The script, in four moves
Nothing here is improvised case by case. It's a repeated script, sent to thousands of numbers harvested online, that only works on a fraction of recipients — but that fraction is enough to make it a profitable industry.
Psychological levers used
These aren't isolated tricks: they're documented mechanisms, used in thousands of different scams. Explore the Grammar of Manipulation →
One script, tailored to every market
"Hi Mum" by text and WhatsApp
At its peak in 2022, this scam caught over 11,000 people in Australia, costing AU$7.2 million. In the UK, Santander alone recorded 506 cases and £490,606 lost since the start of 2025.
ACCC · Santander UKThe grandparent scam, by phone
Americans aged 60+ reported $7.7 billion in fraud losses in 2025. In Canada, the Anti-Fraud Centre logged over $23 million lost to the emergency scam alone, most often a call posing as a grandchild needing bail or hospital money.
FBI IC3 · Canadian Anti-Fraud CentreThe same urgency, a different mask
India's "digital arrest" scam swaps a family member for a fake police officer or government agent, using the same pressure tactics — urgency, isolation, a payment demanded now. Indians lost an estimated ₹2,140 crore to it in just the first 10 months of 2024, with reported cases nearly tripling between 2022 and 2024.
Government of India (PIB)Family impersonation, on the rise
Impersonating a friend or family member — often a relative claiming a hospital emergency — accounts for an estimated 18% of scams reported across surveyed African countries. Nigeria separately ranks as the continent's most-spammed country, with 51% of unknown calls flagged as unwanted.
KnowBe4 Africa report (impersonation) · Truecaller (Nigeria spam ranking)The mirror: the same industry, one generation up
What arrives as a text for you usually arrives as a phone call for your parents. The voice — sometimes cloned by AI from a clip found online — poses as your child, their grandchild, in trouble: an accident, an arrest, a hospital. The ask is the same: money, fast, without telling anyone else "so we don't worry them." You're the target of one version, and the character played in the other.
What actually works
- Never save the "new number" without checking first. Simply saving it under your child's name makes the rest of the conversation feel more credible to you.
- Call the old number back. If they really did change phones, they'll have another way to reach you regardless.
- Agree on a family code word. A question only a real relative would know the answer to — a practice recommended by law enforcement from the FBI to police forces across Europe, as AI-cloned voices make this scam harder to catch by ear alone.
- Never wire money under time pressure to an account you don't recognize, whatever the story attached to it.
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What Egidio sees
The initial text — unknown number, a claimed new number, a push toward WhatsApp, financial urgency — carries a behavioral signature that Egidio's engine recognizes on calls for free, and across messaging apps in Premium. That's the principle demonstrated on our "One scam, three channels" page: a single attack that moves from channel to channel, recognized as one continuous attack instead of three unrelated messages.
Protecting the whole chain
Your parent gets the voice version, you get the text version — one protection can cover both. Egidio's Family mode protects up to 4 people — you, your kids, your parents — under a single $59.99-a-year subscription.
Questions
How do I recognize the "Hi Mum" or grandparent scam?
A text or WhatsApp message from an unknown number, claiming to be your child who broke or lost their phone, asks you to move the conversation to WhatsApp, then ends with an urgent request for money sent to an account you don't recognize. The older-generation version usually arrives as a phone call instead, with a caller claiming to be a grandchild in trouble.
Why do my parents get a different version of this scam?
The same criminal networks adapt the script to the generation they're targeting: text and WhatsApp for a working-age parent, a phone call — sometimes with an AI-cloned voice — for an older relative, posing as a grandchild in distress.
What should I do if I get this message or call?
Never save the "new number" without verifying it first. Call your child back on their old number, or reach them through another channel you already trust. Never wire money urgently to an unfamiliar account, whatever story is attached to the request.
Can Egidio detect this kind of scam?
The initial text — unknown number, a claimed new number, a push toward WhatsApp, financial urgency — carries a behavioral signature that Egidio's engine recognizes on calls for free, and across messaging apps in Premium.
Is the "grandparent scam" the same thing as the "Hi Mum" scam?
Same industry, different generation and channel. "Hi Mum" usually arrives as a text or WhatsApp message aimed at a working-age parent. The grandparent scam usually arrives as a phone call aimed at an older relative, with a caller posing as a grandchild in trouble — sometimes using an AI-cloned voice.
What is India's "digital arrest" scam, and how is it related?
It's the same industrial playbook — urgency, isolation, a payment demanded now — with a fake police officer or government agent standing in for a family member. Indians lost an estimated ₹2,140 crore to it in the first 10 months of 2024 alone.
One protection, the whole family
4 people, one subscription, $59.99 a year. Everyone protected on their own device, with nobody watching anyone else.
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