The FBI reports that elder fraud losses exceeded $7.7 billion in 2025, highlighting the importance of protecting personal information from scammers this Father’s Day.
As Father’s Day approaches, many people are contemplating the usual gift options: a golf shirt, a grill tool set, or perhaps another gift card that feels convenient but lacks a personal touch. This year, consider a gift that goes beyond the ordinary—one that could help safeguard your dad from potential scams.
Your father’s name, home address, phone number, and even your name may already be exposed on numerous people-search websites, accessible to anyone with an internet connection. Scammers are not merely browsing these sites; they are actively using them to construct detailed profiles. This means they could know where your dad lives, who his relatives are, and how to fabricate a convincing emergency scenario.
One of the most valuable gifts you can offer this Father’s Day may not come wrapped in a box. Instead, it involves dedicating 30 minutes of your time to implement a few smart privacy measures and utilizing services designed to protect him throughout the year.
To understand the extent of the issue, visit sites like Spokeo, WhitePages, or BeenVerified and enter your dad’s name. The results may be shocking. A typical profile might reveal personal details such as age, current and previous addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, and a list of relatives—including your name. This information serves as a starting point for scammers who can then connect the dots to create a more convincing narrative.
Once a scammer has your father’s basic profile, the potential for damage escalates quickly. Data broker sites do more than provide current contact information; they can also disclose address history, estimated household income, property ownership, and familial connections. For instance, a phone call could begin with, “Hey Dad, it’s me. I’m in serious trouble, and I can’t tell Mom yet.” The scammer may know your name, your city, and even that he is your father. Suddenly, the call feels less like a scam and more like a family crisis.
Many banks and financial institutions still rely on knowledge-based verification, which often includes answers to personal questions like a mother’s maiden name or previous addresses. Unfortunately, these answers may already be available on public data broker profiles. A scammer could impersonate your dad and answer these questions correctly without needing his password.
Data broker profiles often contain estimated home values and income ranges derived from public records and marketing databases. If your father’s profile indicates a paid-off home and a long history of stable residence, he may appear to be an attractive target for investment fraud, fake Medicare schemes, and government impersonation scams. The exposure of one person’s profile can jeopardize the entire family network, linking your dad’s data to yours and potentially to his grandchildren’s.
According to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center, complaints from victims over 60 years old exceeded 201,000 in 2025, with reported losses surpassing $7.7 billion—a staggering 59% increase compared to the previous year. The average reported loss for older victims was over $38,000. Unlike a stolen credit card charge, which banks can often reverse, losses for many older adults stem from retirement accounts or home equity accumulated over decades. Once that money is lost, recovery can be challenging, if not impossible.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has documented a more than fourfold increase since 2020 in reports from older adults claiming to have lost $10,000 or more to impersonation scams. The combined losses reported by older adults who lost more than $100,000 increased eightfold, from $55 million in 2020 to $445 million in 2024. Given that most elder fraud goes unreported due to embarrassment, confusion, or lack of knowledge on how to report it, the FTC estimates that the actual losses experienced by older adults in 2024 could be as high as $81.5 billion.
Your dad is not careless or naive; he is simply exposed and often unaware of the risks. He did not consent to having his information listed on these sites. Data brokers acquire information from various sources, including voter registration records, property tax filings, court documents, marketing survey responses, loyalty program memberships, and phone directories. Once this information is in the system, it is continuously bought, sold, and resold.
Even if your dad has never heard of Spokeo or BeenVerified, his profile may already exist online. Social media can exacerbate the problem; a Facebook account, tagged photos, or public family connections can provide scammers with additional clues. Combined with a data broker profile, this information can give them enough detail to impersonate family members and target his finances.
You can conduct a quick free scan at CyberGuy.com to see how much of your father’s information is already available online. Results typically arrive via email within an hour, and many people are surprised by what they find.
Consider this process as something to do together with your dad, rather than just for him. It takes about 30 minutes and can be more meaningful than any store-bought gift. Begin by visiting Spokeo.com, Whitepages.com, and BeenVerified.com. Enter his name and state, and take screenshots of what you find. This will serve as a baseline for what is currently visible to anyone searching.
Once you have identified the data broker sites, each should have an opt-out or “Remove My Information” link, often located in the page footer. Submit removal requests for the profiles you discover. Some sites may require email verification, and others may relist the same information weeks later. Despite potential frustrations, walking through the process together can help your dad understand the risks and why ongoing protection is essential.
Additionally, you should call his bank together to update the knowledge-based security verification on his account. If the bank still uses questions like a mother’s maiden name or previous address, those answers are likely already available on a data broker site. A simple solution is to replace them with nonsensical answers only he knows, such as “Mother’s maiden name: BlueTractor62.” This way, scammers cannot easily find the answer.
Establishing a family code word can also be a crucial step. Agree on a word or short phrase that only your immediate family knows. If he receives a call from someone claiming to be you or discussing you, he should ask for the code word. If the caller cannot provide it, he should hang up and call you directly. With advancements in AI, scammers can now clone voices, making impersonation calls even harder to detect. A pre-agreed family code word can cut through the confusion.
It is important to note that while these steps are effective, they are only a snapshot in time. Data brokers constantly refresh their databases, meaning information you remove today may reappear in the future without any action on your part. Therefore, the most beneficial Father’s Day gift is not a one-time cleanup but ongoing protection that operates in the background.
A data removal service can send removal requests to hundreds of data brokers on your dad’s behalf and continuously monitor for his information, sending new requests when it reappears. A family plan may be the most prudent option, as your exposure is linked to his. Covering several family members under one plan can help protect everyone simultaneously.
Before concluding your visit, leave him with a memorable instruction: “If anyone ever calls claiming to be me and asking for money, hang up and call me back directly. I will never reach out through an unknown number.” Reiterate this message to ensure he understands its importance.
Your dad’s personal information may already be on people-search sites, and he may be unaware of its presence. Scammers can leverage this data to make their communications feel more personal, potentially leading to financial exploitation. This Father’s Day, consider giving the gift of security. Spend time with your dad to search for his information, remove what you can, update his bank security answers, and create a family code word. Additionally, consider automated data removal services to ensure his information does not resurface later. The best gift may be one that helps him avoid the call, text, or email that could cost him far more than money in the long run.
Have you ever searched your dad’s name or your own on a people-search site and been surprised by the results? Share your experiences with us at CyberGuy.com.
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