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Keep Your Parents’ Computer Secure: Remotely

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If you are like many, you are more technically inclined than your parents. So, they might want to rely on you when they have computer issues. But you can alleviate many of these issues by keeping their device running smoothly, and you can do this all remotely. Here’re some tips:

Teach Them to Fish

Digital literacy might be one of the single most underappreciated aspects of technology. And the more digital literate you and your parents are, the easier your digital life and even your physical life will be. As they say, “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime”.

So whether you are working on their computer remotely or on site, require them to watch. But be patient, because you can’t expect him to embrace tech the way you do. Nobody is wired the same.

Install Tools Remotely

  • Use a program like Teamviewer, which allows you to connect to your parents’ computer remotely.
  • You can do the work yourself and stop having to give them direction over the phone.

Back Up the Data and Schedule Future Backups

  • It’s best to create more than one backup. In fact, create three.
  • Put these backups in different forms. Save one in a flash drive, one in DropBox or other cloud-based back up. PolarBackup is a very cost effective option. And one on an external hard drive. A Western Digital one terabyte drive is very inexpensive on Amazon
  • Set future backups to occur automatically once a day using a syncing software such as “Goodsync” google it.

Update Operating Systems

  • Set up an automatic update for the operating system. Set this for the middle of the night.
  • Do all updates, even if you think you won’t need them.

Ensure the Computer has Antivirus Software

  • Every device should have antivirus software.
  • Update this software regularly.
  • Run a system scan when you update the software.
  • Free software isn’t great. Pay a little to ensure absolute safety.

Uninstall Any Program They Don’t Need

  • What programs don’t your parents need or use? Uninstall them to speed up the computer.
  • You can download programs like Decrap for Windows, which will remove “crapware” that you don’t need.
  • You can also download Revo Uninstaller if they use Windows or AppCleaner if they use a Mac. They will get any residual things out that Decrap didn’t get. CCCleaner works pretty good, too.

Update All Extensions and Browsers

  • Modern browsers automatically update, so it’s better to make sure there is a good, updated browser on your parents’ computer. Chrome is a good option that automatically updates. Brave is good too, but it sometimes gets hung up on certain websites. Which can be frustrating.
  • Delete any plug-ins or extensions that are not necessary. Make sure that the ones you leave are legitimate. If they are old or outdated, update all of these extensions.

Automate Anything You Can

  • If you can automate something on your parents’ computer, you should.
  • You can automate backups, so do it.
  • You can automate a lot of things, so look into as much as you can.

Improve Speed

  • Run a bandwidth test online at SpeedTest.net
  • This will give you a good idea of what the baseline speed is, which is good to know in case Dad calls and says his computer is running slow.

The best thing to do is to do all of this on your own computer first. It’s even better when your parents devices are running the same operating system as yours. It just makes things more familiar to you and easier.  Have all your backup software on a thumb drive. This way, you have the software readily available, and you know how to do it when you go to do these things on your parents’ computer. You can also set up a Google doc with all of the software keys and passwords. All of this can help you, too, and by taking these steps, you can help to keep yourself and your parents safe from ID theft.

Written by Robert Siciliano, CEO of Credit Parent, Head of Training & Security Awareness Expert at Protect Now, #1 Best Selling Amazon author, Media Personality & Architect of CSI Protection Certification.

Protecting Your Parents from ID Theft

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When we look at statistics,most of the people who are victims of ID theft are 50 years old or older. Unfortunately, cyber criminals have no issue taking advantage of older adults and seniors, including your parents.

old parentsThese crooks violate their trust and take advantage of their ignorance of the online world. People over 50 also tend to have more money and savings including retirement funds.

Here are some scams that are commonly pulled on older adults and seniors…like your parents.

Common Scams Targeting Your Parents

  • They get an email that seems like it is coming from their bank, the FBI, IRS, etc. The email claims that there is an issue that needs to be taken care of ASAP. Typically, it’s financial, so the scammer asks for their bank account information, or it’s for information, and they ask for a Social Security number.
  • They get a call with a sad story…their kid/grandkid needs help, and they need money wired immediately.
  • They might also get a call, email, or letter concerning their mortgage. If a scammer can get access to information like your parents’ bank information, Social Security number, or even the deed to their home, they can refinance your parents’ mortgage and keep the equity they get back.
  • There are also retirement home scams. In these scams, scammers get a job at a retirement home, and then manipulate the residents to tell them personal information.

How to Prevent These Scams

Here are some ways that you can prevent scams like these:

  • Make yourself a guardian over the personal information of your parents. When they get some type of contact that seems suspicious, you should instruct them to get in touch with you. Any information, even your mother’s maiden name, can be used in an identity theft attempt. Tell your parents to never give their personal info to anyone over the phone or via email.
  • Make sure they know to never share any personal information on social media accounts.
  • Tell your parents to check their bank accounts and credit accounts regularly. You should work with them to sign up for alerts for suspicious transactions.
  • Give them a shredder so that they can get rid of things like bank statements safely. Anything with account information, a Social Security number, or other personal info should be shredded.
  • If your parent is using a Wi-Fi hotspot, you should install a VPN for them.
  • If your parent has recently passed away, make sure you don’t put too much unnecessary information in their obituary. These are hot zones for ID theft, so leave out any info an identity thief could use.
  • Show your parents that they should only put information into a website that starts with https://, NOT http://.
  • Also, talk to your parents about emailing safely. Phishing scams are very good, so tell them not to click on any link in an email.
  • Sign your parents up for the website OptOutPrescreen.com. This helps to cut out any unnecessary offers they might receive.

Keep an Eye Out for Scammers

Don’t let your parents become a victim. You can easily prevent it, and more importantly, your parents won’t have to go through the process of rebuilding their credit and recovering their identity. Taking action now is the best way to protect against ID theft. Knowing if your parents are doing something that is risky could definitely be in your favor, as you can help them figure out what is going on and stop it.

Protecting Their Identity

We are all pretty vulnerable when it comes to ID theft, but older people are much more vulnerable. You can’t totally protect yourself and your parents, but you can make it much less likely that something will happen if you take the advice above. It’s always also worth it to invest in ID theft protection for both you and your parents, and you also might even consider a credit freeze.

Written by Robert Siciliano, CEO of Credit Parent, Head of Training & Security Awareness Expert at Protect Now, #1 Best Selling Amazon author, Media Personality & Architect of CSI Protection Certification.

How to Protect Your Parents from ID Theft

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According to research, people who are older than 50 years old, usually in the 65 to 85-year old range, are common targets of ID thieves. These criminals have no issue taking advantage of these people. They know that they are trustworthy, that they don’t know much about the internet, and that they are not savvy about scams. The bad guys also know that these people have more savings and retirement cash than others, and they are ready to take it. Here are some ways that these criminals scam your parents:

old parents

  • They often send emails to older people saying they are from their bank, the IRS, the FBI, or the CIA. The email claims that there is an issue that requires their attention. Then, they ask for information like their Social Security number or even their bank account numbers.
  • Another common scam is to toy with their emotions. In this case, the criminal calls the older person and says that they are someone the person knows, such as a grandchild, and claim that there is an emergency and they need money.
  • These scammers also try to take advantage of older people by using information about their homes. For instance, they can access a deed, and then use their Social Security numbers and bank account information to refinance, and then take the money.
  • The bad guys also take advantage of people who are in retirement homes. They start working there, and then manipulate the people living there to offer up personal info.
  • These criminals also seek out lonely people. If your parent is single, for instance, they can be a target because they are lonely and crave attention, resulting in a bank account draining romance scam.

How to Prevent Scams Against Older People

It is likely that you want to do all you can to prevent this from happening to your loved ones. Here are some tips:

  • Become the main caretaker for your parents’ personal info and financial accounts. This way, if your parents are contacted by someone suspicious, they have to go through you to get information. Even info like your mom’s maiden name can be used to commit some type of scam in the future. Make sure your parents are aware that they should not ever share any personal info, and that any request for money should go through you.
  • Do not share any personal information on any social media site. Criminals look for this, and they can target your parents by doing things like posing as their grandchildren online.
  • Make sure your parents check bank accounts and credit cards with regularity. Also, set up on your email and phone push email and text alerts about their account activity.
  • Buy them a shredder to get rid of things like bank statements. Criminals love to go through the trash to look for old financial statements.
  • If they use Wi-Fi, set up a VPN for them. Hotspots are public, and criminals can use them to get information.
  • If your parent passes away, don’t include any personal information about them in their obituary. Crooks use this information in malicious ways.
  • Talk to them about being safe with email. A common scam is phishing, and even if an email looks legitimate and safe, no one should click any links in them.
  • Help them understand the difference between http and https. Make sure they know that only https sites are secure.
  • Also, help them opt out of offers that are unnecessary. You can sign them up at com.
  • Talk to your parents about freezing their credit.

Stay Away from Scams

Do your best to not allow your parents to be the next victim of a scammer. It is easy to prevent this, and your parents will not have to go through the stress associated with identity theft.

Protect Their Identity

Any of us can become victims of ID theft, and we cannot protect ourselves every minute of the day. However, by taking these tips to heart and signing your parents up for ID theft protection and doing a credit freeze, you can keep them safe.

ROBERT SICILIANO CSP, is a #1 Best Selling Amazon author, CEO of CreditParent.com, the architect of the CSI Protection certification; a Cyber Social and Identity and Personal Protection security awareness training program.