What is a Grandparent Scams?
How It Works — Step by Step
- Elderly person receives call from someone claiming to be their grandchild in trouble
- Common scenarios: arrested and needs bail money, in accident and needs car repair money, stuck abroad and needs travel money
- An 'authority figure' (attorney, police officer, bail bondsman) then calls to provide details
- Instructed not to tell the grandchild's parents (to avoid 'embarrassment')
- Cash or gift cards are picked up by a courier or mailed, or wired/sent via crypto
- After money is sent, more requests follow before contact is lost
Top Countries (Victims)
Top Platforms Used
⚠️ Warning Signs
- Unexpected call from grandchild claiming to be in emergency
- Voice sounds different than expected ('I have a cold' explanation)
- Requests for secrecy from parents
- Payment via gift cards, cash courier, or wire
- Attorney or official calls to follow up and collect payment
- Urgency preventing you from verifying with other family members
✅ How to Protect Yourself
- Establish a family code word for emergency verification
- Hang up and call your grandchild directly on their known number
- Call the grandchild's parents before sending any money
- Educate elderly relatives about this specific scam
- Real lawyers and police never ask for bail money via gift cards
- Take your time — any legitimate emergency can wait 10 minutes for you to verify
Real Cases from Our Database
They tried a grandparent scam on my childless uncle I’m the caregiver for my 79 year old uncle. I am his only living relative. My uncle is one of the cleverest people I know. ...
This weekend, he got a call from some guy who called him “Dad”. He responded, “Is this Tim or Bob?” ...
Apparently, it was Bob. He was texting and ran into a car with a pregnant woman and is currently in jail, needing bail money. My uncle kept the guy on the phone before telling him he’d never had child...
[US] Breakdown of the Grandparent Scam and how it works, what they say, and how to stop it in 30 seconds [removed]...
[UK]'Grandparent scam' with no obvious link - how was it achieved? My partners step mother was the victim of a grandparent scam; she has not lost any money, but is very shaken. I'd like to ascertain h...
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Detail: ...
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Victim received a call stating that her granddaughter (which they named) \[our daughter\] had been involved in a car accident and was fatally injured and money needed to be sent to retrieve the...
Nearly fell for a bail scam -- and it feels like this had to be an "inside job" What do you think? ...
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My spouse was actually arrested and did actually need to be bailed out. She called the only phone number she could remember (not sure if they would normally let her look up numbers on her phone but in...
Great grandma scammed of $13,645 right before Christmas [removed]...
[US] Grandma scammed into homelessness My grandma (65) has been scammed by someone pretending to be the podcaster Sergio Talks for almost a year. ...
The scammer use AI to video chat her, has convinced her to sell her home and family heirlooms to move to California with her daughter (13 w/ special needs). When the address he gave her obviously wasn...
She's used all of the money from the house sale to...
📋 Where to Report Grandparent Scams
- FTC (reportfraud.ftc.gov)
- FBI IC3 (ic3.gov)
- Local police
- AARP Fraud Helpline: 877-908-3360