AARP Hearing Center
Artificial intelligence (AI) is profoundly transforming numerous facets of our daily lives. For example, it powers personal assistants like Siri and Alexa, provides personalized recommendations on platforms like Netflix and Amazon, and aids in navigation and travel through Google Maps and Waze. However, AI also brings new challenges, especially in the areas of scams and fraud.
A recent AARP study was conducted to understand the concerns of U.S. adults ages 50 and older regarding the potential misuse of AI for identity theft and fraud. The findings revealed a significant level of worry among this demographic. A large majority of older adults are concerned about the various ways AI can be used fraudulently to get people to share confidential information and/or make financial transactions, including:
- Password cracking: 87 percent
- Spear phishing: 84 percent
- Deepfakes: 85 percent
- Voice cloning: 84 percent
- Synthetic identities: 83 percent
- Automated scams targeting large numbers of people simultaneously: 81 percent
Additionally, the study found a significant majority of older adults expressed worry that AI could be used fraudulently to influence the 2024 Presidential election (85 percent) and that they might personally become targets of an AI-related fraud in the future (77 percent).
Methodology
This survey was fielded from August 15 to 19, 2024, and completed by 1,000 U.S. adults age 50-plus, via the Foresight 50+ Omnibus. Funded and operated by NORC at the University of Chicago, Foresight 50+ is a probability-based panel designed to be representative of the U.S. household population age 50 or older. Interviews were conducted online and via phone. All data are weighted by age, sex, education, race/ethnicity, region, political party and AARP membership.
For more information, please contact Alicia Williams, Ph.D., AARP Research at arwilliams@aarp.org. For media inquiries, please contact media@aarp.org.
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