Look after their money and their phone, and keep their independence.

Who this is for

Helping an older relative online works best as a partnership: they keep making their own choices, and you agree together on a few checks for the moments that matter, such as a call asking for money or a payment nobody recognises. UtilForge.org began in a family where payments nobody had agreed to started leaving a mother and father’s bank account, and these are the checks that family wished it had.

The risks you meet most, and the check for each.

1. A call from “the bank” or a relative in trouble

   The caller sounds official or familiar and asks for money, a code or a transfer to a “safe account”. Agree together: hang up, and call back on a number you already have.

   People aged 60 and over reported losing US$7.7 billion to online crime in 2025, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, more than any other age group.

   Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation, “Scammers Target Older Adult Victims”, 15 May 2026

   The check: Family Safe Word and the guide a relative phones asking for money.

2. Requests to pay in gift cards

   A caller asks for gift cards to settle a bill, a fine or an emergency, and for the numbers on the back. No genuine company, government body or family emergency is settled with gift card codes.

   In Federal Trade Commission data for 2024, gift cards were the payment method reported most often for government impersonation, technical support, romance and family impersonation scams (Federal Trade Commission, December 2025).

   Source: Federal Trade Commission, Protecting Older Consumers report, December 2025 (2024 data)

   The check: Gift card request check.

3. Payments nobody agreed to

   A quiz, a game or a “free” trial asks for a card, and a small payment becomes a weekly charge. Look through the statement together once a month.

   The check: Subscription Check and Cancel and Keep Proof.

4. Fake technical support

   A pop-up says the computer is infected and gives a number to call, or a caller asks to install a program to “fix” something. Close the page, and call the helper you already know.

   Technical and customer support fraud rose to 47,794 complaints and US$2.13 billion lost in the United States in 2025 (Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internet Crime Complaint Center, 2025 report).

   Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internet Crime Complaint Center, 2025 Internet Crime Report

   The check: Before You Paste a Command.

5. Investment and money-back offers

   A trading app, a pension “review”, or someone offering to recover money already lost, for a fee. Genuine authorities never offer to recover money for a fee.

   The check: Before You Invest and the guide someone offers your money back.

6. Letters and statements sent to agencies

   Carers often send bank statements, care letters and identity documents to councils, banks and care providers. Black out account numbers you do not need to share, and keep names out of anything pasted into a chatbot.

   The check: Redaction Studio and Hide Names from artificial intelligence.

The free tools that fit.

Every one is free, runs on your own phone or computer, and keeps working with the internet off once the page has loaded.

• Phone safety checklistWork through it side by side: screening unknown calls, filtering scam texts, saved cards, two-step login and who to call for help.
• Family Safe WordMake a word only your family knows, and print the card.
• Is this a scam text message?Paste a text, email or WhatsApp message and see the warning signs.
• Gift card request checkPaste a message asking for gift cards and see each sign explained.
• Subscription CheckFind payments that keep coming out, and what they cost in a year.
• Before You PaySix questions about a page, message or trial before your card goes in.
• Before You InvestSpot the trading, crypto or “signals” trick before money moves.
• First hour after paying a scammerWho to call first, how to lock accounts and where to report, in order.
• Redaction StudioBlack out account numbers on a statement or letter before sending it. Free for up to three pages.
• Hide Names from artificial intelligenceSwap names and numbers for labels before any chatbot sees them.

Guides to read next.

• Set up an older relative’s phone against scams
• Safe & Savvy After 60: free video lessons to watch together
• What is a family safe word? How to make one
• A relative phones asking for money: how to check it is really them
• Is this debt collector real?
• Black out a bank statement before you send it
• I already paid a scammer
• Official help, country by country

What the tools cannot do.

• The tools cannot see anyone’s accounts, and nobody should ask your relative for a password or a code, including you.
• A check with no warnings is not a guarantee. When in doubt, call the bank or company on the number on the card or statement.
• No tool can get money back. If money has gone, call the bank first, then report it through official help.

The pack that fits

Family Safety Tools. Pay what you want.

Prices are in United States dollars, paid once, with no subscription. Gumroad, the shop that handles payment, shows the total, including any tax, before you pay. Keep the fifteen tools and the one-page guide on your relative’s phone and your own. Whatever you pay helps keep every UtilForge tool free.

Sources and dates.

Facts on this page were checked against these sources on 24 October 2026. Reported losses count only what people reported, so real harm is larger.

• Federal Bureau of Investigation, “Scammers Target Older Adult Victims”, 15 May 2026: https://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/scammers-target-older-adult-victims
• Federal Trade Commission, Protecting Older Consumers report, December 2025 (2024 data): https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/ftc_gov/pdf/P144400-OlderAdultsReportDec2025.pdf
• Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internet Crime Complaint Center, 2025 Internet Crime Report: https://www.ic3.gov/AnnualReport/Reports/2025_IC3Report.pdf