volunteers at the hospital every week and lives a full life. She forgets names now and then, (who doesn’t) but is sharp as a tack. She has a landline phone and gets probably six to eight calls a day minimum from scammers. Saying she owes money on an overdue loan and all her accounts will be frozen, this is the IRS, Microsoft etc. GOD help myself and the individual I ever meet that prays on the elderly for money; I won’t be responsible for my actions. Anyway, I beg my mom to let everything go to the answering machine, but she has lots of friends and spends a ton of time on the phone so answers almost every call. She is sharp, even makes fun of the spammers, (she has a loud whistle by the phone and blows out their eardrums), but still, there is a large amount of money that could be vulnerable if she were tricked in to giving account numbers. I have looked at black boxes that hook in to landlines that are spam blockers, I don’t know how or how well they work, but want to install one in her home. Anyone have any advice or experience?

Well couple of thoughts here. The first one, is to have her run things past family before making any financial moves. Another to have her calls forwarded to you or another family member.

However, if you (or other family members) are worried about cognition, one could seek a proxy for financial decisions (i.e. power of attorney).

Its absolutely mind boggling that if someone on the street came up to us and tried to get our wallet, that's a crime. However, we are all exposed to 5-10 such attempts via phone every day, and this is allowed to go on.

[AzPaul]

Our mothers are of similar age and circumstance, but her and I have talked about this concern so often, I'm now quite confident she knows any call she gets asking her for any type of financial information, is a call that means her harm, and she needs to end.

My bigger worry is with the future, when maybe she might not be as astute in identifying these hucksters.

[Romeojk]

86. I bet it'll be tough to change her ways. Maybe if you can reduce some of the risk, by at the very least, moving the large sums of money into another account. She can of course have access to it and the money, but maybe if it's an account she does not use she won't have to accou t numbers handy to possible give out some day. Just a thought.

Good luck. A tough one but there's a few good suggestions from the gang.


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[G8RDPM]

Tell her to not answer the phone if it is an unknown number.
If that fails, tell her to contact me. I know a guy who is a combat fighter pilot who can now get him with a drone!

[JasoninDenver]

Good advice here on transferring stuff to accounts where you may have a little authority over. Usually, by the time the family is aware there is a problem, the money is gone.

[BNA/LION]

STOP Getting ROBO Calls!
https://www.rolexforums.com/showthre...ght=robo+calls

This $hit works!
https://www.nomorobo.com/

[mr.president1]

My policy - no info unless I initiate the call. She seems savvy, so I’d make sure she had all the update -#s of her bank, IRS, social security, etc. so that she can call back. Only time that I talk digits with someone otherwise, is it I have an active saved phone number relationship (ie banker, lawyer, cpa).

[Chewbacca]

Originally Posted by TheVTCGuy

My step father died (unexpectedly) last Christmas night. My mom, is a go-getter at age 86, she needs a cane and sometimes a walker but volunteers at the hospital every week and lives a full life. She forgets names now and then, (who doesn’t) but is sharp as a tack. She has a landline phone and gets probably six to eight calls a day minimum from scammers. Saying she owes money on an overdue loan and all her accounts will be frozen, this is the IRS, Microsoft etc. GOD help myself and the individual I ever meet that prays on the elderly for money; I won’t be responsible for my actions. Anyway, I beg my mom to let everything go to the answering machine, but she has lots of friends and spends a ton of time on the phone so answers almost every call. She is sharp, even makes fun of the spammers, (she has a loud whistle by the phone and blows out their eardrums), but still, there is a large amount of money that could be vulnerable if she were tricked in to giving account numbers. I have looked at black boxes that hook in to landlines that are spam blockers, I don’t know how or how well they work, but want to install one in her home. Anyone have any advice or experience?

Sorry to hear about your loss last Christmas, Paul.

Why not get your mom an older iPhone and keep it on DND 24/7 (half moon icon). Then go to her contact list and allow only calls from known numbers to get through. All others will go to voicemail.

(After all, can’t imagine a 86 year old has too many regular contacts to worry about. )

That’s what I do personally when I’m trying to focus on Forum stuff or avoiding ADs with Rolexes and collection agencies.

[TheVTCGuy]

Originally Posted by BNA/LION

STOP Getting ROBO Calls!
https://www.rolexforums.com/showthre...ght=robo+calls

This $hit works!
https://www.nomorobo.com/

This is the one I was considering, she is on Cox cable phone. I am going to see if her line is eligible.

[mannyv11]

My father in law signed up through a website to stop getting robo calls it rings once and if it is a robo call it won’t ring again. If it is a real call it rings through. If you want I can ask him what the website is, it seems to work very well when I’m over there.

[Memphiis]

I agree. If the call doesn't involve any digits, everything is fine.

[TheVTCGuy]

Originally Posted by mannyv11

My father in law signed up through a website to stop getting robo calls it rings once and if it is a robo call it won’t ring again. If it is a real call it rings through. If you want I can ask him what the website is, it seems to work very well when I’m over there.

Yes please

[TheVTCGuy]

Originally Posted by BNA/LION

STOP Getting ROBO Calls!
https://www.rolexforums.com/showthre...ght=robo+calls

This $hit works!
https://www.nomorobo.com/

Update: I installed Nomorobo on my mom’s line, it has worked beautifully! The phone rings once, then nothing, she has been protected from at least a couple calls every day.

[Jim Smyth]

Very cool Paul.

The government is also still after the telemarketers and is taking more steps to try to really put the brakes on it.

https://techcrunch.com/2019/12/31/tr...ers-on-notice/

Psychologically I think my Spam calls are really down. Now there rare rather than multiple daily.

Now if we can get TV commercials down volume wise it would be perfect.

[rolehex]

Maybe turn her ringer off....and tell her the ringer's broken. That way she can still call out and if her friends call, they will leave a message and she can call them back.