Caring for Others: Siblings, Children and Older Relatives · Lesson 5 of 8 · 12 min
Tech help for grandparents: setting up safely and spotting scams
Helping an older relative video-call the family or pay a bill online is a lovely gift. Helping them recognise a scam call may be an even bigger one.
How scammers target older people
- Age UK warns that scammers pose as police, bank staff, energy company workers, tax or council officials and charity collectors.
- Age UK notes that a caller knowing your name, address or bank details does not prove they are genuine.
- In 2025 the UAE's Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA) warned of scam calls impersonating government entities, sharing an example of a cloned voice, as reported by Gulf News.
- Abu Dhabi Police have warned of fake phone calls, fake bank messages with malicious links, and investment adverts promising unrealistic profits (Gulf News, 2025).
- Age UK also flags messages from a 'family member' on a new number urgently asking for money. Agree a family rule: always call the person on their usual number to check.
The golden rules to teach
- Dubai Police have stated that no government or banking agency will ask for confidential bank data such as card security codes or OTPs (Gulf News, 2023).
- Age UK says banks and police will never ask for your PIN or ask you to hand your card to a courier.
- TDRA advice: hang up, block the number and don't engage. Officials do not threaten fines or legal action over the phone (Gulf News).
- Check a caller by ringing a number you find yourself, such as the one on the back of the bank card, not a number they give you (Age UK).
- Age UK warns scammers can keep a landline open after you hang up, so use a different phone or wait at least 10 to 15 minutes before calling back.
Setting up a phone or tablet kindly
- Sit side by side, let them hold the device and press the buttons. You guide; they do. People remember what they do themselves.
- Adjust the settings to suit them: larger text, louder ringtone, brighter screen and the main apps on the home screen.
- Save key family numbers with clear names and photos so they are easy to recognise.
- Set a screen lock they can remember, and help them use a strong, unique password for their email account (Age UK).
- Write simple, step-by-step notes in their preferred language for the two or three things they use most.
Links, messages and reporting
- Age UK advises not clicking links in unexpected texts about accounts or parcels; search for the official website yourself instead.
- An unexpected request for a one-time password is probably a scam (Age UK).
- In Dubai, Dubai Police said suspicious calls can be reported through Smart Police Stations or the e-crime and Police Eye services on the Dubai Police website and app (Gulf News).
- In the UK, Age UK lists 159 to reach your bank safely and 7726 for forwarding scam texts.
- Reassure them that anyone can be targeted, and that telling the family quickly matters more than feeling embarrassed.
Practise in real life
Tick each one off when you have done it.
- Sit with an older relative for 20 minutes and adjust one device: text size, saved family contacts with photos, and a screen lock.
- Agree a family 'check-back' rule for any message asking for money or codes, and write it on a card by the phone.
- Explain the three golden rules: never share an OTP or PIN, hang up and call back on a known number, and tell family.
Remember
- Scammers impersonate banks, police and government, sometimes with cloned voices.
- No genuine bank or government body asks for your OTP, PIN or card code.
- Hang up and check using a number you find yourself.
- Teach by letting them do it, with large text and saved contacts.
- Make it safe to tell the family; anyone can be targeted.
Note: UAE scam warnings here come from Gulf News reports of official statements (Dubai Police 2023, TDRA and Abu Dhabi Police 2025). Reporting channels change, so check the Dubai Police app or website, or your emirate's police, for current options. The UK numbers 159 and 7726 apply only in the UK. Device set-up tips are general good practice. See also the Scams, Fraud and Money Safety module.
Check yourself
1. A caller says they are from the bank and asks your grandmother for the OTP just sent to her phone. What is true?
2. What does TDRA advise if you receive a suspicious call claiming to be from a government entity?
3. How should you check if a call from 'the bank' is genuine?
4. A message from 'your son on a new number' urgently asks for money. What does Age UK suggest?
Sources
- Age UK: Avoiding scams, ways to protect yourself (information guide)
- Gulf News: Dubai warns of 'official-looking' scam calls targeting residents (TDRA)
- Gulf News: Dubai Police warn residents against sharing OTP and bank details with fraudsters
- Gulf News: Abu Dhabi Police warn residents about rising online and financial scams