The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reported that seniors over the age of 60 lost an astonishing $564 million due to fraud initiated via social media, websites, online ads, pop-ups, or other internet-based scams. According to a report on scam victims done by AARP, 10 percent of respondents posted their social security numbers on social media before they got scammed.

Social media is a way for seniors to stay in touch with friends and family, and research suggests that seniors who spend time online experience improved brain function and lower risks of developing depression and dementia. But social media comes with dangers, and seniors should be aware of the risks involved and take steps to protect themselves while online.

Use a Strong Password & MFA

Choose a strong password for all accounts and change your passwords and security questions several times a year or when you suspect an account has been compromised. Use a password manager to store your information, also turn on multifactor authentication (MFA) this adds an additional layer of security because you will be required to provide two or more verification factors to gain access to your accounts.

Adjust Privacy Settings

No matter which social media sites you are using log in and review your current settings. The National Cybersecurity Alliance has a list of links to the privacy settings pages for popular services and apps, including social media, review the privacy settings for each site you use. https://staysafeonline.org/resources/manage-your-privacy-settings/ Limit your posts to private so that only your friends can view them, this does not guarantee your safety, but it helps.

Review Your Friends List

Remove anyone from your friends list that you do not know personally and don’t accept friend requests from people you don’t know.

Be Cautious About Sharing

One of the biggest problems with social media is that people share too much information. Even if you are only sharing with friends, they don’t need to know every detail about your life. Would you invite a friend into your home to go through your personal belongings? Most of us would not, think of social media the same way, no one needs to know your daily schedule, where you work, where your children and grandchildren go to school, that you are currently away on vacation or anything else that could potentially lead to in person and identity theft. Anything you post can potentially be shared and seen by anyone regardless of your privacy settings and scammers scour social media sites harvesting bits of information about you, this information along with the tons of data that has been stolen in the numerous data breeches that have taken place can be used to build a profile on you that can lead to identity theft. A report from AARP, showed that victims of online scams were more active on social media and shared personal information about themselves.

Don’t post pictures which can be used for fraud and theft.

Posting Photos of Your Children & Grandchildren: You should never post photos of other people unless you have their consent. Children are too young to understand the consequences of having their photos posted. Even with strict privacy settings, these images could be stolen, copied, altered, or spread forever across the Internet, meaning you completely lose control of who sees these photos and what they do with them.

Posting Real-time Pictures: Pictures can disclose your location which lets criminals know where you are, this can be dangerous for several reasons, they know your home may be unoccupied and they could find you with the intent of doing personal harm.

Vacation Photos: This lets criminals know where you are and signals to them that your home may be unoccupied.

Posting Photos of Your Home: Criminals can look through these photos and find out what kind of car you drive, what type of home you live in, your address, what valuables you have and more.

Social Media is Not a Safe Place to Get Accurate Information

Social media is a digital cesspool of misinformation and untruths. Train yourself to be skeptical of anything you see.

Be Careful Where you Click

Beware of any links or popups you see, they can direct you to fraudulent websites designed to steal personal information or infect your device with malware.

Be Aware of Cyberbullying

Cyberbullying happens to people of all ages, if someone is threatening or harassing you online report it to your family and the authorities.

Don’t Participate in Quizzes & Games

According to a survey done by AARP, about 54 percent of respondents said they take online quizzes or surveys or download free apps on social media. These games and quizzes are dangerous, many are run by criminals who use them to gather personal and private information about users, some of the questions are similar to the security questions you answer when you sign up for online accounts and that is intentional, they can use your answers to break into your accounts. They can also use the information for fraudulent purposes including financial and identity theft.

​Beware of Catfishing

Catfishing is when a criminal sets up a fake account intended to attract people into a relationship to scam them. Romance scams targeting seniors are quite common. They build trust and eventually start asking for money. Don’t connect with people on social media, it is just not worth the risk.

Restrict Access from Third-Party Apps

Don’t permit third-party apps to access your accounts, review your settings if you have used your social media account to log into other accounts consider removing that access, the same is true if you have given a company access to your profile, this happens when you play a game, enter a contest to take part in some other activity.

Review Location-Sharing Settings

Some social media sites collect location information, they use this to target you with ads and suggestions. It is safer to turn this off.

Use Security Software

Install antivirus software on your computers and other devices, run scans regularly and keep the software up to date.

Be Cautious Using Public Wi-Fi

Avoid using public Wi-Fi which is extremely vulnerable to hacking, if you do use it don’t go to any sites that require a password to sign in such as your bank, email, online shopping, or social media.