Start here: the free moves (do these first)
Freeze your credit free
The single best free move there is. A freeze stops anyone from opening credit in your name. It is free, and you can lift it anytime. Do it at all three bureaus.
Set a family safe word free
The one move that beats AI voice-clone calls cold. Pick a silly word, share it by phone, and ask for it on any panic call asking for money. Pearl will walk you through it.
AARP Fraud Watch helpline free
Not sure if something is a scam? Call a real, patient person at 877-908-3360. Free to anyone, member or not. A wonderful number to tape by the phone.
Worth the money: the paid tools Pearl recommends
You do not need all of these, dear. Pick the one that fixes your biggest worry and call it a day.
Aura
Watches your accounts, credit, and personal info around the clock, and a real human calls you when something looks wrong. The closest thing to "set it and forget it" for the worried family. Best all-in-one pick.
Incogni
Scammers buy your phone number and address from data brokers. Incogni makes those brokers delete your info, automatically, month after month. Fewer scam calls is the point.
1Password
One strong lock for every door. Pearl's rule: if you can remember the password, a scammer can guess it. Let the vault remember instead, and turn on two-step verification everywhere.
NordVPN
Keeps your connection private on hotel, cafe, and airport Wi-Fi, the places snoops love to listen in. Nice to have if you travel or bank on the go. Not essential at home.
🏮 Want it all in one printable kit?
The Scam-Proof Family Kit gathers every move into one big-print PDF you can print and share. See the kit ($19) →
Or get one free scam alert a week, plus the free Safe-Word one-pager →