Email copy
Phone and text scams, for older readers
For the caller who sounds official and knows your name. Calm, never blaming.
- For
- Older adults and caregivers, Libraries, Faith organizations, Housing and financial wellness
- Status
- Reviewed
- Version
- 2026-09-01
Subject line
If someone calls asking for a code, hang up
A phone scam going around right now catches careful people. Here is how it works.
Someone rings, calm and official. They say they are from your bank or the government, and they often know your name and address already. There is a problem, they say, and a code is about to arrive by text. Could you read it back?
That code is the key to your account. Reading it out is what lets them in. Nobody legitimate ever asks for it.
Hang up. You do not owe a caller politeness. Then ring the company on the number on your card and tell them what happened.
Being targeted is not embarrassing, and it is not a sign of slipping. These calls are built by people who do this all day. If one worries you, call us on [YOUR PHONE NUMBER].
Still to fill in: [YOUR PHONE NUMBER]. Replace it before you send this.
Before you send it: The last paragraph does real work, because people delay asking for help when they are ashamed. Keep it if you can.
Before you distribute this
- Use it: Senior center newsletters, caregiver emails, and printed bulletins.
- Replace every bracketed placeholder with your organization's own details.
- Open every web address yourself before printing it.
- Current warnings live at watchout.report. Check the date on anything time-sensitive.
Cybersecurity Reach Foundation · cybersecurityreach.org · Current warnings: watchout.report
General safety information. CSRF is not a crisis, legal, banking, safeguarding, or law-enforcement service.