Safeguarding Seniors from Financial Fraud
Safeguarding Seniors from Financial Fraud spotlights why senior financial fraud keeps rising despite AI fraud detection: scams exploit people, not just systems. The piece maps key risks—the digital literacy gap, status quo bias, and social isolation—that make elders vulnerable to phishing, voice-cloning “grandparent scams,” and romance schemes.
The Big Problem
Imagine getting a call from your 86-year-old grandmother, her voice fraught with worry. Embarrassed and scared, she tells you, “My bank account is empty. It’s all gone. I thought it was someone from my bank asking for account details, but it must have been a scammer. What am I going to do?”
Unfortunately, your grandmother is but one of millions of seniors who have fallen victim to financial fraud. In 2024 alone, Nasdaq’s Global Financial Crime Report revealed that $77.7 billion of global fraud was linked to elderly victims.1 As seniors are typically less comfortable using digital platforms and may hold substantial savings due to their age, they make prime targets for scammers, which is why they often experience higher fraud losses than other age groups.
Despite the investments that financial institutions have put into artificial intelligence (AI) fraud detection, the issue persists. If banks are working hard to develop advanced systems to protect their customers, why is the problem growing? That’s because financial fraud isn’t just a tech issue—it’s a behavioral one. Scammers are successful not because they can exploit systems, but because they exploit people, preying on those who may not be aware of sophisticated scams. By understanding the psychological reasons that make seniors susceptible to financial fraud, we can design interventions to support elders and safeguard them from financial and emotional trauma.
About the Author
Emilie Rose Jones
Emilie currently works in Marketing & Communications for a non-profit organization based in Toronto, Ontario. She completed her Masters of English Literature at UBC in 2021, where she focused on Indigenous and Canadian Literature. Emilie has a passion for writing and behavioural psychology and is always looking for opportunities to make knowledge more accessible.
